What a Week and a Bit!

Well we were riding a high with our Peregrine Falcon family in Etobicoke until recently. A call came in about a downed bird and I was asked if I could meet security and check things out. I was up in Vaughan at the time, hopped into my truck and raced down the Hwy 400 to Islington and Bloor. I won't talk about the speeds but I did get there in some pretty impressive time.

I met security and they took me for a walk where the bird was reported. Nothing. An extended search. Still no downed Peregrine Falcon to be seen on the roof tops over the concourse. Hell, I would be happy to find a Pigeon who needed help at this point. Still nothing. Mixed emotions on coming up empty as my adrenaline was still rushing. I'm happy to not find an injured Falcon, or worse yet, a dead one. But come on, give me something. I was denied. Eventually I did find comfort when I cooled down that there was no bird to rescue or recover.

A while later, I am on my way to work. I get the call that they are still reporting a downed Falcon and if I could go again as they have pin-pointed where the bird is. Unfortunately I cannot. Our friend Tracy makes the trip and sadly she did find a downed Falcon. A young male named Glider. He had hit the glass towers, breaking his neck, dying on impact (at least it was quick) and his lifeless body spiraled down to the Earth. No I did not see it with him but have experienced this in prior years. The impact is loud. The visual is crushing to ones heart and spirit.

Glider at the banding ceremony on May 28, 2015.

It wasn't more than a few days when reports came in that our seemingly star bird Mel was in trouble. Mel was the first of the 4 chicks to take flight and was doing amazingly. I was not a part of this story and have only heard bits and pieces, but on his final hour(s) he somehow managed to get into someone's condo in the area through an open window or balcony door. He was rescued by Mark Nash, founder of the Canadian Peregrine Foundation. His injuries were quite severe and poor Mel died before getting to Mark's vehicle on route for medical help.

Mel at the banding ceremony.

Mel during his early days of flight about the area of Islington and Bloor.

What can I say? RIP you poor Falcons? Way it goes? I know... "this *bleeping* sucks!" I can say that it's not been a great couple years at our site as we've got a 50% mortality rate with our fledged birds. In the big picture, we really are powerless to help these young birds at this stage. Nobody can do anything standing on the ground watching them hundreds of feet up in the air. Of course some measures could be taken to coat the glass towers, even those top panels by the ledges where the birds go, to give them some idea that this is an obstacle and they cannot fly through. Damn that reflective glass. Sadly it's turned into yet another year that I would sooner not think about. I wish the surviving birds Ferris and Ninja to be safe and may we meet again when you are young adults setting up territories somewhere in North America.

But this is all old news now. It's so weeks ago now!

How about last week...

If you live in the GTA and aren't living under a rock, I am sure you have heard about the oil spill in Mimico Creek. A tractor trailer rollover at Hwy 427 and 401 on Monday. The load was some tranformers, which when tipped over, spilled out some 8,000 litres of mineral oil, a lot of which poured into the creek nearby.

I saw the remnants of the accident on my way home from work Monday night. The wreckage was barely recognizable as a transport truck and trailer. I surely muttered some expletives as I passed it all and had no idea the shit that would follow because of this. It seems no one did.

A "shout out" came late Tuesday morning via Toronto Wildlife to any and every volunteer that could help with this. It was the early stages and just getting people to a meeting area where many Ducks were being rounded up was a start. I didn't have a lot of time but wanted to help. I arrive on scene at West Deane Park to a mass of media, fire dept and of course the rescue team from Toronto Wildlife.

It's a bit of a blur now, just so much was happening. They had already caught over 30 Ducks by this point and most were already up at TWC now. I ended up taking another 4 Ducks to the centre and on my way back west, as my time to start work was very near, I stopped in at a No Frills and grabbed some more boxes to drop off to the rescue team.

It was something to see with the media, gathering all the footage they can on this breaking story, and in my time there, a few of them followed Stacey and I to my truck with the Ducks. A couple camera crews and one man from The Toronto Star. They video'd or snapped photos of us putting the boxed birds in the back of the GMC. I could feel my nerves getting all jittery with the attention. A few questions were asked, which I answered the best I could in that moment. I so wanted to put my sunglasses on in front of the cameras. I couldn't stop shifting my eyes from one camera to another even though they weren't the ones where the person was who asked the questions. I later learned that my hair and backside were shown on CP24, and later on CTV news.

Wednesday I was back in the area trying to help out any way I could before work. Once again, not a lot of time. In my brief stint I played my role as a volunteer driver shuffling rescue staff to and from various parts of the area with equipment and ducks, as well as a CityNews camera woman. Angie and I grabbed a whack of Gatorade to pass to the rescue peeps, which was greatly appreciated. Even if I cannot do much search and rescue, helping those who are doing this, is another way.

More Ducks being loaded up and heading to Toronto Wildlife.

After yet another Duck rescue, Andrew assists Stacey back across Mimico Creek. A lighter moment during a crazy morning.

Thursday I set out on my own, searching Mimico Creek, starting from Eglinton and East Mall and following it down to Martingrove and Rathburn. A little over 2 kms one way. I spent nearly 3 hours in the area searching for more oiled Ducks.

Starting my search just south/east of Eglington and East Mall in Etobicoke.

Dense greenery along the creek, making it difficult to scope out for ducks.  I did find many foot paths going to the water and occasionally I did have to make my own.

Catch nets of sorts for the oil spill.

