Buffy has retained a bit of its popularity from last year, coming off a great win over Mottled Wood. I thought the newcomer would have given it a bit more challenge, but its charming personality overcame the challenger with no issue.

The petite Saw Whet has been making big waves, having the second highest score of the first tier matches. There’s been a few people calling for SWO to go all the way to the finals.

Both owls are known for their charming appearance, one a dopey big lug, the other is pure concentrated cuteness. Which owl gets your vote? Upvote them now!

#superbowl #owloftheyear2024

    • casmael@lemm.ee
      7·
      2 days ago

      Wow that’s a great fucking shot man 🫨 You caught the little guy at a really good angle

      What’s your camera kit?

        • anon6789@lemmy.worldOP
          5·
          2 days ago

          There is a >0% chance you could have been the first human it ever saw up close depending how far away it flew in from!

          It’s a really good picture and if Saw Whet moves on I can use it as one of the photos if that’s alright. I feel it’s on par with them.

          • CheeryLBottom@lemmy.world
            4·
            2 days ago

            Yeah, several members of the family grabbed their phones and cameras and it let up just snap away.

            I still look for an owl in that spruce tree :)

            • anon6789@lemmy.worldOP
              4·
              2 days ago

              That must have been fun!

              They don’t migrate to the same place every year, but you still have a tree that has been blessed by a fine owl. 🦉

    • onigiri@lemm.ee
      7·
      2 days ago

      So tiny, so cute. ❤️ Look at its face! And the feet! How could you not vote for it? Saw Whet 2024

    • LumunEnglish
      7·
      2 days ago

      No this can’t be the end for Buffy! Just look at that majestic awkwardness. It’s hard to overcome the cute factor though

      • anon6789@lemmy.worldOP
        4·
        2 days ago

        It feels like a low turnout day. Hopefully some people show up later, or there will be some disappointed people tomorrow.

        I can’t believe the drop in votes Snowy is having. That will be a big upset if it loses to Crested! You guys had me thinking this was Snowy’s year…

    • pseudo@jlai.lu
      5·
      2 days ago

      I was hesitant but the fish owl eating a fish is just too much beautiful.

      • anon6789@lemmy.worldOP
        3·
        2 days ago

        I was unsure whether I should include that pic or not. I could see how some could dislike it, but you also can’t have a fish owl without acknowledging it eats fish.

        It was a pretty big fish as well, and the expression says “I can hardly believe I got one this large myself!”

        • onigiri@lemm.ee
          2·
          2 days ago

          No, that pic is excellent. It’s just so weird that some owls eat fish. It almost got me to vote for it.

          • anon6789@lemmy.worldOP
            3·
            2 days ago

            I don’t know exactly how they get them. I’d love to see it because everything I read says they don’t like to get wet.

            There’s the Fish Owls of Asia (Brown, Buffy, Tawny, Blakiston’s) and the Fishing Owls of Africa (Pel’s, Rufous, Vermiculated) that all love fish.

  • anon6789@lemmy.worldOP
    9·
    2 days ago

    There’s going to be a lot of heartbroken fans today, as Burrow never quite caught up to the GHO.

    It was very close all day, and it was a good showing for both owls overall. Both will always be popular with the photographers, so we will not have to miss Burrow Owl for long before we get to enjoy more of their antics!

  • CheeryLBottom@lemmy.world
    4·
    2 days ago

    Saw Whet, but mainly because one landed in the tree outside my window and I went outside and got a fantastic photo of it