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Birds of High Park's Wetlands

Grenadier Pond, Spring Creek and other wetlands in Toronto’s High Park play home to a variety of year-round and migratory birds.

The wetland birds of Toronto’s High Park reflect the rich diversity supported by the park’s ponds, marshes, and shoreline habitats. The calm waters and dense reeds of Grenadier Pond, Spring Creek and other wetlands provide shelter, feeding grounds, and nesting sites for a wide range of species, from waterfowl and wading birds to migratory visitors. Explore this vibrant ecosystem that sustains a diverse bird community shaped by the rhythms of the seasons.

Learn More: List of Common Birds of High Park’s Wetlands

Note: Most photos on this site are generously contributed by local photographers and were taken in High Park. Please respect their work by not copying or reproducing images without permission. If you’re interested in contributing photos, showcasing your artwork, or creating a dedicated photo album on our website, please contact us.

Canada Goose looking over the water from the end of a half-sunken log in High Park, Toronto.
Canada Goose. Photo Credit: Katherine Pawling
A pair of American Wigeons swimming together in High Park, Toronto.
American Wigeon pair. Photo Credit: Suzanne Adorjan
Northern Shoveler swimming in the pond in High Park, Toronto.
Northern Shoveler. Photo Credit: Colin Marcano
Hooded Merganser male swimming in the pond in High Park, Toronto.
Hooded Merganser male. Photo Credit: Ken Mulhall
Pied-billed Grebe swimming through the pond in High Park, Toronto.
Pied-billed Grebe. Photo Credit: Ronald Wilkins
Great Egret standing in the water, with its reflection mirroring in High Park, Toronto.
Great Egret. Photo Credit: Iain Fleming
Profile of a Great Blue Heron in High Park, Toronto.
Great Blue Heron. Photo Credit: Colin Marcano
Caspian Tern in flight over High Park, Toronto.
Caspian Tern. Photo Credit: Tony Pus
Tree Swallow at the end of a branch, squawking at something out of view in High Park, Toronto.
Tree Swallow. Photo Credit: Colin Marcano
Swamp Sparrow clutching the side of a thin branch in High Park, Toronto.
Swamp Sparrow. Photo Credit: Iain Fleming
Wood Duck male swimming in the pond in High Park, Toronto.
Wood Duck male. Photo Credit: Iain Fleming
An American Black Duck resting by the water in High Park, Toronto.
American Black Duck. Photo Credit: Bob Yukich
Green-winged Teal in the pond in High Park, Toronto.
Green-winged Teal. Photo Credit: Bob Yukich
Hooded Merganser female swimming past a sunken log in High Park, Toronto.
Hooded Merganser female. Photo Credit: Michael Taggart
Cormorant with a catfish in its mouth, swimming through Lower Duck Pond in High Park, Toronto.
Cormorant with catfish at Lower Duck Pond. Photo Credit: Michael Taggart
Great blue heron standing on a fallen tree branch over shallow water in a wooded wetland, showing long legs, grey-blue feathers, and a sharp beak, with dense green foliage and muddy shoreline in the background in High Park, Toronto.
Great Blue Heron. Photo Credit: Richard Sigesmund
Black-crowned Night-Heron juvenile by the water in High Park, Toronto.
Black-crowned Night-Heron juvenile. Photo Credit: Iain Fleming
Belted Kingfisher on a branch, spreading its wings in High Park, Toronto.
Belted Kingfisher. Photo Credit: Ken Mulhall
Common Yellowthroat clinging to a reed in High Park, Toronto.
Common Yellowthroat. Photo Credit: Iain Fleming
Red-winged Blackbird female perched on a thin branch in a bush by the marsh in High Park, Toronto.
Red-winged Blackbird female. Photo Credit: Bob Yukich
A Gadwall swimming in the pond in High Park, Toronto.
Gadwall. Photo Credit: Colin Marcano
A mating pair of Mallards swimming together in High Park, Toronto.
Mallard pair. Photo Credit: Lu Liu
Bufflehead in flight over water in High Park, Toronto.
Bufflehead. Photo Credit: Iain Fleming
Common Merganser male swimming in the pond in High Park, Toronto.
Common Merganser male. Photo Credit: Ken Sproule
Green Heron perched at the end of a turned-over log in High Park, Toronto.
Green Heron. Photo Credit: Ali Pashang
Black-crowned Night-Heron on the ground in High Park, Toronto.
Black-crowned Night-Heron. Photo Credit: Tony Pus
Virginia Rail looking for food at the edge of the pond in High Park, Toronto.
Virginia Rail. Photo Credit: Kin Lau
Spotted Sandpiper on a log, looking over the pond in High Park, Toronto.
Spotted Sandpiper. Photo Credit: Colin Marcano
Eastern Kingbird at the top of a stump in High Park, Toronto.
Eastern Kingbird. Photo Credit: Kin Lau
Song Sparrow on a thin branch in High Park, Toronto.
Song Sparrow. Photo Credit: Iain Fleming
Red-winged Blackbird male perched at the end of a thin branch in High Park, Toronto.
Red-winged Blackbird male. Photo Credit: Colin Marcano

Most photos on this site are generously contributed by local photographers and were taken in High Park. Please respect their work by not copying or reproducing images without permission. If you’re interested in contributing photos, showcasing your artwork, or creating a dedicated photo album on our website, please contact us.

Birds of the City

Build your birding skills and discover how our feathered friends survive in urban neighbourhoods in Toronto.

Created by naturalist and former High Park Nature Centre staff, Mallory Parks, this online naturalist course covers the fascinating and diverse world of birds you can find in your own neighbourhoods. Sign up for this course today and discover how our feathered citizens make their way in the big city.

Enroll In This Course Today
American Robin feeding its chicks at its nest in High Park, Toronto.

City of Toronto's Biodiversity Booklet

Birds of Toronto offers an overview of the 410 bird species recorded across the GTA, including 369 observed within Toronto. Discover the remarkable diversity of local birdlife: from year-round residents and winter visitors to summer breeders and the many migratory species that pass through Toronto on their journeys north during the spring season or south towards warmer wintering sites. This useful booklet provides everything you need to better understand, enjoy, and help protect the birds that share our city.

Learn More
Blue Jay perched on a snow-dusted branch on the cover of Birds of Toronto: A Guide to Their Remarkable World, Second Edition, part of the City of Toronto Biodiversity Series, featuring logos for the City of Toronto, Royal Ontario Museum (ROM), and Live Green Toronto, and an award badge for environmental service.

Discover Related Topics

Dark-eyed junco standing on snow, showing slate-gray upperparts, white belly, and a pale pink bill in a winter landscape in High Park, Toronto.

Birding Through the Seasons

Discover the diversity of birds that reside in or pass through High Park during the spring, summer, fall and winter seasons in Toronto.

Learn More
Male wood duck with colourful plumage and red eye visible, swimming on calm green water, in High Park, Toronto.

Common Waterbirds

Learn about the wide variety of waterbirds who live and feed in Grenadier Pond, Spring Creek and other wetlands in High Park.

Learn More
White-breasted nuthatch climbing headfirst down a tree trunk surrounded by the forest habitat in High Park, Toronto.

Woodland and Savannah Birds

From songbirds to raptors — meet some of the birds you might encounter in High Park’s Black Oak Savannah and Woodlands.

Learn More