Big Bird and The Owl Foundation

Today was a really special day.  Janice and I headed out to The Owl Foundation in the company of two owls - an Eastern Screech Owl (who had quite the cranky reputation at Toronto Wildlife Centre!) and a Northern Saw Whet (who was just about the cutest thing I've ever seen).

The Saw Whet kept our drive interesting by letting us know just what he thought about the car ride.  I haven't been able to find the exact call online but it was similar to this http://talkaboutwildlife.ca/sounds/asprwf/bj_northern_saw-whet_owl_01.wav
Fortunately both owls are excellent rehab candidates and should be releasable.

The highlight of the trip, in addition to Janice's wonderful company and mediocre navigation skills (sorry Janice, I had to do it) was having a great owl discussion with Kay McKeever and Big Bird, the ambassador of TOF.   Big Bird is an unreleasable Great Grey Owl who beat the odds and survived an awful car accident.  He is now Kay's loyal companion for life.

I've met Big Bird several times but I've never had him sit on my lap...until today!  Kay placed him on a perch and handed him to me and it was such a thrill.  He likes scratches around his throat and it is amazing how many inches of feathers you go through before you get to skin!  Janice then had her turn with Big Bird and I know she was as thrilled as I was.

Through my volunteering at Toronto Wildlife Centre I've gotten to know some of the people at TOF and have had the privilege of releasing a few owls for them.

I like to take a photo of the releases to send to TOF but I rarely am able to capture the moment because the owl is gone in the blink of an eye.  Fortunately I've been lucky a couple of times.

This beautiful Great Horned Owl was released back to his home in a wooded area in Toronto in May of 2009.

And this Red-Morph Eastern Screech Owl was released in north Durham Region in September 2010.

What amazing birds!  To learn more about The Owl Foundation, visit http://www.theowlfoundation.ca/.

Another Eagle!

First, I would like to announce the sad passing of my Sigma 150-500 lens (cue the violins). This is Sigma the 3rd by the way.  

So I started the day minus 200mm of focal lengh, with my trusty Nikkor 70-300mm and headed to Newcastle Harbour to check on my Trumpeter friend L06, who has been alone since I released him many months ago. That is, if you consider "alone" to be sitting with 300 geese, who were not impressed when he would lumber through the snoozing flock to get a better seat.  He seemed fine and I hope he will find a trumpeter friend soon.

L06 and friends

Among the geese were a few unidentified waterfowl, likely goose hybrids of some sort. They were a lot of fun to watch and very animated.

Unknown Pedigree, but still beautiful

I treated myself to my favourite drive along the waterfront from Newscastle to Port Hope. Best drive you can find in the Durham area and I've had some of my most amazing wildlife moments on that stretch...one time I saw 3 fox and 3 coyote within an hour. No interesting mammals today but the drive didn't disappoint!

I saw several flocks of Snow Buntings and when I turned a narrow corner I was face to face with a beautiful Light-Morph Rough-Legged Hawk - what a stunner! He was perched on a low limb in a small tree and we both shocked each other. The settings on my camera were so dark and I was a little disappointed when I lightened it, but happy I was able to capture the moment.

These Snowbuntings make you realize the importance of every
blade of vegetation.  They feasted on this patch for several minutes.

I saw a few other critters along the way and when I headed back I saw my second bald eagle in as many weekends! I rarely see eagles and I was Gobsmacked when I saw this one. I don't know exactly what Gobsmack means, but I know it fit the occasion.

I had seen the bird from three farm fields away and I knew right off that nothing could be that big in flight and still be so far off.  It could have flown in any direction but actually flew over to me. WOW! I sure could have used that extra 200mm but again, glad I at least got the memory shot.

An American Kestral topped of the day.  It was nice to see one in a tree instead of the corner of a building or a hydro line!

American Kestral looking ferocious, but actually just yawning.



Skylight



Bald Eagle, Barred Owl...and Terrible Tom

The day started off with one of the best possible sightings...a bald eagle! Within 15 minutes of my leaving home no less!  I had pulled over in South Whitby to check a coyote field when suddenly it flew out of the forest and over my car.  The early morning lighting was poor and I was slow to react and only got a blur of a shot, but enough for an ID.