Some real shallow spots.

It was a pretty walk and the area is just full of birds.  I noted Song Sparrows, Catbirds, Baltimore Orioles, Indigo Buntings and many others through my journey.

A few Rabbits seen in my journey.

First Duck I found across the creek.  *note*  just carrying the little point/shoot camera with me, fits easy in the pocket if I need free hands

Super zoom crop shot of the oiled Duck.  I stayed on the other side of the creek since I did not have the tools to try and catch a Duck.  I should add items like a large net to my artillery but really at this point, rescues aren't my thing...  but over time, they may be.

Rescue on site rescuing the Duck.

It was near time for me to leave. Toronto Wildlife asked me if I could help them with one more thing, if time allowed. They had 4 juvenile Pigeons that needed releasing somewhere, with a flock. Everyone knows about our flock thanks to my posts about Pierre. I said "absolutely" to bringing them home. What's another 4 birds to the mass we have here? And if they stick with this flock, they will know this is a pretty good place to come for food and water as well as following my birds, finding a decent roost.

Young Pigeons ready to be set free into a great big world.

Two birds left their confinements in seconds, finding spots in the trees along the property line to land and get their bearings.

Ho hum.  Remaining two birds who were really pokey. In time they both left and went up to a nearby tree. 

About 15 birds were present.  No Pierre and his regular crew; but another group we call "The Helmets".  A few of them appear to be from the same line with white caps on their heads (helmets).  I had to get ready for work.  I really wanted to stay home and watch how things went with them.

There was nothing to really distinguish these young birds from the others.  If only they were banded, I could see if they came back or not.  I wished them all well and away I went.

Friday arrives and I am exhausted.  I am sad too.  Today, July 17th 2015, would have been Meadow's 12th birthday.  I think about her every day, I miss her so much.  Milestone moments like this and others to come in the first year are going to be crushing.  As much as I think about all the great moments with her over the years, cherishing the bond we had, I cannot break the overwhelming feeling of sadness.  Our new kitten couple, Molly and Merry, tried their best to keep me occupied by tearing up the living room and getting into things so I didn't have time to sit and think.  It worked only temporarily.  I had much to do around home before work after days of neglect and even my being so busy was only a temporary fix.

Having a birthday in July...  nice warm weather and lots of outside time.

One of Meadow's favorite things to do on her birthday, and any other summer day...

I want this day over with sooner than later.  I want to sleep and wake up to Saturday.  But I still have work to get through before that can happen.

Really at this point the animal moments have come to an end but I have to add this last bit, something that may offend some but it was a breaking moment from my mood, and maybe there was some kind of creature or dozen with little eyes and pulses involved?

I'm at the Husky station near work picking up some lottery tickets.  As I get out of the truck, looking for some money, I take notice to this woman at the pump filling her car.  One hand pumping the gas and the other is on her crotch.  Okaaaaaaaaaaaay.  And?  Well, this other hand was really raking her pubic area.  I mean hard and fast.  No way it was not being noticed by those around her.  I go inside the station, get my tickets and in she comes.  She's trying to keep herself together at this point but it's still clear as daylight that she is very uncomfortable.  She's paying for the gas and I overhear her asking the attendant if they sell bug spray.  I'm dying on the inside and keep going.  The only thing at the Husky that could help her is maybe a splash of high octane gasoline and match.  Bwahahahaha!  I needed that.  Hopefully she found something to ease her suffering later that day. And a reminder on the importance of washing your hands after pumping gas (I have hand sanitizer in the truck).

So far this week is pretty low key. I'm good with that. Cheers on this Whiskey Wednesday!

If you are still with me after that last paragraph, still wanting to be my friend, on a final note.... 110 Ducks were rescued from the creek along with 1 Sandpiper. Something of this magnitude has not happened with Toronto Wildlife before (let's hope it does not happen again). They handled this quite well with lots of help from volunteers and people from the public, those who live in the area. My daily roles in this were small, I say I am but one pixel in a big picture. All of you could pride yourselves and be a pixel too by helping out. How? Donations either financially or visit their website and check out their "wish list" if you do not have time to be a volunteer.

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P is for Peregrine

Well it was a very busy week last week assisting in the fledge watch of our young Falcons at the Etobicoke nest site. Most mornings I was awake by 5am, at the site before 6am, spend 4 hours or so watching the birds, and then head home to recharge before starting work.

It was a pretty good watch this year. Only one of the birds, Ferris, got into enough trouble and needed rescuing. Everyone else stayed high up and has not hit anything. Let's hope it stays that way.

I did miss some action, which is par for the course when I can't be there from sun up to sun down. But those stories are not mine to tell.

I did find myself one evening hopping out of the truck and seconds later was dashing out into Bloor Street, escorting Mel as he took a low flight across the street. Traffic was well off and while I could not run along side this speedy bird, I hoped my presence in the street would slow any traffic heading towards us from either direction. And if Mel could not get any height, that I could be there to pick him up before he could possibly make a dash out into the street. He did get enough height to land on the concourse above Bloor, about one story up from the sidewalk, and that is where he spent the night. Next morning he was gone. He fledged on Friday June 19th and by Monday, he had found his way back up to the top of the nest building and on the ledge at that!

Not sure how long he could legally "park" himself there. LoL! No Peregrines allowed! *groan*

Close up of Mel.

