In the real world, a haniver or "jenny" haniver is the dried-out carcass of a stingray, cut and tied in different places to resemble an angel, devil or dragon. It's a form of nautical/taxidermy art that goes back hundreds of years, and the origin of the name is completely unknown.
What looks like a set of eye sockets are actually the animal's nostrils:
The underside of a living ray for comparison:
Remarkably, M.I.M.P is not the only series of small toys to include one. I got this from clawmark toys as part of a cryptozoology set:
Here's an antique zoological drawing by someone who was completely fooled by one of these fake "monsters:"
...And at custom creature taxidermy, you can buy the real thing! $40 each:
http://www.customcre...antasy_3ff.html
Last year, a Haniver was even used to hoax a chupacabra carcass. They haven't lost their touch!
Edited by scythemantis, 06 September 2008 - 05:03 PM.