That sure woke me up! I headed over to Cranberry Marsh and saw the Barred Owl, though I can't take credit for the sighting. Two helpful crows found him for me -- I wish I could pay a couple of crows to hang out with me when I go out shooting.  They were harrassing the Barred and I was right in the middle of its flight path - very cool! I love the expressive face of the Barred Owl. Let's just say he was not amused - he was actually frowning. It all happened so fast though that I didn't get any photos of the ambush.

I found a c-c-cold swan at Oshawa Harbour. He wasn't the only one covered in icicles!  And a beautiful Red-Tailed Hawk near Pringle Creek in Whitby.


Chilly Trumpeter Swan, Oshawa Harbour



Red-Tailed Hawk, Whitby ON

Terrible Tom the Turkey is back at Halls and is waiting for his girlfriend Ann, apparently he has a message for her and wants her to head over to see him.


"Ann, where are you? I miss youuuuuu"


Here are a couple more from today.  They were both a challenge for my soon-to-be deceased Sigma 150-500, the lens I love to hate and hate to love (but I do love it).

Black-Capped Chickadee



American Kestral, Whitby ON

Winter Wonderland

All the creatures who have been hiding the last little while showed up in a big way today!  When I left the house this morning it was dark, with visibility at about 20 feet.  My favourite time to shoot!  Nothing makes me happier than to go shooting in snowy weather - last time it snowed this much I saw three different owl species in one day!

With the Jeep in 4x4, and crawling at 25 km/hr, I was off on another adventure!

Barred Owl in the snow, Whitby ON

Within 15 minutes I found the Halls Road Barred, who moved to the south path earlier this week.   With visibility so poor, and my assumption that the owl would be closer to the marsh, I almost walked right into him!  He was perched in a bare tree, quite close to eye level and he obviously saw me coming but I sure didn't see him until I felt those piercing brown eyes staring, only a few feet away. 

Barred Owl or Tasmanian Devil?

He was so close that my 150-500 couldn't capture him.  I backed up to give us both some space and watched him hunt.  After 10 minutes he suddenly swivelled his head around, and was off like a shot after something in the evergreens. 

As I was processing my photos I found this one and didn't know what the heck it was, until I saw the shots that followed.  In case you care, when a barred owl shakes snow from his head, his head forms a perfect circle.  Yes...strange things amuse me :)

I also saw a coyote and a fox in the morning, but no pics worth posting.  


This cardinal was extremely bold, asking for food the way a chickadee would.  He followed me everywhere and was so close I couldn't shoot him at 150mm, but he did back away for a minute or two and I was able to get a few shots.

Northern Cardinal, Whitby ON

Eventually I ran into Ann who, how shall I say, was making quite a fashion statement with her new glasses.  Despite her new look, I agreed to hang out with her anyway and we had a great time shooting in South Whitby and Pickering.  A couple of roughies, a few harriers and a very cooperative young Red-Tailed Hawk kept us busy (and cold!) for much of the afternoon.

Red-Tailed Hawk, Whitby ON

Red-Tailed Hawk, Whitby ON

Red-Tailed Hawk Taking Off, Whitby ON

Red-Tailed Hawk Taking Off, Whitby ON

Northern Harrier, Female, Whitby ON

Northern Harrier, Female, Whitby ON

Last but not least, I FINALLY saw some wild turkeys at Halls Rd.  This photo doesn't do the turkey's feathers justice.  Depending on how the sun hits them they change colour, and have an amazing coppery sheen.  Next time you see Ann, ask her how fast a wild turkey can run!

Wild Turkey, Whitby ON

In between shooting I volunteered for a couple of hours at TWC and was asked to take a photo of a fox that is going to be released tomorrow.  It is amazing how beautiful these animals are when they leave the Centre, considering the shape they are in when they arrive.  TWC does amazing work protecting the animals we love.  Check out their site at http://www.torontowildlifecentre.com/.   



Toronto Wildlife Centre patient. 
Little does he know he will be back home where he belongs tomorrow!

An Old Friend

Despite trying to get out and shoot a little during the work week, I struck out until this morning.

I was enjoying my walk when suddenly I spotted someone from my past. Small, chunky, and feathered....he looked as handsome as ever, proudly showing off his home.

Clearly he was thrilled to see me.

It has been a pretty slow owl season so far and hopefully this was a sign of things picking up.

Is anything cuter?

Here are a couple from the park.  I can't resist shooting in the snow.  My camera probably hates it but I love it.