Harsh winter

[Cedric]

Last winter took a big toll on all kinds of the wildlife, including waterfowl. Many birds died due to the exposure, frozen lakes, lack of food, predation and other stressors. What is your experience in this respect so far in around Toronto parks and the lakefront?

Also, has anybody noticed over the past weeks a red tailed hawk in High Park that seems to be comfortable with people being in close proximity?

[gray]

i wonder if this is the same guy you saw in high park - i was only 10 feet away at the time of this photo. i have been watching a pair of redtails hunting there the past few weeks -  i wonder if they are both comfortable around people? i have been close to both of them at various times.

[gray]

looking at the photos side by side i can see he is a bit different! and banded.

[Henrique Pacheco]

The first bird is a young bird due to the pale eye. The second bird is older because of the darker eye. And of course one is banded.

[Cedric]

Thanks for comments.

I noticed the hawk in my image, starting to hunt down the mallards in early February. After looking at the images, I thought too that it could be a young hawk. Over many years observing the High Park and Grenadier Pond, I never noticed this phenomena, a high predation by hawk on mallards and other birds to such an extent. Others noticed a hawk taking down woodpecker, attacking cardinals and mallards at "bird's sanctuary".

Regarding the hawks being comfortable around people, I was wondering if they were just so hungry because the squirrels were not out during extremely cold February or if these hawks potentially were released and are more familiar with people.

Yesterday, on Wednesday, March 4, I also saw the bald eagle, apparently seen around High Park in the past 6 weeks or so, by many others. At dusk, he was flying majestically over Grenadier Pond, slowly and fairly low, then disappearing at the north end heading towards west. In my opinion, this specimen is fairly big adult and his head was strikingly white.

I am wondering how the eagle's presence in the park has influenced other raptors, as they are very territorial. Also, the park always had a couple or two or the residential hawks but it could be that this winter pushed more hawks into the park.