Ferris took first flight on Sunday June 21st. He explored the area late in the afternoon and little by little came lower and lower to the ground. It seems he picked a better spot to spend the night. *wink wink*

Monday morning he was still in the same spot.

This shot gives you a better idea on how low he is to street level and how close he is to Bloor Street with passing traffic. I'm directly across the street from him, watching, waiting, growing roots under my shoes, collecting road dust as the hours passed us by.

P is for Peregrine!

About 2.5 hours later Ferris took flight. He jetted south, right over my head and the line of low buildings behind me. He did a circle and tried to get height, heading back to the nest tower. A smart move, realizing this was not possible, he turned again, headed south across the street, over my head again, over the buildings and had a time out in the neighbourhood somewhere. Bruce, Roger and myself searched for him without a sighting. So many trees he could have gone into and no birds were alarm calling to his presence. I remember last year with Skyla, she took a beating from Crows and Robins in a tree out front of someone's house all afternoon.

Anyways, a couple more hours of watching, occasional search for Ferris, and I had to leave to get ready for work.

A few more hours passed when Bruce spotted Ferris coming out from the neighbourhood, flying across Bloor, trying to get the height and once again not being successful. He did a bit of "Peregrine Ping Pong" as I call it, hitting the buildings as he struggled with what he was trying to achieve. And once again, being smart about things, backing out of this idea and now looking for a safe place to land again. Unfortunately his energy was quite spent. He missed a roof top, the Bell building to be exact, by about 4 feet. He caught the wall and tried to climb up but he dropped to the ground, less than 10 feet from where Bruce stood. Bruce quickly gathered him up, set him in a carrier and tucked him away in the ESL security area to rest the remainder of the day away. Ferris was released on the roof top after dark and got another chance at this flying thing the next day.

Ninja took his first flight on June 22nd, some point during the search for Ferris, Ninja snuck out. The most amazing thing happened that he found his way home, back on the nest ledge later that night. I've never seen or heard of such a thing in my 5 years of helping watch this site!

The week got blurry as the days passed, fatigue catching up with me.

Glider was the last to take flight and I cannot remember the exact day he did. Thursday June 25th I am thinking right now. He did stay high and mostly out of sight. To this day, he's still up there, doing great.

A cam shot on the 25th, Ferris first thing in the morning. Amazing to me that they are making it back on to that nest ledge so early in the days of flight.

Look up, way up, and you can see the nest ledge, right below the top of the building. Can you see the cameras up there?

I arrived later in the morning on the 26th. I only saw mom, O'Connor, high up on the nest building, and she was screaming her head off to something in the east. What? No idea. I did not see any of the kids, nor did I see dad Lucky. I gave Tracy an update of this after spending 30 or so minutes looking around. I said I had to run some errands and would return in about an hour. As I got back to the site, I discover Tracy is now on scene. She had spotted a couple of the kids by this time, we did a search of the perimeter and found another. Great seeing them but now to get some tape colors. Tracy picked off Mel (white) and Ferris (yellow) but this third bird was in such an angle that we could not see his legs. Time for me there was limited, I had to leave for work soon. Tracy walked me back to my truck so we could talk about the birds and things some more. As we get to my truck, out come some of the young Falcons. The next 10 minutes, so high in the sky, was the reward of doing this watch. The kids were playing! It was Mel and Ferris! What a sight to behold! What sounds they made as they chased each other up there.

After I left, Tracy managed to get all 4 of the young birds, positively ID them by tape color and all was good.

The watch is done. Nothing we can do now other than spot checks and if a bird ever gets into trouble, there are enough people in the area who know who to call. One of our fellow watchers, Kathy, works in the building, so she is there 5 days a week.

I can't believe it is over. There was such a build up from their hatches early in May to this watch. The anticipation, the excitement, the stress... and now it's done until next year.

This certainly was one of the better watches in my time. While we stress about the birds there was no real stress this time. Nobody got hurt. And nobody died.

Wow! 11 months to go until this all ramps up again.

Lastly, curious people from social media stop in at the site. One or two a year come looking for me. I'm assuming it's people from the birding pages where I share the updates and am always seeking extra eyes to the skies. If I am not there, they ask if I am around, never say who they are and end up leaving. Introduce yourself and it would be nice to know who is coming out. Perhaps communicate with me about my times at the watch and we can coordinate a meeting time. Don't be shy you guys. :)

As always, I thank you all for stopping in. Back again soon with some great news!

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A Blog About A Lost Dog

Yesterday I found myself waking to a normally mediocre mood. Sure I was happy to be alive and in good health as I am every day but I was lacking some spark. The morning coffee didn't give me the jolt I had hoped for either. I chalk this all up to being day #2 of returning to work after a glorious week off.

Shortly after morning rush hour, I did a small grocery run at the local Walmart. I could feel my mood slipping south fast. Idiot drivers and some of those Walmart shoppers, hoo boy! The colorful word of the morning was "fuck face"

"Your turn signal don't work fuck face?"

"Really, you have to take up the whole aisle fuck face?!?!"

Of course this was all just silent thinking. And don't act so shocked, like none of you ever get in a bad mood.

Anyhoo, the Walmart trek was complete and as I neared home, I was suddenly compelled to go to a local park. I felt this need to go look for a Great Horned Owl I've seen there half a dozen times in the last 3 years. If something could break my mood, spotting this massive beast of a bird surely could. What is really weird is I didn't have my camera but I wanted to go look anyway. A quick peek, if I ever find him/her, it's always the same tree so this wouldn't take long.

