Hi All,
Finally saw the Fish Crow in Bronte on our 4th try. We were at Bronte Harbour
at about 5:15 PM, Sunday April 8, when a smallish, dainty crow landed in the
bare top of a tall pine tree on the north side of the road that parallels the
marina. It was silent, so a well-intentioned birder who was there played a
Fish Crow call, and the bird immediately flew away to the north and landed in a
deciduous tree about a block away. A group of birders charged up the street
after it. Rhondda and I took a bit longer to get there, because she had her
camera. We watched it for a few minutes, then it flew away along the lakeshore
to the east and disappeared around an apartment building. The flight style
looked different than an Am. Crow. The wingbeats were shallower and more
rapid, and it seemed to get bounced around somewhat by the wind. The wings
seemed more pointed and lacked the blunt appearance of Am. Crow. The people
who quickly got to this second location heard the bird call, but I didn't hear
anything while we were watching it.
We went back to the marina parking lot and stayed 'til after 6:00 PM, but the
bird didn't re-appear. In summary, I was hoping to hear it vocalize, but
failing that, I was pretty confident that this was the Fish Crow. It looked
small and dainty, fairly long tailed, and short legged. The head was smaller,
and the the bill a bit finer than Am. Crow.
We decided to head home, but I had to make a pitstop at the Timmies on
Lakeshore, a few blocks east of Bronte Rd. I got out of the car and was
walking in, when a smallish crow flew low, right over my head, and looked like
it was landing behind the Shopper's next door. I went back to the car and told
Rhondda. She got out and went to look for it, while I went for my bladder
break. When I came out, she was taking pictures of the bird. It was low in a
tree, behind the east end of this strip mall. She said it called a few times
when it first landed, but again, I never heard it. After a few minutes, it
flew east along Lakeshore and landed in another tree about a block away. There
is a Canada Trust farther east on Lakeshore, and the crow was in a tree on the
east side, so we pulled around behind and got out, and it quickly started
vocalizing for a few minutes. Unmistakeable Fish Crow! Rhondda took some more
pictures, while I called Rob Waldhuber, because he'd missed it by minutes the
day before, and I didn't want him sitting in the marina parking lot in
frustration. Turned out he was at home, but while I was talking to him, the
bird flew to the north and disappeared. After I got off the phone, Rhondda
said she heard another Fish Crow some distance to the north, behind a baseball
field adjacent to the Canada Trust and the bird we were watching flew toward
this second bird. Hopefully we'll have some decent pictures of this critter.
It's been a bit of a puzzle why the bird(s) haven't been located away from
Bronte Marina, so the only advice I can give those still looking, is to check
some of the commercial areas along Lakeshore to the east of Bronte Rd, and the
park east of the Canada Trust.
Lastly, a behaviour observation. While on a bike ride in Burlington on
Saturday, I watched three crows interacting, where the bike path crosses
Appleby, near Fairview. I stopped to watch, hoping that they were Fish Crows.
In fact, that was one of the purposes of this ride, and another one on Sunday
morning, which included Shell Park, the pipeline right-of-way, and the trail
thru Bronte Woods. There was an obvious pair, one of which was carrying a
stick, and an interloper. After circling and displaying over Appleby for a
bit, the interloper flew to the north, and the pair flew over my head toward
Fairview. I followed them, and they landed on the roof of an apartment
building. They were silent the entire time, but they would take short flights
to other parts of the roof, and immediately after landing, did the wing
flicking, head shrugging, that American Crows seem to consistently do. They
look like Rodney Dangerfield doing his suit doesn't fit - tie and underwear are
too tight - fidgit and shrug shtick. The interloper flew back toward the two,
and they started calling: obviously American Crows.
We watched the Fish Crow fly short distances in the same tree, and land
numerous times, and it never did any wing flicking. Is this a behavioural
difference in Fish Crows?
Lastly, Directions. (Hopefully I wasn't too windy)
>From the QEW, south toward Lake Ontario, through the stoplight at Lakeshore
>Rd, and follow the road as it curves to the left and parallels Bronte Marina.
>There are public parking lots on the right, and the bare topped pine on the
>left. If you wish to check out the areas east on Lakeshore Rd, turn left at
>the Lakeshore stoplight. The Tim's is a couple of blocks down on the left,
>and the Canada Trust and the ballfields a block or so further.
George Naylor & Rhondda James
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