The brutal winter weather in 2014 and 2015 has taken a toll on overwintering waterfowl along Lake Ontario. Cold temperature records were set in southern Ontario in February 2015 and there was a significant freeze-over of the lake, making it very difficult for birds to find food.
Some citizens in communities along the lake have been feeding the birds, unable to stand by and watch them starve to death. But there is a debate about whether feeding wildlife is really the right thing to do, or even in the birds’ best interest. Some municipalities have by-laws against it.
The marina in Cobourg, on the north shore of Lake Ontario, was largely covered with ice and slush in February. Thousands of ducks, geese, swans and gulls huddled on the ice and in small patches of open water. The shore was covered with a hard layer of icy snow.
During the worst of the cold spells in 2014 and 2015, Cobourg resident Bill Thompson brought buckets of corn daily to feed the birds. The town gave him tickets for disobeying its by-law.
Many citizens supported Thompson’s efforts to help the hungry birds, including Lisa Peterson, a licensed wildlife custodian from Frankford (top) and Peterborough resident Ross Davis (bottom).
They only feed the birds during extreme cold weather, when the birds cannot find food on their own. Whenever someone shows up with food, there is a frenzy among the hungry birds to get to the chow line. Buckets of corn disappear in minutes.
It is a constant struggle for the birds to plough their way through the ice and slush. Getting on and off the icy shoreline is especially tricky.
Thompson has seen birds struggling to free their feet which become frozen in the ice. Some never escape and die as a result, while others break their legs or lose a foot. This goose, whom he named Peggy, lost her foot in 2014 but was still around in winter 2015.
The complex relationship between climate change and the cold weather outbreaks in the past two years raises concerns that the wildlife feeding dilemma might be repeated more often in the future.
Text and images by Lydia Dotto, a Peterborough-based science and nature photographer and writer. Capturing wildlife images is Lydia’s passion and her greatest photographic challenge.
I saw those starving birds, and dead ones were just skin and bone, covered with feathers!!!
Common sense is all we need to realize when you find a problem and are capable of fixing it, DO IT!
But that also explains why it’s a problem NO COMMON SENSE!
I have been charged on January 20th 2018 for feeding the wildfowl in the harbour during this extreme past winter.
I go to court on September 6th charged with Cobourg Bylaw # 022-2016 (updated) which now includes “feeding”wildfowl on the same level as attempting to kill , killing,trapping,ensnaring ,trapping etc or otherwise disturbing wildlife without a legal permit as a violation.
Since when is trying to save wildlife from a horrible death by starvation by providing them their natural corn that they cannot get access to due to extremely severe sustained weather conditions an unlawful act.?
In Cobourg compassion does not exist obviously
Very sad that for three months of the year in a mostly frozen over uninhabited harbour that such an important sanctuary for transiting wildfowl that helping them to survive is unlawful in the eyes of the town council.
Mid-March the wildfowl are all gone west to the Quinte marshes for nesting as usual.
Sad reflection on priorities of the town which unfortunately do not include concern for the survival of one of our most important treasures.
How comes we strive to feed starving human animals around the world in certain countries and even in our own with soup kitchens and shelters instead of letting them starve to death and letting nature take its course???? So it’s okay to let “nature take its course” when it comes to non human animals! Typical. We are one of many species on this planet but we sure don’t seem to “let nature take its course” when it comes to us thanks to our arrogance in thinking we are so much better just because we are humans. There is nothing wrong with helping non human animals in times of severe hardship, just like we do humans!!
I support the feeding of the the waterfowl in this harsh winter. We feed songbirds and the like to help them through so what is wrong with helping out when things are extra tough! And aren’t we contributing to climate change.
I saw those starving birds, and dead ones were just skin and bone, covered with feathers!!!
Common sense is all we need to realize when you find a problem and are capable of fixing it, DO IT!
But that also explains why it’s a problem NO COMMON SENSE!
I have been charged on January 20th 2018 for feeding the wildfowl in the harbour during this extreme past winter.
I go to court on September 6th charged with Cobourg Bylaw # 022-2016 (updated) which now includes “feeding”wildfowl on the same level as attempting to kill , killing,trapping,ensnaring ,trapping etc or otherwise disturbing wildlife without a legal permit as a violation.
Since when is trying to save wildlife from a horrible death by starvation by providing them their natural corn that they cannot get access to due to extremely severe sustained weather conditions an unlawful act.?
In Cobourg compassion does not exist obviously
Very sad that for three months of the year in a mostly frozen over uninhabited harbour that such an important sanctuary for transiting wildfowl that helping them to survive is unlawful in the eyes of the town council.
Mid-March the wildfowl are all gone west to the Quinte marshes for nesting as usual.
Sad reflection on priorities of the town which unfortunately do not include concern for the survival of one of our most important treasures.
How comes we strive to feed starving human animals around the world in certain countries and even in our own with soup kitchens and shelters instead of letting them starve to death and letting nature take its course???? So it’s okay to let “nature take its course” when it comes to non human animals! Typical. We are one of many species on this planet but we sure don’t seem to “let nature take its course” when it comes to us thanks to our arrogance in thinking we are so much better just because we are humans. There is nothing wrong with helping non human animals in times of severe hardship, just like we do humans!!
I support the feeding of the the waterfowl in this harsh winter. We feed songbirds and the like to help them through so what is wrong with helping out when things are extra tough! And aren’t we contributing to climate change.