Shock and caw: Canuck the Crow voted Metro Vancouver's Unofficial Ambassador
East Vancouver bird crushed Michael J. Fox in the final round with 81% of CBC readers' votes
He's made headlines for stealing a knife from a crime scene and breaking into both a McDonald's and the SkyTrain — but for all his shenanigans, Canuck the Crow still has Vancouverites' hearts.
The East Vancouver corvid has been named by CBC readers as Metro Vancouver's Unofficial Ambassador after weeks of polling and more than 300,000 votes.
Canuck the Crow defeated Michael J. Fox in the finals of Metro Vancouver's Unofficial Ambassador with 81% of the vote. Here is the full, finished, completed bracket. <a href="https://t.co/QUHTKpqRRC">pic.twitter.com/QUHTKpqRRC</a>
—@j_mcelroy"This is no ordinary crow," said Justin McElroy, CBC Vancouver's municipal affairs reporter and self-described maniacal ranker of things.
McElroy started the poll innocently enough after tweeting: Does Seth Rogen beat out Ryan Reynolds as Vancouver's unofficial ambassador?
The poll took off, launching a two-week search for the most beloved representative of the 604 area code.
<a href="https://t.co/1Kfwac0b7G">pic.twitter.com/1Kfwac0b7G</a>
—@j_mcelroy"There is something about saying a crow is our ambassador that gives people a chuckle," said McElroy.
"Something about 2018 — the weather, the affordability — people decided that a scrappy East Van crow who never gives up and is friends with everyone is our best representative."
Crowing over the competition
Canuck the Crow crushed Michael J. Fox in the final round with 81 per cent of the vote, continuing a dominant streak shown from the very beginning of the tournament.
In a close third-place match, actor Seth Rogen defeated the late Indigenous artist Bill Reid, 51 to 49 per cent.
More than 60 other competitors were eliminated during polling, including the likes of Sarah McLachlan, David Suzuki, Carly Rae Jepsen and Ryan Reynolds.
"It's really, really nice to see that so many people love and adore him," said Shawn Bergman, an East Vancouver resident who has been adopted as a best friend by Canuck.
The bird, found as a baby and raised until he was old enough to be released, follows Bergman around every day, from coffee shops to the bus stop.
"He does have good qualities, bad qualities," he said. "I'm just glad that he's written his own history."
Results
1. Canuck the Crow
2. Michael J. Fox
3. Seth Rogen
4. Bill Reid
5. Trevor Linden
6. Carly Rae Jepsen
7. David Suzuki
8. Arthur Erickson
9-16: Jimmy Pattison, Douglas Coupland, Ryan Reynolds, Michael Bublé, Cobie Smulders, Hayden Christensen, Rick Hansen, the Sedins
With files from Justin McElroy and The Early Edition