I get to the park, it's a quiet morning. I don't see anyone around, minus one elderly woman seemingly looking for something. The lack of people is nice because this spot is famous for off leash dogs despite numerous signs from the city stating the bylaw about keeping them on leash and other signs about protecting some native plants, rare ones too if I remember correctly.

I've had some wicked arguments with a few individuals about their rambunctious dogs invading my personal space and ruining my bubble time with nature by barking at me, inches from my feet, never mind jumping up at me whether I'm holding my camera or not. How anyone thinks this is okay is beyond me. The arguments start off with just asking them to leash their dogs and keep them away from me but they quickly change to heated moments when someone tells me to "Fuck off and go to another park if I don't like it!" My last argument had me really lose it on two people, the f-word was probably one of the milder words and it certainly wasn't pretty. I don't blow up very often, I can count on one hand how many times I've lost it on someone in my 45 years, stranger or someone I knew, and I bet I still have my middle finger free to salute them in the end. Ha ha!

But that last argument, over a year ago, where I really lost it, made the impact needed. Sure these people still have their dogs off leash but at first sight of me, the dogs are leashed and the people go the other way. I'll take the thought of them thinking of me as some crazy asshole who hates dogs even if that is so far from who I really am. It's one of the most important things I've learned growing up... be happy, do something every day that makes you happy and who cares what others think of you. As long as you aren't hurting anyone or anything to achieve this happiness.

This bit about me and the park is rather important and by the end of this you will see why.

The tree I have seen the Owl in is not very far from the parking lot so I'm not concerned about the cold items I have in our basket sitting in the back of the truck. It's a warm morning but not hot. Here is a link about the Owl from a few weeks back if you care for another story after this.

I get to the tree and the Owl is not to be seen. Darn. Oh well, I tried. I am about to turn back to the parking lot when I hear some rustling in the foliage near me and I look to see what it is.

This is what I discover...

At first I think it's an off leash dog but I quickly see he's got 10 or 12 ft of leash and a harness on him. He is quite tangled in the foliage, so tangled he cannot really move at this point. I started untangling him and the light went off about an animal story coming of this, so I took a photo with my cell phone.

The light in my brain shone brighter now and I am assuming that older lady in the parking lot was probably his owner. She did appear to be looking for something, and I did hear her call out something a couple times as I walked to the tree. But now she is nowhere to be seen.

We get back to the parking area and I decide to sit and wait on a curbstone with the dog, in hopes she just went around another part of the park and would return soon. The dog was quite well behaved and sat with me. He kept looking here and there, probably for his "mommy".

As the minutes passed, and no sighting, the dog got a little more chummy with me. I had no idea how long he was out there, he was probably scared with his situation, and he found comfort with me. I forgot how trusting dogs can be. But I believe they can sense good people around them.

A short bit later this guy comes through the parking area with his Husky, on leash. My little friend got all up on paws and started freaking out. Did he know this guy and his dog? Nope. He just likes to bark at other dogs as I learned with our time together.

The guy calls over to me and asks if that is my dog or did I happen to find him. I answer and he gets rather excited, saying he met an older woman earlier here in the park, who lost such a dog, and the woman is rather hysterical. Great! But where the heck is she? How do we find her?

I learned at this point that the dog's name is Gizmo.

The guy offers to drive around the park and nearby complexes, buildings and townhouses in hopes of spotting her. I said I can wait a little longer with him before I must get home with the groceries.

Another guy comes on scene with his dog. He too knows the story already and is very happy the dog is found. But same situation, he didn't know the woman, or how to contact her. He offers to go to the complexes and ask the management offices if they knew her, or if she came in about her missing dog.

I give both guys my name and cell number to pass around. I also said I can't wait too much longer because of the groceries and I have to get ready for work.

It was suggested that I just tie Gizmo up to the lamp post and leave him there as surely she would return for another look here. I objected to the idea. I often concern over dogs I see tied up outside stores and restaurants in the city. Anyone could just walk up and take him. I know the city isn't full of horrible people but you never know. Plus, we are quite close to getting this dog home, we just need a little luck, or some extra effort in our search and this is a happy ending. Leaving him unattended could have another concerned citizen come along and take him and we'd be back to a search mission. He has no tags, he might be micro-chipped but probably is not.

My solution was since I live so close, I would take Gizmo home with me for a couple hours. I said I would return very soon and post a sign on the fence that I found a Pug dog and leave my cell number. They agreed that was a good idea.

The guys left and I took the Gizmo to the truck. It was funny how I opened the passenger door and there was no fuss with him to get in. Once again, holy crap is this a trusting animal.

I start the truck, turn on the a/c for us and get halfway out of the park when I decide to pull over and wait just a little bit longer. She may come over the hill, up the drive...

Meanwhile Gizmo made himself comfortable on Angie's seat...

and eventually went to sleep.

One of the guys returns without any luck. He said he was going to have another go around. I told him I was leaving and would hope for something in the next bit before I had to leave.

I get home and have to unload the truck. Gizmo wakes up and is rather upset at me leaving him in the truck. I told him it was alright, I would be back. He kinda calmed down and sat in my seat, looking out the window at me. I should have taken his photo then, it was a priceless facial expression with the look in his eyes and his bottom teeth sticking out.

