German football fans have another reason to hope for a good night on Wednesday, when their national team plays Ghana in the 2010 World Cup: Paul the octopus has tipped their team to win.
Paul is a smallish cephalopod in the western German city of Oberhausen who finds himself in a klieg-lit tank at the Sea Life public aquarium before each Germany game during this year's world championship. His handlers bait glass cubes with mussels and mark them with national flags. The mussel Paul chooses first is meant to indicate -- at least to his handlers -- a prophecy for the upcoming game.
Skeptics scoff, but Paul is two for two so far.
He foresaw the German trouncing of Australia on June 13. A few days later -- bucking the bookies -- he called Serbia's upset over Germany.
Anton and a Morsel of Fruit
On Tuesday he picked a mussel from the German glass, which puts him in line with professionals who favor Germany to beat Ghana tonight. And if they win, the Germans will advance from the group stage to the final 16.
Paul has a better record than other football-prognosticating animals, like Petty, a pygmy hippo at the Chemnitz Zoo who picked Germany to beat Serbia, or Leon, a porcupine -- also in Chemnitz -- who liked Australia. The Chemnitz staff turns to a new animal for each game, and their latest consultant, Anton the tamarin monkey, has chosen a morsel of fruit in favor of Ghana.
Given the nature of their prognostications, the animals have trouble calling a tie. But such trifles haven't slowed down Paul. According to Sea Life staff, the octopus notched an 80 percent record of forecasts during his last assignment -- the UEFA European Championship tournament in 2008.
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Paul -- an octopus at the Sea Life public aquarium in Oberhausen, western Germany -- has so far correctly predicted the outcome of each of Germany's World Cup matches. On Tuesday, Paul contemplates Wednesday's match between Germany and Ghana.
Paul's handlers bait glass cubes with mussels and mark them with national flags. The mussel he chooses first is meant to indicate his prediction for the upcoming match. Here, Paul is deep in thought about the merits of the Ghanaian side against Germany.
He eventually chooses Germany, predicting that they'll be sent through from the group stage to the round of 16.
Skeptics scoff, but Paul is 2-0 up. He correctly predicted a German victory against Australia, and last week he called Serbia's upset over Germany.
Paul isn't the only animal predicting the outcome of World Cup matches. At the Sea Life aquarium in Hanover, octopus Otto Armstrong has an entire pitch to choose his winner. Otto predicts the outcome of the top match each day.
Meanwhile at the Sea Life aquarium in Berlin, langoustines, or Norway lobsters, play matches every day with a small football filled with sardines.
Terrestrial animals haven't been as successful as Paul: Petty, a pygmy hippo at the Chemnitz Zoo in eastern Germany, picked Germany over Serbia last week. Handlers placed apples under each national flag to see which side Petty will support.
Leon, a porcupine -- also in Chemnitz -- liked Australia. It turned out to be a losing choice.
The Chemnitz staff turns to a new animal for each game. Their latest consultant, Anton, is a tamarin.
Anton chooses a morsel of fruit in favor of Ghana -- much to the chagrin of his host country.
Other zoos have gotten into the World Cup spirit as well. The Berlin Zoo let two young pigs play around with a ball before the first day of the competition on June 11.
The zoo in Münster gave this year's Adidas game ball to two antelopes to celebrate the World Cup on their home continent.
And in the Wilhelma zoo in Stuttgart, the elephants showed their allegiance with the colors of the German flag on their tails.