On The Wild Side: A look back at the wildlife highlights of 2023

By ANN BROKELMAN

As I look back, 2023 has been truly incredible for me — full of dozens of memorable wildlife and birding adventures. I’d like to take a few minutes to share my top experiences from the last year.

One of the most memorable moments was when my daughter, Julie, invited me to join her on a trip to Yellowstone National Park to witness the beauty of bison and wolves. How could I ever say no to that? Naturally I accepted the invitation, and, in February, we landed in Montana, heading off on a six-day adventure filled with incredible animal encounters.

I was impressed by the bison, pronghorns, elk, eagles, and more that Julie and I saw in the next hour after landing in Montana.

Admittedly, the bison were far away, but I still made Julie stop the car, so I could take my first pictures. She rolled her eyes at me and reminded me that we’d see some closer in the next few days. I couldn’t help it; these were my first wild bison! Of course, there were a dozen bison standing on the road as we turned the next corner. Don’t you love hearing your children say, “I told you so”?

Among my favourite sightings were a bison covered in hoarfrost, several western coyotes, and encountering a pack of 15 wolves. We had so much to see that we took more than 16,000 photos.

Bison in Montana covered in frost. Photo by Ann Brokelman.

To make the most of this trip, we hired a guide to show us the area, help us drive the snowy and icy roads, (which have insanely steep drops and no guardrails), and to help us find the local wildlife. If you ever go, I’d absolutely recommend you do the same.

For my second story, I have an adventure that happened a bit closer to home. As my grandchildren get older, I have more and more company for my birding adventures. Lara is my eldest granddaughter (she’ll be 11 in a few months), and during one of her weekend stays at our house, she told me that she really wanted to see a peregrine falcon.

“No worries”, I told her, “Oma knows where they are!” and off we went. As we stood together, both taking pictures of the falcons, an unexpected and magical call came in from the Toronto Wildlife Centre.

The TWC was hoping I could assist with checking on a two-week-old red-tailed hawk chick that someone suspected had fallen from a nest. Lara and I took off immediately, and with a little determination we managed to find the vulnerable little hawk.

It only took a few moments for me to determine that the chick was at risk if it stayed on the ground much longer, let alone over night. Being the great helper she is, Lara ran to the car and grabbed a box, towels, and all the necessary supplies for us to collect and provide temporarily care for the young hawk.

The following morning, we personally delivered the rescued hawk to the Toronto Wildlife Centre, where it was assessed. Jaydeen, from Raven Tree Care and Wildlife Preservation services was called to see if she could renest the young hawk.

When I say ‘brave’ I really mean brave. How many people do you know who’d be willing to climb all the way up to a hawk’s nest, carrying a hawk baby, to where two very anxious, angry, and taloned adults might be wondering what you’re doing with their chick? Jaydeen quickly renested the young hawk, and we noticed that within two to three minutes both adults had returned to the nest. It was the perfect ending to a wonderful weekend with Lara.

A rescued baby red-tailed hawk. Photo by Ann Brokelman.

The red-tailed hawk baby was quickly renested. Photo by Ann Brokelman.

The last exciting moment I’d like to write about happened just a few weeks ago in December, when a neighbour reached out to tell me that there was a white-tailed buck and doe just down the road from my house.
Fortunately, I had my camera handy, (you’d be right to assume that I sleep with it beside my pillow), so I wasted no time in heading out the door.

Along with some neighbours, we watched the two healthy and beautiful deer grazing on the trees and other foliage. I want to make something clear: we kept our distance. I believe there is more than enough space for us to enjoy wildlife, without interfering with it.

As time passed, they walked past us and went into another neighbour’s backyard. I was asked if I wanted to see what they were up to, and curiosity got the better of me. What a lucky decision that turned out to be: to my astonishment, the buck began chasing and attacking the doe, even knocking her down. The buck even pinned her against a wooden fence at one point. As it turns out, this is a perfectly normal part of the deer rut and is part of the “dance” that happens about 200 days before fawns are born.

The next morning, I was checking my trail camera, and it turns out that my front yard was the venue for more ‘frolicking’ adventures those deer got up to during the night.

I think I’m glad none of my grandchildren were around for that, as I think it’s best for them to ask their parents directly about the birds and the bees… and, apparently, the deer.

So, what will 2024 bring us? In addition to a year of health and wellbeing, I’ve always wanted to see a humpback whale and gray fox. I hope this is the year.