Thread of the Year 2018: The Vote

The time has come for the final vote on which thread deserves the title of thread of the year. We received dozens of submissions this year and it was great to see such great participation this year, so I thank you. However, only one can win, so here are your nominees.

Snowleopard's 2018 Road Trip: by @snowleopard - snowleopards 10th road trip thread sees the Canadian zoo enthusiast travel across the border and in to the United States for the 8th time. Unlike most travel threads on this site, instead of visiting a bunch of large major premiere facilities, instead attention is turned to the far smaller and unknown places of the Midwest with a few large exceptions (Omaha, Toledo and Detroit). Despite how puny some of these places may be, it usually means a very funny write up is coming. By the time it was all over, snowlepard had visited 421 different zoos across the world.

Catalogue of Penguins in Captivity Worldwide: by @Chlidonias - Taking on an ambitious task, Chlidonias creates an extensive database of captive penguins across the globe, including listings of current holders, total numbers per region and overall status worldwide. It is a brilliantly done thread that I'm sure consumed a lot of time in the process and is filled to brim with information on everything penguin.

Europe's 50 must see zoos: by @lintworm - Another incredibly ambitious undertaking, lintworm creates 50 detailed summaries of the best zoos all over Europe across dozens of countries. Some rather unknown places are discusses, while multiple high class juggernauts are also detailed. Photos are also showcasing the zoos that are being represented in this excellent thread and overall generated interesting debate. If this thread were a book I would have purchased it in a heart beat.

Zoo Decisions - Part 1 (Origins/South American Precinct): by @Zoofan15 - The title is fairly self-explanatory and the concept is simple, but this thread gained more participation than any other thread in the vote. It's a game based on zoochat members running a zoo and making the difficult decisions that come with it and treating like a real life scenario. Discussion was encouraged and debate was sparked and this concept managed to grow into six different precincts with a sequel already in the works for early next year.

LaughingDove Goes Travelling - SE Asia and Australia: by @LaughingDove - Lasting just under 16 weeks and over five countries, LaughingDove heads backpacking through the isolated corner of the world for nearly four months. The mission was the spot as much wildlife as possible and that mission was success with over 900 bird species seen. One of the most ambitious trips this site has seen, and one that requires immense planning and patience to execute properly.

Nice work to all of the nominees, but again, only one can win. Best of luck to everyone!
Also, a brief mention to everyone who submitted their picks this year.
@birdsandbats, @TheWalrus, @Brum, @TeaLovingDave, @DesertRhino150, @aardvark250, @Jambo, @OstrichMania, @akasha, @Hipporex, @Ebirah766, @Nate Brother, @CloudPardus, @WhistlingKite24, @Neil chace, @ZooBinh, @FunkyGibbon, @lintworm, & @ThylacineAlive

 

Just voted for Zoo Decisions. The series was great and I enjoyed participating in it.

 

You remembered me this year! Pretty sure you're missing a voter though...?

 

How could I forget! Though I must ask, who did I miss this time?

 

Didn't Sooty Mangabey vote?

 

Right, however he only voted for two threads so I didn’t count his submissions.

 

Voted for @snowleopard ! Always interesting to see reviews of obscure roadside places, especially the ones I have been visiting since I was little.

 

As did I.

 

Five wonderfully diverse and diversely wonderful threads, and due credit to all. There can be only one, though, and it’s Lintworm’s European thread, which I predicted at the time would serve as a benchmark for this competition. It wins for the breadth of research required, the time invested in thinking through and making his choices, the writing quality and the exquisite tempo of his thread. Each new choice had us waiting on edge. It’s an honour to pass the crown over, @lintworm.

 

I lay my respects to @lintworm . A unique and phenomenal thread that soars above the rest, highlighting zoos from throughout Europe. My vote goes to you.

 

Last year had some of the best threads ever. The photo threads of felines, marsupials etc. were brilliant and the zoo play offs and 50 zoos were also very educational and would have required so much work. But my fav. type of threads are the travel threads and it is difficult to choose between LD's and SL's fantastic stories but I'll go with SL for the episode on the kids train being eaten alive by flies.
My great appreciation to everyone who contributed to such a great year of well written threads.

 

Such a tough decision but I had to go with @LaughingDove's amazing thread. All the threads were amazing but the awesome species and great writing gave LaughingDove the win in my opinion.

 

We have over 50 votes and Europe's 50 must see zoos has a substantial lead, but zoo decisions isn't far behind. A little over one week left to vote!

 

Only a few days left until the new year and we pick a winner.

 

Well, I think we have an undisputed winner...

 

I think you might be right

 

How did I forget about this...

Congratulations to @lintworm for an excellent thread and a well derserved win. It was also my personal favorite thread of the year.

Of course big thank you to everyone who voted! See you all next year!

 

Thanks everyone for voting. I am still slightly surprised just how popular my thread was. It started of as a bit of fun to make my train rides a bit more interesting. I am still thinking of a continuation of the thread, but that is an even more ambitious project. So don't expect it in the coming months, as I will be taking a well deserved holiday

 

Maybe as a sequel you could come up with a list of the 100 'must see' zoos of the WORLD as that would be a great read!

Actually, 2019 should be a wonderful year for ZooChat as there will likely be loads of great threads. @FunkyGibbon has already kick-started things with his Indonesian travels, @lintworm is mulling over a follow-up to his thread of the year winner, and I've got my flights booked for a 32-night, 90+ European zoo trip in July and August. Not to mention another dozen high-quality threads that keep us all coming back for more information on this site.