this post was submitted on 17 Dec 2023

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2023 Owl of the Year FINALS! Snowy Owl vs White Faced Scops Owl (files.catbox.moe)

submitted 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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WINNER: WHITE FACED SCOPS OWL 125-99

We've reached the final battle of the year!

Snowy Owl's charms and grace have kept it in the upper echelon of owls for a very long time. They are elegant, they have a captivating personality, they are the only owl with primarily bright plumage. Truly a one of a kind owl.

White Faced Scops is a master of expression. From innocent to sinister, it has a look that embodies any emotion. It has a modern silverish grey wooden look. It's got beautiful amber orange eyes. Long thick plumicorns. And of course, the trademarked moustache! It has so many features we love in owls, all in one amazing bird, yet it uniquely its own.

Who will be your champion today? Vote now!

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[–] [email protected] 129 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (2 children)

White Faced Scops

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[–] [email protected] 4 points 10 months ago (1 children)

The first picture in this comment convinced me; can't disappoint a face like that.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 10 months ago

I tried to get something for everyone and make the choice as difficult as possible! 😉

[–] [email protected] 4 points 10 months ago (1 children)

I love snowy owls, but this boi is just peak owl - the horns, the big eyes, the slightly irritated look, and that little beak mustache. One superbOwl.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 10 months ago

It's more than the sum of its parts, but they are some dang good parts to begin with.

Better ingredients, better owls?

[–] [email protected] 96 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (1 children)

Snowy Owl

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[–] [email protected] 13 points 10 months ago

Remember this guy? He should win.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 10 months ago (1 children)

A very difficult decision, but I knew I had to go with old faithful, the Snowy.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 10 months ago

At times like this, you gotta go with your heart!

[–] [email protected] 11 points 10 months ago (1 children)

It's time! Feel free to drop a post on [email protected] to celebrate the finals

[–] [email protected] 7 points 10 months ago

Dang, this would have been good to have at the start of this!

Can still do a nice summary there this time though. Thanks!

[–] [email protected] 10 points 10 months ago

Make sure to vote, this one is for all the marb-owls!

[–] [email protected] 10 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Oh no! My Snowy Owl is not doing well! At least WFS is an opponent worthy to lose to.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 10 months ago

No matter where the total ends up, Snowy will always be considered a superb owl by just about everyone!

[–] [email protected] 8 points 10 months ago (2 children)

The final battle? So it's the Superb Owl Super Bowl?

[–] [email protected] 3 points 10 months ago

Supersuperbowlbowl

[–] [email protected] 2 points 10 months ago

Superbiest?

[–] [email protected] 7 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Funny enough I had a feeling it’d find down to these too. The owl made famous by Harry Potter vs the owl of many faces.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Agreed. Even though the finalists were fairly predictable, the road to get here certainly wasn't! Even now I'm surprised the poor start the Snowy is having. I felt it almost unfair how great I thought today's Snowy pics are, but it seems to not be affecting voting whatsoever. I joked on the other post how it seems the Buffy and Flammy fans are out for revenge on the voting so far.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 10 months ago (1 children)

My thought is that the snowy owl wouldn’t even be in the running if it weren’t for its fame from the series. The white faced owl really stands on its own.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 10 months ago (1 children)

O RLY? Snowy Owl is excellent even without the Harry Potter boost. It’s pretty iconic among owls.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 10 months ago

I think you're both correct. Snowy gets lots of attention because it's great, and it stays in people's minds due to its constant exposure. It also makes it an owl we're all familiar with around the world as well. Great Horned Owl is deservedly famous in North America. Tawny Owl is the popular owl in the UK. We don't have Tawny and they don't have GHO, so without TV, movies, memes, etc it's more difficult for them to get ingrained in our hearts and minds.

Since this is the first tourney, I expected these results, but do you see ones like Buffy, Flammy, and Sooty who were pretty much unknown a month ago to not do even better next year? They've gotten your awareness now, and you're going to look forward to seeing them posted on here again and to vote for them next year, because now they're a part of your fandom even though you'll probably never see one in person.

And that's how I suckered youb all into loving even more owls so you care about them and their habits even more! Muhahaha!

[–] [email protected] 7 points 10 months ago (2 children)

But they're both so glorious! So derp, so a n g e r y

How do we even choose??

[–] [email protected] 9 points 10 months ago (1 children)

I made my spouse choose

[–] [email protected] 7 points 10 months ago

They're there to get us through our tough times! 😁

[–] [email protected] 4 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Just upvote both!

[–] [email protected] 5 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Really and honestly, I did though

[–] [email protected] 5 points 10 months ago

Same! My girlfriend weighed in on the Flammy vs GHO tie.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 10 months ago

Snowy FTW

[–] [email protected] 6 points 10 months ago (1 children)

WFS Propaganda: https://ebird.org/species/nwfowl1

[–] [email protected] 5 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

Whoever that was that posted the Dutch name for the Snowy Owl has my eBird settings set to Dutch now for everything! 😂

Seems the White Faced Scops is called Noordelijke Witwangdwergooruil. Google says that means "Northern White-cheeked Scops Owl."

[–] [email protected] 4 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Great write up! Great photos! The snowy owl reminds me of a seal #superbowl

[–] [email protected] 6 points 10 months ago

It does look like a seal a bit!

seabert

I wanted to find some rrrrrrealy good pics for the final, but that's what I did every round, but I do feel I managed to find some real good ones.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (1 children)

I've been showing all these matchups to my grandma. We didn't know so many different owls existed! She votes for the snowy owl.

(Do we vote by commenting or is there a poll somewhere?)

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[–] [email protected] 4 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Snowy owl!!

[–] [email protected] 2 points 10 months ago

He's starting to get a little surge in the votes.

I'm not counting him out yet!

[–] [email protected] 4 points 10 months ago (3 children)

I love the walrus stache!

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[–] [email protected] 3 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Clearly this is an ancient Queen and King reincarnated as birds

[–] [email protected] 2 points 10 months ago

They are quite regal! 🤴👸

[–] [email protected] 3 points 10 months ago (1 children)

A vote for the snowy please, but they are both excellent owls.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 10 months ago

They are!

Have you learned about any new owls in the tournament that you really like now?

[–] [email protected] 3 points 10 months ago (1 children)

This has been so much fun. I hope you enjoy some personal time over the holiday season. We'd love to see you back but, if not, you've given us a truly entertaining superbowl

[–] [email protected] 2 points 10 months ago

Oh, I'll still be here. I got a few specific things planned yet, but otherwise I intend to share pics and news with you all. Just on a less strict schedule and not quite as many pics all at once!

[–] [email protected] 2 points 10 months ago (1 children)

I'm not going to say how I voted, but it ended up being a surprise to me.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 10 months ago

I'm so positively surprised how seriously people seem to have taken this whole tournament. Everyone looks to have had a lot of fun, but also so many of you seem to have really put a lot of thought and feeling into it instead of just going with what your immediate instincts were.

Everyone was also very receptive to all the new birds. I expected most to score very low, due to being unfamiliar, but with some of the upset victories, it's clear you all put much thought into it.

I'm glad I could show you all both new birds and new sides to all these animals. I tried to capture them all fairly with the photos I chose. They're all worth your attention, and I hope you've all found some new ones for your favorites lists!

[–] [email protected] 2 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Yay! My dorky cutie won! 😁

[–] [email protected] 2 points 10 months ago (2 children)

It's a great owl that deserves the spotlight back on it for a bit!

I hope to show you many more new derpy ones in the future!

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