Fight between bald eagle and Canada goose in Burlington bay 'very symbolic,' says photographer

A bald eagle may have thought it spotted an easy lunch in a Canada goose sitting on an icy bay in Burlington, Ont., but according to Mervyn Sequeira — who watched and photographed a 20-minute battle between the two birds — the goose held its own.

During his weekly Sunday morning family hike at the LaSalle Marina, Sequeira and his family witnessed a rare event — a fight between the national bird of the U.S. and the iconic Canadian animal. 

"We were there, and we saw this bald eagle coming in and going in to attack a Canada goose that was on the ice," the 74-year-old told CBC Hamilton.

Sequeira is a retired airline captain who has been photographing Canadian wildlife since he arrived to Canada from Goa, India, 30 years ago. He captured the eagle-goose battle with his camera on Feb. 23.

The bald eagle made "several attempts" to attack the goose, Sequeira said.

"When we thought that it was really over for the goose, strangely, the bald eagle just gave up and left," said Sequeira, who's from Oakville, Ont.

"The goose was spared that day."

'This is how nature works'

Sequeira said while he doesn't like getting into politics, he found the encounter "very symbolic."

"I only posted [the pictures to social media] in terms of what happened, not putting a political spin on it. However, there were lots of people who looked at it in the political context," he said.

Sequeira said, from his perspective, "that is how nature works."

"But we're living in a slightly polarized world just now, so some people looked at it differently." 

The battle between the birds occurred not long before U.S. President Donald Trump launched a trade war with Canada. This week, he moved ahead with long-threatened 25 per cent tariffs on most Canadian goods. Trump's suggestions that Canada is so dependent on the U.S. that it should become the 51st state has also strained the relationship. 

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau hit back, announcing immediate retaliatory tariffs on $30 billion worth of American goods.

"To the American people, we don't want this," Trudeau said during a Tuesday morning news conference. "We want to work with you as a friend and ally and we don't want to see you hurt either, but your government has chosen to do this to you."

Trudeau said Canadians "are united in knowing that this is the time to hit back hard and demonstrate that a fight with Canada will have no winners... The sooner we can get past this fight… the better we will all be."

Bird appeared to be unwell, says photographer

Bald eagles are not a new sight in Burlington. The first eagles to hatch on the Canadian side of Lake Ontario in 50 years did so at the Royal Botanical Gardens in 2013. Another pair of eaglets were born at the RBG in 2023. The RBG told CBC Hamilton the bald eagle population is growing, but the RBG only knew of one bird to be based locally, in nearby Cootes Paradise.  

The Canada goose, much more commonly spotted, appeared to be sick, Sequeira said, which he thinks is why the bald eagle chose it as prey. He said it's common in winter for eagles to turn to sick waterfowl when the ice makes it harder to catch fish.

Sequeira said the goose was unstable on its feet and its head kept swinging "very much like a person would be if a person had had vertigo."

Sequeira said he's never seen anything like the encounter he captured last month.

"We see bald eagles going for fish. We see bald eagles going after smaller ducks occasionally," he said.

"But it's quite unusual to see a bald eagle taking on a Canada goose, and in all my years, this is the first time I've seen it."

The way nature balances itself is "fascinating," said Sequeira.

"Eagles, for instance, or coyotes are there to take out the sick and also to maintain a balance in numbers," he said.

"Some of us do not understand [it] but that's the way nature works. And I just enjoy nature."