lonestranger

I bow to the master photographer.

Did you by chance take more than one photo? Extra photos can often change an ID from a maybe/probably to an absolutely/definitely.

I agree that it looks like a young male Rose-breasted Grosbeak. It's quite possible he is just migrating through, possibly after fighting severe weather that may have blown him off course.

I don't know how long it would have taken me to find a suitable photo. I started looking but there doesn't seem to be much of a selection between the obvious blurd photos and the impossible to find bird photos in my catalog. 🤪

Cedar Waxwing?

I'm lucky if I see a Bald Eagle once or twice a year, and I get photos even less often. This photo was taken from one of the Botanical Garden parking lots approx 10 years ago. After lugging my camera gear along the trails to get long distance blurry photos of the first Bald Eagles to establish a nest along the north shore of Lake Ontario in decades, and then lugging it all back to the car, we were graced with this flyby just before I we got back in the car. The visual in my head is far superior to the image I captured with the camera.

An old shot from 2013, still a personal favourite.

Sometimes you have to create light where there is none/little. Have you considered using flash?

Wildlife has long complained about idiots trying to manage wildlife. Wait, wildlife can't complain, they just get killed off and then someone realizes they might have actually had a role to play in keeping the balance of nature. A prime example is the eradication of wolves in Yellowstone Park and how it changed the ecosystem, and how their reintroduction helped change it back. Let's kill the birds off so they don't deplete the fish supply, after all, it's our right to deplete the fish supply, not the birds!!! *sarcasm emphasized*

This Downy Woodpecker didn't understand what I meant when I asked him to pose for a head on shot.

I counted four photos.

That's a good question, one I hadn't considered. I know that owls breed earlier than most other birds, but I hadn't considered the variable timing amongst the different species.

This is the solicitation call from iBird/WhatBird that I compared my recording to...any thoughts? https://assets.whatbird.com/api/sound/birds_na_147/sound/7647

Chestnut-sided warbler

Well, my suspicions were off. Since I have heard the Who Cooks For You hooting of the Barred Owl a few times, I thought this might have been the female solicitation call looking for a mate. Thanks for the better ears.