It was a treat for bird lovers in Long Branch a day before celebrating Robbie Burns Day.

This rare Bald Headed Eagle was photographed by long-time Long Branch resident Pat Rice on January 24 while it was taking a break on an iconic tree in his backyard.

Bill Zufelt, Director of the Long Branch Neighbourhood Association and Chair of the Association’s History and Culture Committee, said the tree, called Titan, is one of the largest and oldest Red Oak in South Etobicoke.

Some of the oldest trees in the country are in Long Branch, he said.

Zufelt said the famed eagle was Christened “Robert,” in recognition of Robbie Burns Day, which was celebrated worldwide on January 25.

A Burns supper is a celebration of the life and poetry of the late poet Burns, the author of many Scots poems. The suppers are normally held on or near the poet’s birthday, 25 January, known as Burns Night.

“Apparently there are no flying and travel restrictions for our American neighbor’s national birds and it’s a welcoming sign of hope that ‘all’ will return to traveling abroad in the future,” he muses.

The bald eagle is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and its range includes most of Canada and Alaska, all of the U.S., and northern Mexico. It is found near large bodies of open water with an abundant food supply and old-growth trees for nesting.

The bald eagle is the national bird of the U.S., and it appears on its seal. In the late 20th century it was on the brink of extirpation and populations have since recovered, and the species was removed from the U.S. government‘s list of endangered species on July 12, 1995 and transferred to the list of threatened species.

It was removed from the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife in the U.S. in 2007.