I keep getting the same totems but am waiting for that red one with the tongue sticking out in the Puzzles picture... is there really one?

Yep! Just be patient.

I had seven of the eight totems and it took me until I had 27 totems until I got the last one.

Oh gosh.... that's alot of totems. But waiting that long just to get the last one...hmmm...

I must admit I don't really like managing my 'Master' village because there's far too many villagers and it's soooo messy!! I'd far prefer to manage a smaller one. Hence I don't think I'm going for THAT many Totems..Oh well...

Is it a must to increase the population to the maximum to gain some form of milestone in the game?

dont think so, but max pop is over 100 (probably as high as 110)

I "manage" my larger village by dressing them by job skills. It really helps to know who's who and then dress them differently when they reach Elder, so I don't have to "manage" them again. There are other threads about this and seems to work for many people.

So far I've got my max population up to 115.

I just got my 1st Totem (i had to tell you)from one of my original villagers Anmina (Esteemed Elder), she's mastered research, building, farming & is just half way with healing & parenting (she has only had 2 children as she is my runner so i have her helping where i need some speed). I only have one blue smiling totem at moment. Cant wait to see the others when i earn them. I only have pop of 19 & will keep it at that until i know i have enough food, doctors etc to help keep my villagers healthy.

How many totems are there in total?

I had 3 now.. my pop just reach 19 only..

1. Light blue one with tougue sticking out
2. Red one with big tougue sticking out
3. Purple and yellow that look like crying

There are 8 types of Totems in total.