An amateur photographer’s images of a 20-minute battle for survival between a Canada goose and bald eagle have quickly caught the attention of many Canadians as a symbol of the escalating tensions between Canada and the U.S.
On Feb. 23 at around 11 a.m., eagle-eyed photographer Mervyn Sequeira zeroed in on an impending battle between a Canada goose and a bald eagle, which is the national bird of the U.S., on the frozen ice of Lake Ontario.
“I saw the bald eagle coming in. It seemed to had purpose and it was heading straight for a goose that was out on the frozen lake,” the 74-year-old said of the scene that was unfolding near LaSalle Marina in Burlington, Ont.
“It made several attacks on the goose. The goose fought back as best it could.”
Sequeira, who has been taking nature photos since he was in his teens, said that the symbolic bird battle which was unfolding before his eyes on the frozen ice went on for about 20 minutes.
“At the end of 20 minutes, the bald eagle just gave up and took off,” he described. “During that time, there were moments when we thought it was over for the goose because of all the equipment that the bald eagle had in terms of talons and whatever else. However, the goose survived the day.”
He said there was something poetic about the scene from nature that was unfolding before his eyes.
“It looked like ballet on ice,” Sequeira said. “I mean, not the nicest ballet because there was a fight between life and death there, but it was like ballet on ice.”
But as the birds went their separate ways, the amateur photographer still could not have known how well he had captured the battle as he was quite a distance away.
“I was hoping there should be something good because that shutter was going off nonstop while this action was taking place,” Sequeira explained. “It’s only when you come home that you know whether there were any good ones or not.”
Sequeira has posted around a dozen pictures of the cross-border battle on his Instagram account (@msequeiraphotography).
“I was pleased that I did get some decent shots out of that lot,” he said.
This article by Kevin Nielsen was first published by Global News on 6 March 2025. Lead Image: A Canada goose faces off against a bald eagle in Burlington, Ontario.
Photograph: Mervyn Sequeira.
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