Hawk Owl on the Leslie Street Spit

[Anonymous]

Good evening

 First off - A great BIG thank you to Alfred Adamo for a life Spit bird but mostly for such a great find. Ian thanks you also for the note on his windshield.

 The Hawk Owl was still there when we left at 4:00 pm and was hunting from a lamp post right beside the road near the second gate.

 I talked to a fisherman that stopped as he was passing by and he told me the bird had been in the area from at least 11:00 am.

 Again thank you Alfred.

 A short note to anyone that goes down there tomorrow to ask them not to approach too closely or to chase this bird for that better look or photo, that is what you carry binoculars, scopes or big lenses for, so that you do not need to get too close. Others may be coming to The Spit after you have seen the bird and it would be a shame if it was chased off. Please be considerate of others and the bird.
Directions:-
LESLIE STREET SPIT (TOMMY THOMPSON PARK) IN TORONTO - Now on it

[Craig McL]

At 6:30 this mooring Bev reefound the Hawk Owl on the bass of Tommy Thompson park ( the Leslie st Spit ) it was
on the hydro poles along the rood to the yaut club on the west side of the bass lands this rood can also
be assest off Unwin Ave!  it was still ther at 8:30 when I left

this is the 303 bird for the Park's checklist

Craig & Bev

[ichiro17]

Awesome find and great news!

I love this forum for the information and I try to follow the guidelines of birding out of respect for the animals.  For this reason I bought a very long telephoto lens and hopefully this winter I can view these birds from afar but still get very close-up shots.  

Thanks for the update, I've been waiting for the updates on owls.

Any idea if they will be staying in the area or are they going to come and move along?

As well, I love snowy owls and hopefully will hear some updates for those later on.


Thanks,

Joseph

[Anonymous]

Only an Owl can predict when it will arrive and if it will stay.

Depends on the food supply, weather, predators and the amount of harassment.

I hesitate to try and predict them and except for a rarety like the Hawk Owl I do not report Owls on the internet because of the harassment by SOME Birders and SOME Photographers.

Good luck with your new lens Joseph.

[Anonymous]

For a reasonable chance to see Snowies I would suggest heading over to Wolfe Island in the Kingston area as winter further encroaches, just make sure you're shooting with at least a 400mm lens as the birds tend to keep their distance.

This past summer I had the great experience of helping out in a fledge watch with the Canadian Peregrine Foundation.  During this time, I encountered many persons who would walk around with their thousands of dollars of photography equipment and actually encroach on the birds, especially the juveniles when they had fledged from the nest and found themselves on various locations such as lamp posts, balconies, and various other locations throughout the GTA.  Some of these situations found people with 500mm lens with a 2x converter shooting pictures of a juvenile peregrine no more than 200 feet away which happened to be sitting on a balcony railing.  Talk about your typical overkill.

I'll state here what I've stated to people out in the field.  To those who want to get a great picture of an owl, put in the legwork and acquire the knowledge of the type of habitats that these birds occupy and then seek them out.  You'll be surprised just how many different types of raptors and owls exist in our City and the surrounding areas.  I really can't stand people who just walk up and state flat out "I need a picture of (insert bird type here), can you tell me where you've seen them?".

Sorry for the mini rant, but the issue of photogs who don't want to put the time in to find the birds is something that really bugs the crap outta me.

[ichiro17]

I'm willing to put the time in.  I don't have the mobility to get to Wolfe Island in Kingston in the winter because of a) the car I drive and b) my job

The city and surrounding area isn't so bad however.  The reason I ask is because I've just started to take this a bit more seriously and its always better to learn from others - mainly because that which is written on paper isn't always the best information for certain areas.

I will keep on looking and see what comes up

[adonbirder]

Keep an eye out for Snowy owls, there was 1 by the qew and fruitland rd exit but it got hit by a car, also there was one yesterday around the 401 and 407, they like flat open areas
1 good spot for them is end of Rutherford road up in holland marsh area north of newmarket.

[P1Guy]

I'm a photographer, and my interest is in the hunt to find the birds. I really don't like the bad rap some of the photographers get from the birders. I carry bin's and have tried to learn the habits of the birds. I wish that everone that wants to photograph birds would purchase proper lenses so they don't invade the birds space as we often see.

I was photographing spring warblers this year in Burlington, only to have birders from the city walk right through the cedar hedges that the birds were in asking where the white eyed vireo was.

So please don't blame the phtographers, as there are so called birders that are worse than some of the photographers I have met.

It takes all kinds to make the world go round.

My 2cents

[Anonymous]

Where in all of the above posts did you read that anyone said that ALL photographers were being blamed and that no birders were in any way at fault ? or are you judging all by your standards of not harassing birds and because of those ignorant birders that walked through the Cedar Hedges ?

You read too much in those posts.

No one is blaming all who go to see a bird, birders or photographers.

So calm down and take a deep breath.

