‘What’s your favourite bird?’ is almost impossible to answer. I am always torn | Sean Dooley

When framing the shortlist for the 2023 bird of the year, we opted for familiar Aussie birds that hold a special place in our hearts

• The Australian bird of the year poll launches today, 25 September 2023

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Those of us who work at Birdlife Australia get asked a lot of questions about birds. Usually, it's to ID a mystery backyard bird. (Nine times out of 10 it's a butcherbird!) Occasionally, we get thrown a much curlier question such as Is a cassowary a bird?", Do birds have penises?" or What's your favourite bird?".

The answers are: yes", females don't, but neither do males of most species - they have a cloaca, which is a topic for another day". And the last question is almost impossible to answer. How can you possibly choose?

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Sean Dooley is national public affairs manager for BirdLife Australia

You can vote in the bird of the year poll from 6am Monday 25 September to 11.59pm Thursday 5 October