Apollo pt.2; the Release
June 20, 2009 - Etobicoke - William Osler
Tracy Simpson Reports:
This has been an exciting day indeed! Apollo’s first flight garnered much attention from curious onlookers that were equally as excited as we were to see him take that first big step towards becoming a man! A crowd had gathered as we watched the resident female O’Connor fly in and count how many chicks she had left to fledge from the ledge. One, two… …hey, where’s three?! Initially, mom had joined Apollo on his maiden voyage but she had now lost sight of him. O’Connor sent up the call to the resident male Hurricane to get his act in gear and look for Apollo. After circling the building several times, Dad took off to the west to hunt, Mom stayed on the ledge with the remaining juveniles and we began to get ready for Apollo’s release on the roof of the building.
The remaining few hours of drizzly, wet daylight were spent with Mom feeding the two chicks left to fledge. Katarina and Margherita ( the two chicks on the ledge ) had made their way around to the northwest corner of the building. After a good feeding, they lay down for a nap and much to our surprise, slept next to an uneaten piece of food! They were so full they left it until after they had slept off some of their earlier dinner, a testament to how incredibly well cared for these chicks are. After having a good chuckle over the enormous crops on the two girls, Bruce Massey and I headed off to security to start the release process for Apollo. This is a co-ordinated effort involving CPF, building maintenance and site security and this could not have been possible without the help of the amazing hospital staff. At dusk, after a thorough examination to make sure he was healthy and hissy ( just as they should be ) Apollo was released onto the northeast corner of the roof without a hitch. Thanks so much to Bruce Massey, Emma Stainton, KathySmith and all of the hospital and security staff at William Osler that made this successful rescue and release possible!!