Today is the day we pick the other half of our final 4 contestants! We have some great matches today, and the pairings are perfect for some brutal bird battles.

This first matchup has a pair of the biggest owls of the Eurasian continent. We’ve got the Bubo bubo itself, practically owl royalty, the statuesque and stoic Eurasian Eagle Owl!

But big muscles are dirty looks aren’t everything… Not here at Owl of the Year. We’re nerdy for the birdies, so not all of us get to hang at the cool table with EEO and its friends. Some of us prefer the class clown, the one who doesn’t take itself so seriously. It’s friendly, it’s floppy, and it’s maybe just a tiny bit fishy… It’s the Buffy Fish Owl!

Which burb gets your precious upvote today?

    • pseudo@slrpnk.net
      4·
      2 months ago

      My family member says it looks like the owl in Winnie the Poe stories. Yet it hasn’t vote for it. I can’t blame them. The choice is too hard too be logical.

      • anon6789@lemmy.worldOP
        1·
        2 months ago

        Owl is a bit of a mystery.

        In the books, I’d say he is a Tawny. Definitely a chouette, and Eagle Owls were largely gone from England at the time the creator would have been thinking of the animals visiting his home.

        Disney’s Owl just seems vaguely owlish. It feels more based on an owl plush Christopher Robin would have and not a real owl. Not very anatomically correct at all. Book Owl even has the correct feet!

        I have not seen the recent live action Christopher Robin movie, and despite being very CGI, this version of owl is 100% Eagle Owl.

        • pseudo@slrpnk.net
          2·
          2 months ago

          I’ll pass the message to my relative. But funny thing. In French, the character is called “Maître Hibou”. So not tawny but I’m not even sure if I read the books.

          • anon6789@lemmy.worldOP
            1·
            2 months ago

            That is interesting they gave him an honorific. He’s just “Owl” for us. Adding the Maître reflects his personality well.

            • pseudo@slrpnk.net
              2·
              1 month ago

              Maître here means “Teacher” than “Master”. It is still an honorific but it means more on the proverbial wisdom of an owl.

              • anon6789@lemmy.worldOP
                2·
                1 month ago

                Yes, I was thinking of it in terms like school master. From what I recall, Owl always presents himself as very worldly and well-read, but really doesn’t know any more than the other animals. He’s just got an excess amount of confidence. 😄

      • anon6789@lemmy.worldOP
        2·
        2 months ago

        They’re amazing! I often get to see the one the falconers at the shore have on their team to chase the gulls away from tourists. His name is Ozzy.

      • anon6789@lemmy.worldOP
        7·
        2 months ago

        I thought it was an eel, but the photographer didn’t specify.

        It would just as happily slurp either though.

          • anon6789@lemmy.worldOP
            1·
            2 months ago

            I can’t believe how tense both these matches have been all day! I thought Buffy was in trouble when it got 5 votes behind, but now it’s in the lead again.

            And Saw Whet vs Screech, they’ve been all over each other all day!

            I don’t even know what to prepare for tomorrow since I won’t have a winner until I wake up.

              • anon6789@lemmy.worldOP
                1·
                2 months ago

                I think I’m going to do one match tomorrow and one Wed, so each semi final gets full attention, a break day, and then final on Friday, announce winner Sat.

                I got photo sets ready for WF, Eagle, and Buffy. I’ll just need the blurb and cover photo. Then I have normal time to do Snowy vs ? and time to get the finale together.

  • anon6789@lemmy.worldOP
    11·
    2 months ago

    White Face vs Flammy was a tough one through much of the day, but the Flamulated started sputtering out later in the race. I had been hoping it could shake things up, but it does not seem it was meant to be. White Face is our first of the final 4 contestants once more.

    Winner of this match will face White Face in the semi-finals. Whichever does win though, I think it can bring the fight to WF.

  • Optional@lemmy.world
    8·
    2 months ago

    I love an EEO
    It’s a giant if kind of stuffy
    But my vote belongs to the fish owl
    Whether Blakiston’s or Buffy

    • anon6789@lemmy.worldOP
      3·
      2 months ago

      These contests are tight today! Both have been back and forth a number of times.

      For tiebreakers, I usually ask Mrs 6789, but she couldn’t pick her winner for either contest, and I asked my coworker as well and she said they were both too good to decide! It’s gonna be tricky if nobody jumps ahead!

  • pseudo@jlai.lu
    5·
    2 months ago

    You cannot do that ! That’s so unfair for big hiboux when snoowy and white face had small adversary…

    • anon6789@lemmy.worldOP
      3·
      2 months ago

      You all had the bracket to see what you were setting yourselves up for! This was all in your hands, I have no say! 😇

      • pseudo@jlai.lu
        3·
        2 months ago

        All I see is the day I’m too busy to vote, people do nothing but a mess *grumpy old grumpy-guy noise*