Groceries unpacked, I go out and get him. He hops out of the truck and walks with me up the stairs to the front door. I open the door and he walks in like he owns the place. NOTE... Meadow was locked up in the bedroom at this point. She was sound asleep on the bed and while I am sure she woke up through this, it was best to keep them separated.

I led Gizmo through the house and out into the backyard. I'm wondering what my next plan would be if I don't hear back from someone in the next hour or so before I have to leave. I can't leave him tied in the backyard. Our house is rather an open concept and there is no where I could lock him up for the afternoon. Even if I could, then what? I'm sure Angie would find some thrill in baby sitting him but it would upset the whole house, Meadow's peacefulness, and Angie's relaxation as she would concern over him through the evening.

I called a neighbour and left a voice mail with a plea for help.

I had to get ready for work and put Gizmo in the shed. What else could I do? He went in no problem but gave me quite the look when I was leaving him there, shutting the door on him.

No sooner do I get back in the house does my cell phone ring. It's a private number. I really hate answering private numbers. But with what is going on, I have to take the call.

I say "hello" and get a voice on the other end spewing words out to me that I could hardly understand. It was the elderly woman, still hysterical, but now overly ecstatic that I found her dog. She spoke English well but her emotions overwhelmed her and had difficulty getting the words out between deep breaths and the tears.

I told her to meet me in the parking lot in 10 minutes and hung up.

I grab Gizmo from the shed, he was still sitting in the same spot where I left him. I brought out the good camera to try and get a decent mug shot of him for the blog that had been building in my head since this all started. A couple snaps with the camera and away we went.

There's those teeth!

As I pull into the parking area of the park, I see the woman I saw earlier that morning. I wanted to start blasting my horn to let her know I was arriving with her lost friend. But I see she is standing there with one of my enemies of the park. A woman I've exchanged some mighty harsh words with about her large unruly Sheep dog. And that dog was nearby, off leash as usual.

I can see this woman spots my truck, she recognizes it now, and doesn't even need to see me in the driver seat. I can see she is pointing to me and saying something to this woman who I am about to reunite with Gizmo. While I cannot make out the words, I am sure it is something very negative as her group think I hate animals just because I don't agree with off leash dogs. The two of them step back from the curb and she ties her dog to a tree.

I park a few spots away, still saying nothing as I get out of the truck. Gizmo is laying down on the passenger seat. What an exhausting morning for this little guy!

Even as I get out of the truck and go around to the passenger side, which is the side the two women are on some 25 ft away, neither of them look at me. I found this odd because if it was me expecting someone I never met to show up in the park with my lost pet, I'd be looking at every damn vehicle pulling in to see if they had my "fur kid". I never told the woman what I was driving, just said I'd be there. But I guess she took the strong words that I assumed were said to heart and kept her attention away from me.

I opened the passenger door, Gizmo looks up at me and I figure he's wondering "what now?"

I'm watching out of the corner of my eye at the two women. I see the elderly lady letting her hopes and curiosity get the better of her and she looks over my way. I look at her, smile and say "Gizmo is here" as I point to the passenger seat.

She came charging over to me, super ecstatic, crying away, and threw her arms around me with a thousand thank you's. Damn! I thought she'd be hugging her dog. LOL! But of course, seconds later, she grabbed Gizmo and hugged him so tightly, going around in circles.

I don't know her age, but she was much older than me. 5 foot nothing, maybe 80 pounds after a rain storm but she hugged like the Hulk. A very passionate woman about her dog.

I was quite excited myself at this very happy ending.

And it was even sweeter for me as this other woman got to see it was me who found the dog and got him home safe and sound to his mommy. Ya, the long haired asshole who hates dogs sure proved her wrong.

I spoke with the woman, who I learned is named Ann. We talked about what happened, how he got away, even with such a long leash, etc. The other woman tried to engage in the conversation but with all that has been said between us in a few awful encounters, I wasn't ready to just let it go. I chose the ignore option, and that wasn't rude really, because this story didn't have anything to do with her... although it did in the end. She ended up leaving without saying another word. I am curious how my next run in with her will be?

I told Ann I hope to meet her and Gizmo again in the park, and never be afraid to say "hello" even if I look occupied with my camera and binoculars.

One more look at that face...

This wasn't just about me being a hero as there were two other guys involved, one named Steve, not sure of the other, who played a big part in this. One of them found a way to get in touch with her, through one of these property management offices, leaving my name and number. But both took the time out of their busy days to help this lost dog. So a big shout out to them as well, eh! A mighty fine reason for my Whiskey Wednesday this evening, a salute to ALL the animal lovers out there and the great ending to this dog's misadventure.

Cheers!

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Happy Canada Day!

Just stopping in to wish you all who pass by here today a very happy Canada Day!

Enjoy the day, whatever you do, rain or shine. Cheers, eh!

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It's Falcon Fledge Watch Time Again!

Oh boy, oh boy!  Here we are just days away from the 2014 season of "Falcon Fledge Watch"!  Season really isn't the word I should use, since the watch window really is only 2 or 3 weeks, depending how things go.

I thought I would go over the watch once again, seems I do this almost every year now since Angie and I have become more involved in our Etobicoke Sunlife nest site.

