It’s not a plush toy or an AI-generated image: that little round, fluffy creature really exists.
It’s called shima-enaga and is a subspecies of the long-tailed tit that lives mainly in Hokkaido, in northern Japan. Its thick white plumage becomes especially striking in winter, when it seems to blend in with the snow covering the island.
One of its most distinctive features is its almost completely white face. Unlike other members of its species, adult birds in Hokkaido lack the dark stripes above their eyes, giving them an expression that looks straight out of a cartoon.
Its appearance has made it a local celebrity: it appears on souvenirs, in photographs, and on tourist merchandise, while birdwatchers travel to snowy areas hoping to spot it among the trees.
It’s no wonder that in Japan they gave it a nickname that suits it perfectly: “the snow fairy”. A little real bird that seems designed to survive winter… and take the internet by storm at the same time ❄️❤️