Duck Hollow Outing, 24 March 8:30a

Belted kingfisher, Feb 2022 (photo by Mick Thompson via Flickr Creative Commons license)

18 March 2024

Birdblog outings resume this month with my first outing next Sunday at Duck Hollow.

Sunday 24 March 2024 — 8:30am – 10:30am

Duck Hollow and Lower Frick Park

Meet at Duck Hollow parking lot at the end of Old Browns Hill Road. We’ll check the river for migrating waterfowl and walk the beginning of lower Nine Mile Run Trail watching for birds and the many signs of Spring.

Duck Hollow can be excellent or just ho-hum. In early November we saw purple finches and a red-shouldered hawk. Yesterday in a five minute stop at 8am I found a large flock of gadwall and six lesser scaup.

What will it be next Sunday? I’m counting on a kingfisher.

Dress for the weather and wear comfortable walking shoes. Bring binoculars, birding scopes and field guides if you have them.

Hope to see you there!

Sunday’s weather looks good so far but always check the Events Page before you come in case of cancellation.

(photo by Mick Thompson via Flickr Creative Commons license)

Second Egg and Overnight Nest Exchange at Pitt

17 March 2024

Carla laid her second egg last night at the Pitt peregrine nest, 16 March 2024 at 9:08pm.

In this video clip from the National Aviary falconcam we see the actual laying occurred quietly at timestamp 21:08:38. (This is 53.14 hours after her previous egg.)

Carla then raised her tail and remained in a standing position as she waited for the new egg to dry. Though the eggs are actually reddish in daylight, they look white under infrared night light.

Carla lays her second egg, 16 March 2024, 9:08pm (video from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

After the egg dried Carla roosted on the green perch in front of the nest.

Mother peregrines are the ones who stay at the nest overnight with eggs and chicks while their mates roost nearby. Ecco was apparently roosting within earshot but not very close. I believe he knew she had laid a second egg; he probably watched (off camera) when she laid it.

Carla was still asleep on the perch when it rained at 4:00am. When Ecco woke up at 4:30am he started to wail. Wailing means “I want something to change.” Perhaps Ecco wanted Carla to cover the eggs or maybe he meant, “I want to change places with you.”

Carla woke up and responded with unusual squeaky chirps. She jumped to the nestbox roof and Ecco arrived to cover the eggs. Listen for his voice and the sound of robins singing in the dark at the beginning of this video.

Overnight nest exchange at the Pitt peregrine nest, 17 March 2024, 4:35am

An overnight nest exchange is very unusual but I’ve seen it once before. When Dori was a new mother at the Gulf Tower in 2010, Louie took over incubation in the middle of the night a couple of times (*). Louie had experience raising a family and Dori did not. Perhaps he was getting the eggs through a critical period, waiting until he felt confident that Dori had caught on.

Peregrines are quick studies at being parents but it’s always nice when one of them already knows what’s going on, as Ecco does.

Watch Carla and Ecco as their family grows at the National Aviary Falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh.

(*)The nighttime nest exchanges at Gulf Tower in 2010 are described in these vintage blogs.

(credits are in the captions)

Seen This Week

Fox sparrow singing at Frick Park, 12 March 2024 (photo by Charity Kheshgi)

16 March 2024

Four days this week were unseasonably warm with highs 18 to 20+ degrees above normal. The flowers and birds responded.

On Tuesday, Charity Kheshgi and I heard a fox sparrow at Frick Park but he was elusive. We spent a long time trying to get a good look him until a blue jay’s weird call made us pause. So did the fox sparrow, as shown above in Charity’s photo.

On Wednesday there were few birds at Toms Run Nature Reserve but we saw purple dead nettle (Lamium purpureum) in bloom.

Purple dead nettle, Toms Run, 13 March 2024 (photo by Kate St. John)

On Thursday 14 March I was surprised at the lack of birds at Raccoon Creek Wildflower Reserve, but the flowers on the Jennings Trail cliff face (bordering the creek) were responding to the heat. It’s not Full Blown Spring yet but I found:

Harbinger of Spring, Raccoon Creek Wildflower Reserve, 14 March 2024 (photo by Kate St. John)
Spring beauty, Raccoon Creek Wildflower Reserve, 14 March 2024 (photo by Kate St. John)
Sharp-lobed hepatica, Raccoon Creek Wildflower Reserve, 14 March 2024 (photo by Kate St. John)
Round-lobed hepatica, Raccoon Creek Wildflower Reserve, 14 March 2024 (photo by Kate St. John)
Virginia bluebell budding flower, Raccoon Creek Wildflower Reserve, 14 March 2024 (photo by Kate St. John)
Alder catkins, Raccoon Creek Wildflower Reserve, 14 March 2024 (photo by Kate St. John)

And in case you missed it Carla, the female peregrine at Pitt, laid her first egg at the Cathedral of Learning on 14 March. Additional eggs are expected approximately 48 hours apart.

(credits are in the captions)

Happy 2024 Egg Day! 1st Peregrine Egg at Pitt

Carla with her first egg, 14 March 2024, 4:00pm (photo from the National Aviary snapshot camera at Univ of Pittsburgh)

14 March 2024, 4:15pm

Happy Egg Day at the Cathedral of Learning! Carla laid her first egg this afternoon, 14 March 2024 at 4:00pm.

Carla with her first egg, 14 March 2024, 4:00pm (photo from the National Aviary streaming falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

This 2-minute video shows the moment she laid the egg.

Carla lays her first egg, 14 March 2024, 4:00pm (video from the National Aviary streaming falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

Have a question about the egg or Carla and Ecco’s behavior? Check out the Peregrine FAQs.

