#SOTY2021

[ryumatsuiblog]

巷では2022年のSOTYノミネーターが発表されましたが、おつまみチャンネルでは2021年のSOTY、MARK SUCIUのインタビューについてアレコレトークしてきました🛹

2022年は誰が獲得するのか？の前に昨年のおさらいがてら、ご鑑賞いただければ幸いです🍺

YOUTUBEの動画説明欄にインタビューが翻訳されたリンクもありますのでそちらも是非❗️📱

[fibsh-awards]

It's time to announce the winners for 2021!

Thank you for being so patient! And thank you to everyone who responded! It really means a lot that you all are having as much fun with this as I did. Now, on to the winners!

Our third place winner for pinniped of the year is our pal Wally the Walrus, the world traveler! He got 26 votes total, what a splash!

Our second place winner claimed second place with just one vote ahead with a total of 27 votes! The newcomer who fought for survival and the second place title, the adorable and round ringed seal Mizore!

And finally, our first place winner (drumroll please)...

Niko!

He was a contestant last year, but Niko finally came out ahead this year with an overwhelming 88 votes! Is it his "uncle face", his meme-ablity? Either way, he won Seal of the Year when he was only 1 year old, congrats!

Wonder how your other favorites did?

Here's our vote totals:

4. Cloudberry - 17 votes

5. Daifuku aka "Window Baby" - 16 votes

6. Yuki - 14 votes

7. Agu - 13 votes

8. Yo-chan - 12 votes

9. Kroshik - 11 votes

10. Arare and Hiyori - Tie at 8 votes

11. Ponta-kun - 7 votes

12. Shisslik and Scarlett the Sea Lion - Tie at 4 votes

13. Kyoro - 3 votes

[fibsh-awards]

Seal of the Year 2021 is over!

Voting is closed! Thank you to everyone who voted, and look forward to the results being posted in the next few days!

[fibsh-awards]

Nominees for Pinneped of the Year 2021 (Part 2)

Here's part 2 of the introductions for our candidates!

Ponta-kun

Name Meaning: Pon (onomatopoeia of something being struck like a drum) and -suke (means "helper" but is also a typical end of a boy's name)

Also known by his proper name of Ponsuke, Ponta-kun is a ringed seal living at the Tokkari Center in eastern Hokkaido. Charming with a kind face and big babydoll eyes, he's a popular and beloved member of Tokkari Center. In fact, he's already won at his Facility's Instagram popularity contest for the most favorite seal there! Does he have a chance in the worldwide competition? Your vote will decide!

Yo-chan

Name Meaning: Yo is a girl's given name in Japanese, could translate to Sunny or Sunshine

Another charming resident of Tokkari Center, Yo-chan a spicy gal who has a habit of snorting and slapping herself defensively at everyone. Despite (or because of!) her attitude, she's #2 in popularity at Tokkari Center. She also has experienced tragedy, as she gave birth to a pup named Hikaru, who sadly passed away this March. Please keep Yo-chan in your thoughts, and forgive her rudeness to vote for her?

Daifuku aka "Window Baby"

Daifuku is a seal living at Aquamarine Fukushima. He shares the same name as "Sesame Puppy" from last year's vote, but they're quite different! "Window Baby" had a habit of lounging at a round window in his exibit, smiling sweetly at any and all passersby, so he was a popular in photos! With a soft demeanor, he can melt hearts!

Thanks to the anonymous commenter who nominated him!

Wally the Walrus

Name Meaning: Named after "Where's Wally?" a popular children's book

First sighed in March in Ireland, Wally the Walrus is theorized to have accidentally fallen asleep on an ice flow and arrived in Europe. After arriving however, he went on what seemed to be a continental tour, wreaking havoc and capsizing boats as far away as France and Spain before last being seen in Iceland, apparently on his way home. Hopefully he enjoyed his vacation, but this was only a once-in-a-lifetime trip!

Scarlett the Sea Lion

Scarlett the sea lion is a particularly adorable sea lion who was born at the Georgia Aquarium in 2017, but definitely made a splash on social media during the pandemic as people tuned into the Georgia Aquarium's Sea Lion livefeed! Her amusing antics and adorable face made her an instant star and was enough to get her nominated! We love you Scarlett!

[fibsh-awards]

Pinniped of the Year Poll 2021 is Open!

There can only be ONE contender, vote for your favorite now!

https://forms.gle/VaBU75uC37PakeRt5

Poll closes Jan 2, 2021!

