One thing I love about bodhran playing is that although it's a completely modern invention it's created some world-class percussion techniques and players with more innovations happening all the time. Of course there's a lot of not-so interesting stuff going on (hence the jokes), but I see enough young (& old) energetic & inventive players around to keep me smiling.
Getting back on thread, the secret of good bodhran playing is using the skin of a big enough cat: Lion gives a good authoratitive roar; Leopard is good for subtlety, stealth and cunning, but for really fast playing Cheetah is unbeatable.