The final day of voting for the 2025 Australian bird of the year has arrived, with more than 250,000 votes received so far and an official top 10.
The poll will close at 6am sharp on Wednesday 15 October and the bird with the most votes will be crowned the Guardian/BirdLife Australia Australian bird of the year for 2025.
In an unprecedented slight, the Australian magpie – winner of the inaugural 2017 poll – has failed the make the top 10.
The 10 finalists vying for first place, in order of their place in the poll on Monday, are:
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Tawny frogmouth
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Baudin’s black cockatoo
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Gang-gang cockatoo
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Willie wagtail
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Bush stone-curlew
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Southern emu-wren
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Laughing kookaburra
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Little penguin
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Spotted pardalote
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Wedge-tailed eagle
Don’t let appearances deceive you, there’s still time to be knocked off the perch. History shows the competition is brutal, so every vote counts.
Take the poor old tawny frogmouth – always the bridesmaid, never the bride. It has landed in second place for the past three competitions. At this stage of the 2023 competition, it also led the vote, only to see the swift parrot soar past it once the vote tallies were hidden from public view on the final day of voting.
The gang-gang cockatoo, which ended Monday in third place, also holds some serious bird of the year lore, having placed third in the past two competitions. With the vocal backing of the Guardian Australia editor, Lenore Taylor, independent senator David Pockock and Gardening Australia host Costa Georgiadis, can this squawking beauty mount a comeback on the final day?
Or will the threatened Baudin’s black cockatoo – a newcomer to the poll this year – stage an upset and steal the crest?
The winner will be announced on Thursday 16 October between 12.30pm and 1pm. You can follow the coverage on the Guardian’s live blog and live stream right here on the Guardian’s website from 11.30am.
This year’s champion will join the ranks of previous winners: the Australian magpie, the black-throated finch, the superb fairy-wren and 2023’s champion, the swift parrot.
