Noah’s Pals on Collectors’ Quest

The Noah’s Pals collection is different from other toys in a big but simple way – when you “collect them all” you get a reward for your effort by earning a Caboodle! That idea is built upon the notion that people love gathering a collection. And that passion is beautifully captured by Collectors’ Quest and it’s amazing blog.

We were fortunate enough to be profiled on Collectors’ Quest by Deanna Dahlsad in two great posts:
- Be Like Noah: Collect The Animals and Be Rewarded
- The Noah’s Pals Interview

Thank you Deanna and Collectors’ Quest for sharing Noah’s Pals with your readers!

Recommended Viewing: Planet Earth on Discovery Channel

Over the last few Sundays, I have been watching “Planet Earth” on the Discovey Channel. Quite simply, it is the finest production on animal wildlife I have ever seen.

The series is co-produced by the BBC and the Discovery Channel and originally aired in the United Kingdom last year. The eleven episodes look closely at Earth’s natural habitats and the natural behavior of wildlife. The images captured are amazingly beautiful with action recorded through the camera lens that had never been seen by human eyes before. For example, the clip of the snow leopards pursuing markhor in the Himalays.

Below are a few more clips from “Planet Earth” that are hosted on YouTube. But I highly recommend watching the series in high definition format to truly appreciate the stunning camera work.

Fewer Crocodile Tears in Florida…

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has decided to reclassify the crocodile (Crocodylus acutus) from “endangered” to “threatened” in Florida, but it remains endangered in other parts of Central and South America.

National Geographic News reports:

American crocodiles, which can reach 12.5 feet (3.8 meters) in length, are reclusive animals that haunt the sheltered waters of coastal mangrove swamps and bays, creeks, and inland freshwater swamps.

The reptiles resemble their close relative, the American alligator, which is not an endangered species and is common throughout the southeastern United States.

But crocodile populations had been decimated in the 20th century by unchecked urban and agricultural land development combined with overhunting.

The species was first listed as endangered in 1975. A survey the following year estimated that only 200 to 300 animals remained in Florida.

The article notes that crocodile numbers have increased to an estimated 1,400 to 2,000.

While this croc has pretty green eyes…

… I’ll still keep my distance.

We plan on adding a pair of aquatic reptiles (e.g., alligator, crocodile, caiman) to the next series of Noah’s Pals.

Snow Leopards: Equipped with big, furry paws for hunting in the mountains

In our collection, we are very fond of our big cats including the reclusive Shawn + Stephanie Snow Leopard.

These beautiful animals live virtually alone in the mountains and forests of Central Asia. They are easily identified by long, thick tails that provide them with excellent balance up and down icy rocks and cliffs. They also have big furry feet that serve as snowshoes.

We found two great videos on YouTube on snow leopards. In this first video, a montage of pictures shows you the beauty of these creatures:

The second video shares the first images of snow leopards in the wild, including a greeting between a mother and a cub and a hunt that doesn’t turn out the way the snow leopard expected.

We had an opportunity to see snow leopards at Bronx Zoo last summer. We encourage you to see these great creatures up close. Here are other great places to visit these cats:
- Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle
- Cleveland Metroparks Zoo
- Saint Louis Zoo

A New Species of Leopard!

The Daily Mail reports that a new species of leopard has been discovered - and it has the largest fangs in the cat world. It lives deep in the Borneo rain forest and has beautiful elliptical spots that are smaller and darker than its cousin, the Bornean clouded leopard.

The fangs of the newly discovered leopard can grow up to two inches in length! That is bad news for the other members of the forest:

Tails as long as their bodies allow the secretive and solitary creatures to balance in trees, where they perch to pounce on their prey.

Monkeys, barking deer and bearded pigs can be killed with a single bite, with the leopard having no fear of seeking out prey that is bigger than itself.

Such adept hunting skills put the clouded leopard, which at 35 inches from head to start of tail is about the size of a small Labrador, right at the top of the island’s food chain.

Big cats are among the most vulnerable and endangered animals in the world, so it is nice to hear news of the discovery of a new species.

An Amazing Printable

Derek + Delilah DOVE are looking for Noah and they need your help through the maze.

How fast can they make it?

Click on the picture below to launch a one-page PDF for easy printing:

Look to the navigation on the far right for other great printables.

The Incredible Lyre Bird

My favorite animal clip is also the favorite of fans of David Attenborough. His segment on the Lyre Bird was rated as the top TV moment of his UK show.

The bird can identically imitate sounds of other birds — and man-made objects too.  I don’t want to give away the real surprise… The four-minute clip below really starts to amaze halfway through. The audio is just as important as the video, so listen carefully.

While this is my favorite clip for now, we promise to embed additional ‘favorite’ animal videos in the future.

Noah’s Pals and Philanthropy

When we decided to create the Noah’s Pals collection, we realized it was important for us to embrace conservation efforts to preserve the earth’s wildlife and ecosystems. Like Noah, we genuinely want to make a difference in animals’ lives.

To that end, we are donating 5% of our net profits to the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS). We encourage our collectors to learn more about the WCS, as well as other great organizations that are dedicated to animal education and conservation.

WCS is well-known for its hard work across the world. In fact, they have a presence in fifty-three nations across Africa, Asia, Latin America, and North America. Locally, they have a special place in our heart as New Yorkers. They run the great wildlife parks in the New York City area — Bronx Zoo, New York Aquarium, Central Park Zoo, Queens Zoo, and Prospect Park Zoo.

In future months, we will make a visit to a zoo or two and report on our adventures.