The bracket is made!
I think this year’s lineup is an improvement over last year. Based on what I’ve seen, all the opening matches look very competitive. My goal was to fix some of the lop-sided wins we had, and I’m feeling good about how this schedule looks.
There’s going to be some tough choices for you guys. Much like last year, I’m glad I don’t need to decide, but I’m still going to have to accept some painful loses at some point. I try to keep impartial during the tournament, but I definitely have some personal favorites. Sooty vs GHO is one where I’m not looking forward to saying goodbye to either one.
You guys didn’t nominate my beloved Spotted Wood Owl. Buff Fronted got in, which I was happy for, but its first opponent is last year’s winner.
I’m excited to see the Battle of the Southern Hemisphere between Australia’s Barking Owl and NZ’s Morepork.
We’ve got Eurasia’s biggest owls going head-to-head.
Snowy, Burrowing, and Buffy are all up against some flashy newcomers where we could have a surprise victory like the unexpected triumphs the Flammulated Owl had last year,
I think I will start the games Wed, 4 DEC after I get back from some travel. Then we’ve got a little over 2 weeks of excitement to crown this year’s winner. I’ll put the final 4 owls in the banner again and the winner gets the icon.
Got a personal favorite you’re ready to cheer on to victory?
Let me know which matches you are most looking forward to or dreading the most!
I’m curious to see how far the saw whet will get. They’re so cute with their giant heads and big eyes. Eagle owls are neat too. Maybe not as classically cute, but majestic.
I had to look up barking owls just now. They really do sound kind of like a dog barking. Interesting that they eat bats. I didn’t know there were birds that did that.
Owls have quite diverse diets. If it’s meat and they can fly off with it, they’ll generally eat it. Frogs, worms, butterflies, other birds up to turkeys, snakes, squirrels, rabbits, skunks, porcupines, fish, and some will pick at carrion as well, so there’s not much they won’t snack on.
The Powerful Owl didn’t make it in this time, but it can take down things bigger than itself, which is very rare, as most raptors try to limit themselves to closer to prey 20% of their body weight. With Australia’s bountiful list of fauna, they eat possums (different than the North American opossums), the giant flying fox bats, and young koalas. They’re very impressive hunters!
Pics aren’t too graphic, but I’ve hidden them to be polite.
PO w/ possum
PO w/ flying fox
PO w/ koala
I’d like to see an owl eating a porcupine. If it’s anything like a camel eating cactus, it’s gotta be pretty interesting. Maybe they have a way to pull out the spines.
Interesting pictures, and a very striking owl. How do you decide who gets in the bracket?