We are always seeking others to come on down to the site, hang out and help monitor the young birds as they take their first flights.  Why do we watch over them, or rather watch from under?  Well, the nest is some 20 stories up the east tower of the Etobicoke Sunlife centre (formerly known as the Shipp Centre at Islington and Bloor).  The young birds need to build their strength in the first days of flight, and basically figure things out, like what is beyond the nest they spent their first weeks in, and once out in the world, how to get back home where it is safe.  Remember, this nest is some 20 stories up.

So in the first days of flight, we watch the young birds, and help them if they get into trouble.  And believe me, they can get into trouble.  Their first flights, with the lack of strength often have them coming low to the ground.  Some find their way back up to the nest, taking short flights, slowly making their way up.  Some, not so fortunate, end up on the ground, be it the sidewalk or perhaps out in the middle of Bloor Street.  That is where we come into play, or maybe action is a better word, doing our best to quickly retrieve the confused bird before he meets a truck grill as one deadly example.

Young birds sometimes end up on nearby condo balconies.  And most people living in these buildings have no clue about these birds nesting in the area, and how a young Falcon may need help getting back home once landing here.  We've seen cases where they come down to the balcony floor and look through the clear glass "fencing" that surrounds the balcony.  They don't understand how they can see outwards but cannot go anywhere.  Another rescue is needed where we communicate with the building management, the condo owner, and retrieve the bird.

These are just a couple examples of why the watch is needed.  It's all about helping the Peregrine Falcons.  Once a bird on the edge of extinction here in North America, they have come back in good numbers in the last couple decades.  They have gone up the list from endangered to species at risk, or special concern.

A bird that normally nests on cliff sides has taken to skyscrapers in the city.  Why?  A great food supply is my guess.  Pigeons everywhere!  Although their kills may include European Starlings to local Ducks.  One of our watchers witnessed our resident female O'Connor bring home Mallard Duck on more than one occasion through the summer of 2013.  You have to agree that Peregrine Falcons do a very good job of population and species control in our cities.

It is estimated that 80% of young Falcons do not survive their first year.  The chances of survival rises each year for a bird until they reach adulthood, when then on they hopefully live a long healthy life with all the growing up and learning stuff mostly behind them.  So in one season, where I've been a part of 3 separate nest sites, with a total of 10 chicks to help watch over...  according to statistics, only 2 of the 10 would live to see the next Spring.  I know us participating in these watches surely helps bring up the chances of survival into the next year!  Just simple rescues in the first weeks, getting them home again, to try another day, and hopefully learn from the experiences.

Angie and I are entering our 4th season of Falcon fledge watching.  It's grown a little each year, but last year was more like a leap and bound with ESL losing it's key senior watcher Frank Butson, aka: Big Frank.  He passed away mere weeks before the watch.

With us and many other Falcon watchers at sites across the city having jobs, mortgages, families, etc; it becomes difficult to devote the time needed to look out for these birds.  That is where having more eyes to the sky is needed to help.  Not everyone works 9 to 5 jobs.  The flexibility these days with work hours can bring willing people in any day of the week, any time, from dawn to dusk.

There is no set amount of time required to come to a watch.  We ask others to do what they can, when they can.  Be it 30 minutes, 1 hour, 2 hours, 3, 4, 5, whatever.  Even just giving someone else a break to grab a coffee, use the washroom, or just hanging out and offering some company during the slow periods where nothing is happening.  Believe me, there are times when there is absolutely nothing going on.  But when things start happening, look out.  These are wild animals and unpredictable.  A young Falcon so high up on a building ledge, flapping his wings, running back and forth....  when is he going to take that first flight?  And as we watch, it may go like this...  "Oh my goodness, he's right on the edge, he almost went off.  Here he comes again!  Shit!  He stopped himself!  Oh no, there he goes!"  And away goes one of four young Falcons.  Now which way did he go?  Did he go around the building, did he make it across to the next building, did he spiral down losing altitude and end up on the concourse?  We never know.  And having extra sets of eyes on them surely helps.

It's fun but incredibly stressful time with the birds.  Some people can't handle it.  Especially when you put names to the birds, personalizing them.  But for me, as stressed as I am, I take it all in, and love to watch them grow.  They develop personalities rather quick and you can see who is who at times without needing visual confirmation of the colored band tape we normally use.

This year we have four chicks.

Sunni who has a yellow band.
Heaton who has a white band.
Pierre who has a blue band.
Skyla who has a red band.

The colors make good for quick spotting.  The colors stand out even without binoculars or scopes.  And it's easier to remember red, blue, white and yellow instead of the birds' names in the moment.

I fell in love with a green band at Etobicoke Sunlife last year.  Her name is Layton.  She blew us all away with all she did through the watch and the months after.  Here she is playing with her sister Shania high above us.  Never in my life prior to this did I believe that young birds might play.  Silly of me to think that.  It's moments like these that are a real pay off after hours upon hours of not a whole lot going on.

Not convinced, how about Layton doing a food transfer above us with mom?

Or this, Layton playing with her dad Jack.  See how much bigger she is than her father?  Female birds of prey are always bigger.  I think Layton got some real good lessons in flying by chasing her father, and copying his every move.

Jack was awesome, taking Layton back home every time, showing her where and how to land.  Once home again, Layton would stay there, almost like realizing she needed to rest after the big work out she just had.

If I may take a moment to talk about the other kids from last year...

