Nature is full of amazing architects and animals that know how to make sure that nothing goes to waste. When these two come together, some really incredible things begin to happen…
A home is a structure that is safe, stable, secure, and serves as protection from the things that are beyond our control (e.g. weather, intruders, etc.…)
Just like us, other animals build their homes with the same things in mind! The homes that they build are so complex, using found materials and sometimes even parts of their own bodies, to make it just right.
However, there are some cases where an animal doesn’t build a home, but rather, will use the carefully crafted home of another animal as their own. In High Park, we notice this happening a lot with some of the old hawk nests!
A few weeks back, we spotted a raccoon sleeping in an old hawk’s nest. Even the year before, the same thing happened with a pair of Great Horned Owls, who moved into an old hawk’s nest in order to lay their eggs and raise their two beautiful owlets. In the case of the owls, this kind of animal behaviour is not uncommon. They are incredibly lazy when it comes to building a home!
On your next visit to High Park, keep an eye out for animals using the homes of other animals as their own!
BONUS: Can you spot the raccoon in the photo?
