By Tim Binnall
As has become tradition in the week leading up to the Super Bowl, animals at zoos and aquariums across America have been enlisted to put forward their predictions for the winner of Sunday's big game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Los Angeles Rams. Using a variety of unique methods that would impress even the most seasoned soothsayer, a veritable menagerie of creatures put their clairvoyance to the test by offering up picks for the forthcoming showdown.
Backing the Bengals on Sunday are manatees Buffett and Hugh from the Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium in Florida, Rasal the seal at the Maritime Aquarium in Connecticut, a waddle of penguins from the Newport Aquarium in Kentucky, Annabelle the giraffe of the Plumpton Park Zoo in Maryland, and Nick the dolphin from the Clearwater Marine Aquarium in Florida. Additionally, in what may be a bit of a hometown bias, the famed Fiona the hippo of the Cincinnati Zoo has also thrown her lot behind the Bengals.
Rooting for the Rams to win the game are Memphis the skunk from the Orlando Science Center, Sid the wolverine of ZooMontana, Brazos the baby Asian elephant from the Fort Worth Zoo in Texas, and river otters Sedge and Tahu from Connecticut's Beardsley Zoo. Meanwhile, showing a surprising lack of loyalty to the big cat community, Misha the Amur tiger from the Blank Park Zoo in Iowa and Vulcan the lion of Salt Lake City's Hogle Zoo both passed on boosting the Bengals and, instead, forecast a win for Los Angeles.
While it may seem as though the animal kingdom has given a slight edge to the Bengals, there's quite a bit of time before the Super Bowl kicks off on Sunday evening and it is almost certain that an array of local news stations will turn to their area zoos for help in figuring who will ultimately hoist the Lombardi Trophy. So one might want to hold off on making any wagers until their creature of choice weighs in on the big game. That said, who is your pick to win the Super Bowl? Share your prediction with us at the Coast to Coast AM Facebook page.