Shania, with her red band, freaked me out so many times as she struck the reflective glass of the Sunlife building.  There's a big downfall to this site, and a few others in the city...  reflective glass.  The birds in this young age don't realize that glass is a solid object.  To them, it would appear they could fly right through it.  And a young Peregrine Falcon, being the fastest animal on the planet in a dive, still can go pretty darn fast flying straight, or trying to make it up to her home being that nest ledge.  Shania hit the glass at least 6 times that I witnessed, sometimes spiraling down and out of sight, other times losing altitude momentarily, before getting her bearings straight and saving herself, then flying to a nearby landing spot for a break before trying again. 

Unfortunately Angie witnessed one young Falcon 2 years ago hit the glass, break her neck instantly and spiral to her death.  Her name was Regatta.  I was watching Regatta just hours earlier and she appeared to be doing so well.  All it takes is one mistake like this and it can be fatal.  It is the mot horrific thing to witness, even with me not being there, I can just imagine.  And us watchers can do nothing at this point but watch in horror and then recover the body.

But then we had a similar incident with Lizzie.  I made my first rescue with her.  And while things didn't look the best for Lizzie in the hours afterwards, she did make a full recovery.  She had a lot of catching up to do with her siblings but as far as we could tell, she did fine.

Then there was little "Big Frank".  A Falcon named after our fallen friend. 

Talk about stress from all those who watched this little guy try and become a self supporting Falcon.  Frank was rescued a couple times through the watch.  One morning he was found sitting on a set of steps along Bloor Street, reeking of garbage.  Lord only knows what kind of trouble he got into after we closed the watch for the night, the evening before.

All four of our chicks survived the summer at ESL and moved on come Fall migration.  We hope to have reports of one nesting somewhere in North America in the coming years.  My bet is on Layton if her brazen cocky attitude doesn't get the best of her.

Here are just a couple success stories from the watch at ESL that I can think of in this moment.

First, we have Skye.  A young male Falcon who happened to be one of the birds we watched our very first year.  He was rescued once or twice as a chick and is currently a resident male at the Don Mills nest site...  you know, the famous Harlequin nest site.  You may have read about it in the Toronto Star through the last couple years.  Skye wasn't always the male there though.  The former resident male, Kendal, got into some trouble last summer with the wicked storms (so we suspect) and is recovering at The Owl Foundation right now.  We hear he's doing very well.

Then there's Windwhistler.  A Falcon in our city, who was born at our ESL site many years ago.  Windwhistler turns 16 this year!  And according to others familiar with his young days, he too was a bird in need of rescue during the fledge watch.  But now, here is he is, still the male at 18 King Street in downtown Toronto....  AND with well over 80 Falcons to date that he has called his children!  Think about that one for a moment.  And one of his sons, Tiago, nests at the Sheraton Centre downtown, mere kms from where he was born.  Even with this dual nest sites, it's an incredibly rare thing.  How many of you know of Peregrine Falcons nesting less than 2 kms from each other in a city?

These are just a couple of so many success stories out there with the Falcons across North America and the watches from the people.

The Falcon Fledge watch begins this weekend, June 14th 2014.  There will be people around most times, doing the best they can, with the time they can give.  Keep an eye out for any of us usually at the corner of Bloor and Eagle, directly east of The Longest Yard, sitting on the steps to the Bell building.

There is paid parking all around the area.  It's $2.25 an hour to park, Sundays are free up until 1pm.  We are mere steps from the Islington TTC subway station. The restaurant options are many along Bloor Street and in the ESL buildings, a variety store is steps away also for various needs. Or just pack your own lunch. There are washrooms in ESL too.

If you have any further questions, you may contact me right here on this blog in the comments section below (I promise to get back to you asap).  Or you can email Angie and I at birdbuds@gmail.com

We, and especially the birds, appreciate any time you may give to help watch the kids over the next couple weeks.  Even our over protective mom O'Connor does even if she doesn't act like it.  LoL!

Just imagine being a part of this and learning of one of these young birds reaching adulthood, having an active and successful nest site somewhere in North America. Wouldn't that be a great feeling, knowing you helped look out for that bird way back when?

Etobicoke Sunlife definitely isn't the only Falcon site in Ontario that seeks others to come assist with the watch, but for the moment, I am only speaking of our local site and it's need starting this weekend. Please consider coming out?

I've been very fortunate to have some upclose moments with the Falcons in recent times, this past winter was my first ever opportunity to share the species with the general public at the Toronto Sportsman Show, talking to others about these amazing birds.

Here's some other links about the PEFAs if interested...
wikipedia, the ROM or how about one of many fantastic YouTube videos seen here or this

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Meet Layton the Falcon

Well lookit this, I might actually key out another blog this week... two in two days! Lets hope for no interruptions and get this one going now.

Most of you are aware of our Falcon watching adventures through June, mostly at the Etobicoke Sunlife buildings at Islington and Bloor. I kinda got lost in the summer and some Falcon events, back and forth with some work hours going from a morning shift to an afternoon shift, which has really messed things up. But I got to finish the tales of the watch, from my point of view sooner than later (it's already a blurry bunch of bits now).

I want to tell you about the first bird to fledge from the nest this year, her name is Layton, and she is named after Jack Layton. Seems famous Canadians was the theme at some of the sites. If you have been following my blog, you might remember her from the last and probably only blog I did of the Sunlife Falcon Fledge Watch of 2013. If you missed it, here it is.