Meet your pinnipeds of the year:

Part 1

Part 2

[fibsh-awards]

Meet the Pinniped of The Year Nominees for 2021! (part 1)

This year has brought new surprising and interesting seals to our attention, so the list is bigger than ever! We've even included some walruses and sea lions that captured hearts and headlines around the world. Please, if you're not familiar with the nominees, take a look!

Seals Sea Paradise Nominees

Organization Website (Japanese): https://o-tower.co.jp/publics/index/47/

Twitter Account (Japanese): https://twitter.com/aguhiyori

Youtube Account (Japanese): https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtrzqc4p9H6EsmK8sqpho6A

Agu

Name meaning: The onamonapia for biting or nibbling

Agu is a 34 year old male spotted seal who lives as an ambassador animal at Azarashi Sea Paradise in Hokkaido, Japan. His daily life at Seals Sea Paradise has been heavily documented on his twitter account on twitter AND a new youtube account! His signature skill is scrunching his neck in!

Hiyori

Name meaning: Weather

Hiyori is a 6 year old female spotted seal who also resides at Azarashi Sea Paradise. While she and Agu can sometimes be confused by one another, Hiyori can be distinguished by the darker stripe going across her head to her back, and her signature head-tilt.

Kyoro

Name Meaning: onamonapia for looking around nervously

The newest seal at Seals Sea Paradise, Kyoro can be distinguished by her dramatic black and white coloring. She's gained a lot of admirers already, looking at us with those big ol' eyes! Her signature skill is posing like an airplane and making funny faces.

Seal Rescue Ireland Nominees

Organization Website: https://www.sealrescueireland.org

Princess Cloudberry

A rescue from last year but still very popular amongst seal fans, Princess Cloudberry got the nickname Princess by throwing temper tantrums and intentionally splashing anyone who came into her space. Her cheeky personality hidden behind her sweet face won her a ton of fans all over the world. She was released back into the wild in April of 2020. We're all positive she's queen of the arctic by now!

Osaka Kaiyukan Seals

Yuki

Name meaning: Snow

The queen needs no introduction! But I'll give one anyway: Yuki is an adorable and round ringed seal exhibiting at the Osaka Aquarium Kaiyukan in Osaka, Japan. She went viral for being extremely round, enhanced by how she pulls her neck in to keep warm. People often compare her round appearance to that of a steamed bun, mochi rice cake or a scoop of ice cream. In 2019, a stuffed animal was produced in her image, which became extremely popular! Recently, she's been getting used to her new roomie, Mizore the seal on exibit.

Arare

Name meaning: Snow pellet

A female ringed seal, she’s gained a large fan following for her extremely adorable and kind smile. Like Yuki, she also had a pillow designed in her honor. She gave birth to a pup this year, but the baby had medical complications and the staff had to raise him instead. Both mother and child have since thrived since the stressful birth and are living peaceful lives at Kaiyukan.

Mizore

Name Meaning: Sleet

Born April 1st, Mizore is the newest pup at the Osaka aquarium. He's the child of fellow nominee and beloved seal, Arare. His birth was problematic, and he had to be rushed into care by the aquarium staff but learned to thrive thanks to their loving and expert hands. He's since thrived, and his puphood was well documented and he went viral for his swimming lessons before even getting a name! He debuted in August of this year and is gaining attention from visitors by relaxing in strange positions comfortable only to him.

Friends of the Baltic Seals Foundation Nominees

Kroshik

Name Meaning: Little crumb/baby

Kroshik is a male Ladoga Ringed Seal residing at the Marine Mammals Research and Conservation Centre in St. Petersburg, Russia. While he was rehabilitated and learned to fish for himself, when he was released into the wild, he refused and returned… multiple times! After multiple attempts at release, Kroshik’s willpower won out and the conservation center is now his home.

He has gotten a promotion this year. He's worked his way up the ladder from rescue to taste-tester, to Deputy Director of Public Relations the entire organization! Quite impressive for a guy with no feet!

Schlissik

Name meaning: Short for Shlisselburg, a town on Lake Ladoga.

Another Ladoga Ringed Seal, unlike Kroshik, he is rowdy and underfoot, often chasing and biting his older brother. Since the Marine Mammal Research Center was not meant for permanent keeping of seals (Kroshik is the exception), other arrangements are being made.

Toba Aquarium

Nico

Name Meaning: Smile/Smiley

Nico is a bikal seal born in 2020. He became famous as a pup for the strange meme "he was forced to eat x when he was six" and was described as having a gentlemanly face, to put it charitably. Nico has grown from his "uncle-like" face into a charming, if a bit stinky, adult! He's celebrated his first birthday, where his dad ate his "cake" of fish and ice! You snooze you lose, I guess.