Toronto - Canada Square Building - Yonge and Eglinton

Adult Female at Yonge and Eglinton

January 06, 2011 - Toronto - Canada Square Building - Yonge and Eglinton

Tracy Simpson Reports:

I never thought that I would say that I was happy to be stuck in not-moving-at-all traffic but today was an exception.  Heading south on Yonge street just north of Eglinton I glanced up at the 2200 Yonge street building only to find a rather large dark blob on the northwest corner.  After passing through the intersection and turning around north again, I was lucky to get caught up at the light just south of Eglinton and get out my binoculars for a look.  It was definately an adult female perched on the corner.  I couldn’t get a visual on the male but we will keep an eye out for him as well.

Peregrines Acting Territorial

November 27, 2010 - Toronto - Canada Square Building - Yonge and Eglinton

Frank Butson Reports:

Lyn Reports from Yonge and Eglinton.. Peregrine pair - Saturday November 27th 2010. 
I was at the bank at Y & E and seduced by the blue sky and sunshine I went out onto the sidewalk to look for our Peregrines. This was at 3:25pm. I looked up at the Heart and Stroke building and found nothing. On checking the Rio-Can building, top row of windows, I spotted one of the Peregrines. It was a large bird (when it flew I could tell) and so I believe it was the female. She flew across Eglinton,over the bank building next to the TTC lot and was joined over that building by the male,much smaller in size. When they came in to view over Yonge street I saw that they were both chasing a Redtailed hawk.
They nearly got it over the CIBC building on the east side of Yonge at the corner and the chase was on! The RT flew for dear life heading east,crossed over Eglinton around Redpath with the two Peregrines in close pursuit, diving on it periodically. They all disappeared from view on the north side of Eglinton.
I stood for a few minutes watching the sky and saw one of the Peregrines coming back along Eglinton until somewhere close to Dunfield Ave and then it disappeared again,on the north side.
It was very rewarding to see them still active in this area!
Cheers
Lyn

Female Adult on site eating

October 15, 2010 - Toronto - Canada Square Building - Yonge and Eglinton

Frank Butson Reports:

Lyn Reports:

Yonge –Eglinton Peregrine report 20101015

I left 53 division Police station and whilst waiting for the lights to change I looked up to the * 2010 nest ledge* and spotted a *bird* on it. Of course I missed the light change as I stared at the bird attempting to identify whether it was a peregrine or not. When it flew I could see that it was indeed a peregrine, large-ish so I believe a female. I had no binoculars with me and with dusk descending, colours were difficult to see.

The peregrine flew from the nest ledge in front of the RioCan building, in front of the Heart and Stroke building and across Yonge and Eglinton to the southeast corner and land on the CIBC building right at the corner of Y&E. After a minute or two spent catching up to the bird I saw that it was feeding; feathers flew in every direction and were simply picked up by the wind. From the size of the wing feathers I think it may have been a pigeon. I could see long primaries. I spent twenty minutes in the *breeze* watching it eat. While it was eating another peregrine flew from somewhere behind me, across Y&E and over the CIBC building in a south-easterly direction and was gone. When the peregrine on the roof had finished, it wiped its beak on the edge of the roof and stood around for a few minutes pondering its next move.

It flew back across the Y&E intersection, along Eglinton to the mast at Duplex, changed its mind and flew back whence it had come. Then it turned once more gained height and flew to the top set of windows on the RioCan building and settled on one of the window uprights. That is where I left it as I was cold by this time.

In flight I could not detect any *bend* in the shoulder/wrist area so I am sure it was not dad.

Frank’s addition:The adult male has a kink in its wing,from an old healed injury,so I am sure Lyn is correct about it being the female.