[ichiro17]

i agree with norm

some bad apples on both sides here.  i saw the hawk owl today and it was awesome, however, i kept my distance.  i was about 40 to 50 feet away in the bushes - i sat down and had my lens on a tripod.  watched it for a good hour and didn't try to encroach too much... didn't get amazing shots (and the weather was garbage to top it off) but i got some.

however, there were some other photographers who kept trying to get closer and closer and the owl was a bit weary.  didn't seem to mind all that much however, but it was a bit disturbing how close they needed to get.  its unfortunate, hopefully the owl really didn't mind

[P1Guy]

Exactly, I know some great birders Norm. And I may have even bumped in to you out there.  

I know that the actions of some, have tarnished the reputation of photographers. I post photos to the OFO, under my real name, and have a real passion for the birds. I also post on ont birds so everyone can view what I have seen when possible.

Sorry I never meant to ruffle any ones feathers, but Attila's little rant set my off a bit. Like the part about staying back more than 200 feet. I have large and small lenses and is there a "stop" limit to how close to get?

These lenses are not telescopes. I went to see the white faced Ibis that was in the Hydro pond in Hamilton last year, only to be snubbed by birders with scopes that would not allow others to view the bird, while they chatted. This was totally unfair to people that traveled some distance to view this rarity.

I believe that the photograhpers that don't know what they are doing and they are many, should be educated and not scorned. It seems at times that a large lens is not a welcome sign to some in the birding commuinity.

I did not mean to offend anyone. I just wanted to let Attila and others know, that there are photographers that in my opinion care just as much about the well being of the birds as do the good birders.

Hey I had to call park rangers, and people from the bluebird society to make them aware that a photographer was putting bark on nest boxes just to get shots of fledglings. One bird had not fledged and I got very upset, that almost led to a fist fight due to this clowns actions. I photographed him and his lady friend and sent the picture and news around the net.

I enjoyed photographing the Northern Hawk owl that was in Grimsby on the mountain last year, before some jerks started baiting the bird and ruined it for all.

It seems that a lot of starving owls are arriving south early due to the vole crash in the north. And these owls need special attention, maybe we can all work together for the betterment of the birds.

My 2 cents.
And I apologize if I offended anyone.

[Anonymous]

P1Guy,

I much like you am a photog, just getting started as a matter of fact and am a couple of days away from picking up a 300mm lens.  This doesn't mean, however, that you'll find me in the situation that I described above, describing where I found people with 500mm lens with a 2x converter shooting pictures of a juvenile peregrine no more than 200 feet away which happened to be sitting on a balcony railing.  I call that overkill - wouldn't you?

I realise I should have been more clear that it's not ALL photographers out there who ruin things for people, and I do know that not ALL birders are perfect, but that is where we have to meet and come together to ensure that the best interest of the BIRDS are what is being considered, as you outlined in your previous post.

I share my photos just as you do, and I'll be sharing more once I take more.  For me it's always been about spending time observing the birds first, getting to know their habits, their activities, their flight paths, and the locations that they inhabit.  Now, because of all that study, I'm able to position myself to get the kind of shots that show the birds in flight that I know are rare.  Maybe I'm a rare breed, I don't know.

So P1Guy, I'm sorry if I "set you off a bit"...that wasn't my goal.  With that being said, I will not stop believing that there should be a "stop" limit as to how close people should get to a roosting bird.  I know birds, I know roosting birds of prey very well and it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out when something isn't happy with what is going on around it.

The essence of this problem is that people still think that nature is there just for themselves and not that the birds are trying to simply exist in an environment conducive to their well being.

Ichiro17,

I must take you to task here.  You are correct in stating that it is great to learn from others when it comes to birding, and you couldn't come up with better people to learn from like Norm and various others surfing these forums.  At the same time, and take this with a grain of salt, nothing compares to putting in the footwork and finding and learning about the birds on your own time.  The edification will keep you going for a LONG time.  Also, when it comes to what is written on paper, remember that it suggests the best environment that a bird can be found in, especially guides like the one that I use (Sibleys).  Take the basic information and then become a bird observer for a bit.  Many people, photogs and watchers alike, will often spend many hours or days simply watching the birds and seeing how they interact with what is around them.  This, in turn, will help you become a better photog as you will be able to catch birds in moments that not everyone will notice because all they care about is getting the shot or view (not you P1Guy, but most photogs, and no Norm, not you, but many birders) at the expense of what is around them.

Hope all of this makes sense...

[ichiro17]

Attila, 500mm at 200 ft with or without a 2x isn't enough power to grab a decent shot of the bird, especially something thats not the size of a chicken or larger.  The hawk owl even at 50 ft with just the 2x wasn't frame filling.  No, you don't need to have full frame (and this is a 1.6x crop factor) but the further away you are the details become blurred.

Just my 2 cents - I'm not saying that its necessary to get too close, it would be even better if the bird came to you instead.