It’s almost Valentine’s Day and Google has a new doodle to celebrate the occasion. Pangolin Love features a couple of pangolins looking for the perfect gift. The Doodle is Google’s way to raise awareness about these endangered species.
According to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), pangolins are the most poached and trafficked mammals in the world because of the huge demand for their meat and scales, especially in Asia.
The doodle’s game has four levels where the red pangolin has to collect all sorts of items for its loved one in a remote corner of the world. The tech giant and conservationist organization are doing everything in their power to raise the visibility of this issue.
Mr. Pangolin will do anything to make his girl happy
To start playing Valentine’s Day Google doodle, users just need to go to the homepage as usual. There, instead of the iconic logo of the company, they will find a couple of lovey-dovey pangolins waiting to reunite.
The red Pangolin has just received a letter from its blue pangolin partner, saying to meet it for Valentine’s Day. Our protagonist worries when it sees itself empty-handed and a couple sharing a chocolate cake.
It then embarks on a journey through Ghana to collect cocoa beans and learn how to make chocolate cake. Players control the pangolin with the arrow keys to move and the spacebar to jump.
Next up, it stops by India to catch some tunes and write a song for its loved one. In China, it learns how to dance with red ribbons. The Philippines is the last stop, where it gathers flowers for a bouquet and finally ends ups meeting the blue pangolin.
Each level gives players 2 minutes to collect 150 items, except the last one which has double drop rates and gives twice as much time.
Why are pangolins critically endangered?
Pangolins are the only scaly mammals in the world, and there are eight different species spread across Africa and Asia. Poachers hunt them for their coveted scales, used in all sorts of things on these territories.
“MORE THAN ONE MILLION PANGOLINS HAVE BEEN ILLEGALLY TAKEN FROM THE WILD TO BE USED IN FASHION PRODUCTS AND PURPORTED MEDICINAL REMEDIES,” says the World Wildlife Fund.
Also, some Asian cultures treasure these creatures for their meat. It is considered a delicacy and it is the main ingredient of in several gourmet dishes.
Along with Google, the WWF has the ‘Adopt a Pangolin’ initiative. For $25, $55, or $100, people receive special kits of pangolin-themed merchandise, while all their donations go to conservationist funds.
The tech giant has collaborated with the Fund before through Google.org, allowing them to use their technology to track pangolins and protect them from poachers.