Still Here…Still Active

August 17, 2010 - Toronto - Canada Square Building - Yonge and Eglinton

Frank Butson Reports:

Lyn Reports:

Report for 20100817, Tuesday.
At 7:00pm I heard the tell tale sound of young peregrines in the area but I was too late to see anything.
At 7:12pm I heard the call again and managed to see a large youngster, so a female, in flight three streets North of Eglinton and across Yonge street. She flew behind an apartment building and came out the other side whilst pigeons flew every which way on the east side of that
building and down to lower rooftops. The peregrine looped around in the same direction as the pigeons but was not giving chase. She disappeared.
A minute or two later I heard the call above the Heart and Stroke building and saw the mom, still missing wing feathers on each wing, fly away from the building, over the Rio Can building, and a youngster followed her only to disappear. Mom flew out over the north side of the H&S building, back, out of sight over the same building and then from the H&S building she went into a stoop past the Orchardview apartment building and up Yonge street. She pulled out of that stoop and flew south along Yonge street and I lost her.
At 7:27pm I heard more calling but was too late to see any peregrine.
At 7:43 pm I heard the calls again but no sighting.
They’re still here and still active!
 
Lyn

All 3 Young Seen..Doing Great

August 13, 2010 - Toronto - Canada Square Building - Yonge and Eglinton

Frank Butson Reports:

Lyn Reports:

August 13, Friday Yonge and Eglinton
Report for today primarily and for odd days over the past week working backwards.
I heard calling at around 6:30pm and went out to have a look. Searched the Heart and Stroke building found a *spot* at the top of the Northwest corner of the building and at the end of my search found a juvenile female sitting on one of the *walls* between the windows. She was responsible for the noise! So I came back inside to get my camera and the peregrine, low down, flew. However, I saw two, one of which was squawking, flying from north to south over the northeast corner of the H&S building! There was a size difference between the two! Then my little peregrine from the northwest corner flew and joined the others out of my sight. This was a larger bird. A short time later I saw two peregrines over the H&S building fluttering madly and again they disappeared from view. A minute later a small peregrine flew from somewhere southwest of the Riocan building, over the H&S at speed and was then followed by one squawking youngster which I believe to be a female. I am just a wee bit unsure whether I saw four peregrines in total or only three! I definitely saw two juvenile females - the smaller bird is the one in question - it flew like dad on a mission from the southwest but the earlier sighting of the smaller bird, when it disappeared from view on the H&S building, suggested the young male.
 
On Wednesday this week in the early afternoon I heard the peregrines calling for quite some time but did not investigate.
 
On Tuesday this week I was awoken to a real din at 6:00 AM!!!!! Wayyyyyyyyyy too early for me to get out of bed and have a look to see what was happening. I turned over and went back to sleep!
 
On Sunday I heard calling and went out to investigate. I saw one of the young females flying to and over the southwest corner of the H&S building. She seemed to be trying to entice someone off the corner and after her third or fourth try she was successful. First one youngster flew and then another joined them. The three young birds all flew together, in close proximity, and went over the apartment building on Orchardview, the Library building and continued north and then eventually northwest and out of sight.
 
They are all flying quite strongly, at times quite high and seem to have little problems landing anywhere, for example those thin walls which jut out between the windows!
 
Lyn

!!! Falcon Sighting!

July 17, 2010 - Toronto - Canada Square Building - Yonge and Eglinton

Kathy Reports:

Yesterday morning I had to go up to the Yonge and Davisville area for an appointment and I arrived early so I thought I’d take a look and see if I could figure out where this new family is nesting.

It was my lucky day as you can see the nest site building quite well from there so I walked up a few blocks and was rewarded by seeing 3 juvenile falcons in the air!  Two were playing tag and one was riding the thermals right next to them.  It was a wonderful sight and I was thrilled to finally see the new kids in town!

Great Flying Displays

July 17, 2010 - Toronto - Canada Square Building - Yonge and Eglinton

Frank Butson Reports:

Lyn Reports: I have just had the most wonderful hour and a half outside. The first 15 minutes were very slow with nothing to observe until one of the female youngsters began flying. She flew on her own for about 10 to 15 
minutes all around the tops of the RioCan, Heart and Stroke, glass building
and the apartment complex on Duplex. She even came across a couple of time to the nest building and on one occasion flew HIGH OVER the taller of the 2 condo buildings! I was immensely impressed, so much so that I questioned whether this was possibly the mom. However all tail feathers and wing feathers were in place! After a brief respite, she landed out of sight on the Heart and Stroke building, 2  birds took to the air and gave me an incredible display of their aerial prowess! I was mesmerised as they flew apart, together, one above the other, one ahead of the other, side by side and actually talon touched! They were practising, it was obvious, because there were many misses and many occasions when both turned the same way and of course missed again. However, there were many *hits* when they actually touched or almost did! Then a 3rd bird took to the air and joined in the fun and I was watching all 3  youngsters, talon touch (much of the time), fly together,apart,above and below and in front of and behind one another! Most of this took place in the air space above the RioCan and Heart and Stroke buildings but they did fly over Duplex Avenue and over the nest building on occasion.
After 30 minutes of this interaction one of the females flew *east along
Eglinton* - I did not follow! Then Typhoon had a rest on the antenna on top
of the nest building. A few minutes respite to relax my neck and the display
began again. First a sole female took to the air and then Typhoon joined her
and they *played* over the RioCan building and up Duplex avenue. There was an almost hysterical outburst of young Peregrine squawking and I saw Mom fly over and onto the Yonge street side of things out of sight! She has lost another wing feather, the other wing, and I think another tail feather! Once she was out of sight all was quiet again and the third youngster came in from the east and again I had a display of all 3  in the air! They fly
beautifully, missing one another in the air, turning on a dime, and ducking
and weaving!! It was quite breezy so I don’t know if they have all actually mastered the art of *kiting*, staying in the same place deliberately, or not but they all managed it a number of times each!
The youngsters all went to roost on the back of the Heart and Stroke
building, I think! They appeared to come down over that building. Once they had been down for a while dad sneaked in from somewhere, flew over the nest building and part of the black building above the TTC bus bay, turned and came in to land on the third balcony (middle), nest level, on the south side of the concrete wall. I did not have the scope with me and try as I did I could not see his band. I don’t think I would have been able to with the scope either as he was just back far enough that I could not see his bare
legs.
All this time in the air was done in silence, except when mom appeared and
disappeared. I had a ringside seat from my perch on the EMS ramp! I was so impressed with the youngsters!
Cheers
Lyn

3 In Sight

July 13, 2010 - Toronto - Canada Square Building - Yonge and Eglinton

Frank Butson Reports:

Lyn Reports:  Had a brief sighting of the juveniles today.
I had been sitting at the table in my living room,when I heard lots of loud
squawks,so I went onto the balcony and saw a juvie flying and fluttering as
it squawked way over to Redpath Ave,which is several roads east of Yonge at Eglinton. Eventually it disappeared.
I went outside a little later and found all three juveniles on the nest
building !!! One was on the nest ledge north of where the nest was/is. A second one was on the level below that,underneath the other one and I think these two were the females. The third one, which I think was the male was squawking where he sat on the antenna on the nest building. He never stopped! The first to fly was the female on the ledge below the nest ledge. She is a very big bird,likely Cyclone.  She flew across Eglinton Avenue, across the *glass building* and north up Duplex Ave and out of sight.

 The second to fly, about ten minutes later, was the other female,probably Tara. She flew around the building to Yonge street and I could not follow in time to see where she went. When both the females took off they squawked madly but once they were nicely airborne they stopped their noise and put all their energy into the flight. And Typhoon just sat on the antenna he was on and squawked!
Cheers
Lyn

!!! Tara’s at it again with her balcony inspections!

July 08, 2010 - Toronto - Canada Square Building - Yonge and Eglinton

Mark Nash Reports:

Once again, a huge thank you to the local community and to Rosemary who lives in the Yonge & Eglinton area for both her concern and for making the calls to find someone that could help a young peregrine once again trapped behind a glass balcony enclosure on the 53rd floor level of one of the condo’s.

We received a message from the good folks at Toronto Wildlife about the story and that no intervention was needed to help Tara.

After struggling for close to an hour while trying to figure out why she couldn’t get through the glass of a balcony enclosure, Tara finally figured it out on her own before rescuers could help. “Jump up onto a chair, then jump up to the small table, and then jump up onto the balcony rail and away I go”! Once again, a valuable lesson learned!!

Over the next few weeks, the juveniles will be building up the necessary wing muscle mass and strength to overcome these little challenges. Remembering also that this hot humid air makes every flight a challenge, even for the adult peregrines!

All 3 Young Flying Well

- Toronto - Canada Square Building - Yonge and Eglinton

Frank Butson Reports:

Lyn Reports: I braved the hot and humid weather and went out at 5:30pm looking for the Peregrines.I looked skywards and found two youngsters on the Southwest corner of the RioCan building.