Like that blog tells, I spent about 5.5 hours face to face with Layton the day she took her first flight. She was rescued that one time and has been a star flier ever since. I recon she never wants to touch ground, be handled by humans or put in a cat carrier ever again. What has amazed me with her, is that from the day after her rescue and release, she suddenly was learning really fast on what it takes to be a great Falcon. She flew fast, hard and was agile in no time... and vocal too! In mere days we'd be seeing her out and about more so than on the nest ledge.

The first real notice of how quickly she was learning was when I showed up after work early the next week to help with the watch and heard her screaming above me. Why was she screaming? She was playing with her father, Jack! Jack is an amazing dad and an amazing Falcon. I will tell stories about Jack one of these days. I was in awe to watch Layton right on Jack's tail high above us. She was having a blast and keeping up with him. They flew about the buildings for a couple minutes and then Jack lead Layton right to the nest ledge. He landed. She landed right in behind him. Jack took one look at her and then flew off, and Layton stayed there on the ledge. It was almost like Jack knows Layton is young bird and she needs to build her strength and endurance over time, so him leading her home, was like he said "okay kid, time for a rest". Layton chilled out for a few hours after that. I was so happy I got to see this occur between dad and daughter.

Jack being chased by Layton, notice how the much larger the young female is over her dad?

Jack on his way out after dropping Layton off.

Dinner time for the 3 other chicks as Layton was layed out after the big flight with dad.

A few days later I was rewarded in seeing Layton and Jack having another go at it in the sky. The show was longer this time and they were lower at some points, higher at others, and disappeared behind the Sunlife building too. It was spectacular!

Seeing Layton's progression was thrilling. But we always have concerns about a young bird growing up so fast and perhaps getting a little too over confident in their ways. Fortunately for us at ESL, we never had an issue with Layton getting into trouble again.

We were more focused on her 3 siblings now but it was always a blast to see what Layton would show us next. And a couple days after her last play time that I saw with Jack, she showed me something new, something I have heard about with Falcons but never witnessed... food transfers! Basically an adult comes in with dinner and gets the young Falcon to fly up to the parent, upon which they release the meal, and the younger bird catches it. Sometimes they do, sometimes they don't. But we watched Layton do two food transfers over 3 hours and both were successful. I missed taking pics of the first one because I was too blown away and wanted to see it all with my own eyes and not through the camera. Of course after the fact I was kinda wishing I got something to share with others and keep for a memory. So how great it was for a second transfer to happen mere hours later! We heard the screaming, saw mom O'Conner come flying in with a kill and thought she'd be bringing it to the ledge for her siblings. As she neared, we heard Layton and saw her race after mom. And the transfer happened. Angie, Bruce and myself were cheering her on from the street below. Here's some of that action that I am delighted to share with you all.

Layton coming up under O'Conner.

Great release by mom and catch by daughter!

Layton races off with her prize.

Here's mom O'Conner after the second food transfer. What a Falcon she is! We have many stories about her.

As fellow watcher Bruce put it, "we just had our reward for all the hours we've put in with these birds".

Another day or so later, I'm down at the watch. It's pretty quiet until these old guys from the condo to the east of the nest building decide to come up to the roof top and enjoy some sun. Well, O'Conner was not having any of this and immediately flew in on these guys, screaming her disapproval at them and swooping down over their heads. The guys were waving their arms up in the air at mom, and one guy jumped a few times trying to hit her with his hand. A stupid move on this guy's part and mom's talons sure could do some damage to him. But mom didn't let up. I wanted to yell and scream at these guys but I'm in the alley behind The Longest Yard, so I am across Bloor Street from them and 20 some odd stories below (no way they could hear me). And there I am without my camera! Argh! So I could do nothing more than watch. Moments after mom flew in on the defense, I heard a familiar scream and soon had my visual of young Layton joining the fray with O'Conner. I could tell she really wasn't sure what to do but she just followed mom and repeated everything she did. So now these guys had two Falcons strafing them and neither were giving up. Like mother, like daughter I guess. The guys were now high tailing it for the door to get inside again. But just before they did, there were more Falcon screams, and Layton's smaller sister Shania was now off the nest ledge and coming to help. I was mind blown by this! I won't forget this but am sorry I have no images, crappy and cropped as most are that I get from this watch, but something to share. Oh well. I'm sure you all can paint a better visual in your head than what my shots could have shown you.

Ya, that was pretty awesome and the fact that Shania, who fledged a few days after Layton, was out and on the attack too. The other 2 siblings were slower to get motivated and fledge but they have their own stories I hope to share before the fall.

And as we waited for Lil Big Frank and Lizzie to take flight, we enjoyed Layton and Shania's playing in the sky above us.

Here is Shania on Layton's tail. They were having a lot of fun up there.

And they took turns on who was chasing who. As you can see here, Layton is now on "the attack" after Shania. I forgot to mention that Layton has a green tape band, Shania has a red one. It makes for easier and quicker identifying during the fledge watch.

We are now about 6.5 weeks since I took those last shots. And though the watch has ended, I still visit the site, even momentarily every couple weeks. I see the young birds high above us and it's hard to tell who is who most times due to the height and angles. I've discovered a favorite roost of Layton's, or so I think, since I've found her there a number of times in the recent times. It warms my heart to see her doing so well (so are her siblings but this blog is about Layton).

I tell people that I know without any doubt Layton will be a recognized nesting mother in the next couple years, somewhere in North America. I only hope it's somewhere not too far off that we can go and visit our girl.

Please wish Layton all the best when she leaves home come fall migration!

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