Meanwhile, watch Carla, Ecco and their growing family on the National Aviary Falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh.

UPDATE: New video added on Friday morning.

Egg Day’s Day-in-a-Minute: 14 March 2024 from 7am to 7pm, compressed into 60 seconds.

  • Carla lays the egg at 4pm (16:00).
  • Her mate Ecco visits the egg for 3 minutes at 5pm (17:00) then Carla returns to guard it.
  • Ecco swaps with Carla and takes care of the egg at 6pm (18:00). He probably brought her food which she’s eating off camera.
(video from the National Aviary Falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

Note: Near the end of the video you will see white lines (not cracks) on the egg. DO NOT WORRY. THE EGG IS FINE.

Carla is a first-time mom so she moved the egg around a lot before it was dry. The reddish color is the last thing applied to the white eggshell before it is laid. While the egg is still wet the color can be smudged by the bird’s feathers or scratched by being moved on the gravel.

In a Contest Which One Wins?

Two house sparrows: little bib, big bib (photos from Wikimedia Commons)

14 March 2024

Did you know that male house sparrows can tell who’s dominant by looking at each other from afar?

It’s in the size of the bib. Big bib dominates little bib.

Watch for this behavior at your feeder. Learn more in this vintage blog:

(credits are in the captions with link to the original photos on Wikimedia Commons)

These Are For The Birds

13 March 2024

Have you seen coils or fluttering tags on power lines? Not related to power transmission, these accessories are visual cues that alert birds to the presence of wires.

Bird diverters come in many shapes and have changed over the years as new products come to market and are approved by government agencies. California commissioned a 2008 study to evaluate the orange and fluorescent swinging tag below for use in the Sacramento Valley where hundreds of thousands of waterfowl spend the winter.

Aerial marking devices (flight diverters) are intended to reduce avian collisions with power lines by increasing power line visibility. From Testing the Effectiveness of an Avian Flight Diverter for Reducing Avian Collisions with Distribution Power Lines in the Sacramento Valley Published 2008

This (newer than 2008) model from Power Sentry glows in the dark and is visible in fog.

Hawk Eye Bird Flight diverter (photo embedded from powerlinesentry.com)
(video embedded from PowerLineSentry on YouTube)

It is also less expensive to install because it can be done by drones.

(video embedded from Manitoba Hydro on YouTube)

Those devices are for the birds.

These are for pilots.

Red ball markers make power lines visible to airplane and helicopter pilots and are usually installed near airports and on long lines over rivers and canyons.

Aviation red ball marker on power line. The helicopter is probably so close because it’s checking the power lines (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

Ironically, they have to be installed from helicopters. This 6-minute video filmed in West Virginia shows a job I could never do.

(video embedded from T&D World on YouTube)

Wondering about cones? They are also visual cues for pilots.

Power line cone to alert pilots (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

p.s. Some of you know more about this than I do. If I got it wrong, please leave a comment.

(credits are in the captions)

eBird, Merlin (and more) will be Down 19-21 March

Black-winged stilts moving to the cloud 😉

12 March 2024

It’s server migration season at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

For two days next week these Cornell Lab of Ornithology services will be down as they migrate from local servers to the cloud.

Cornell Lab of Ornithology services that will be down on March 19-21

The following Cornell Lab services will be unavailable starting 6am ET March 19 until 6am ET March 21:

  • eBird.org, including eBird portals and email Alerts
  • eBird API and data products
  • Merlin Bird ID save sightings and refresh life list (only recent locations will be available for ID and Explore)
  • BirdCast alerts and migration dashboard
  • Macaulay Library
  • Birds of the World
  • Bird Academy

You will also not be able to access any programs that require logging in with your Cornell Lab account during the outage.

— Team eBird news, Upcoming Maintenance: Cornell Lab Services Will Be Unavailable 19-21 March

I know from personal experience (my career in Information Technology) that there is really no good time to do a server migration and it always takes longer than users want it to. Cornell Lab says they’re migrating 1.6 billion bird observations and that if it goes really well some services may be up late on 20 March.

During the outage eBird will still work on your mobile phone in offline mode. This feature was built into the app long ago because the best birds are far away from cell towers.

The eBird app works in offline mode

So hang tight while Cornell Lab data goes into hiding for two days.

Read more at Team eBird news: Upcoming Maintenance: Cornell Lab Services Will Be Unavailable 19-21 March.

(black-winged stilts photo from Wikimedia Commons; logos from Cornell Lab of Ornithology; eBird screenshot from my mobile phone)

Keep Looking for Peregrines: 4 Weeks To Go

Peregrine falcon at opening to Third Ave nest, 10 March 2024 (photo by Kate St. John)

11 March 2024

Two weeks ago I issued the Southwestern PA Peregrine Challenge — Look for Peregrines in the Next 6 Weeks. The challenge won’t end in early/mid April but it will be a lot harder to find peregrines when they become secretive at their nests. We have 4 weeks before that happens. Meanwhile we have preliminary results. (See news after the map.)

The map below shows peregrine site observations in the past two weeks. The map has a …

  • Yellow checkmark = a pair was seen,
  • Yellow line = solo bird (We need to check again)
  • Yellow circle = NO ONE LOOKED HERE.

Notice the yellow circles. Ohio Valley birders, the challenge is on!

Don’t stop looking where you see a checkmark. There’s a spreadsheet at the end with site names and details.

Peregrine falcon pairs/nests in southwestern PA as of 10 Feb 2024 (map by Kate St. John)

Meanwhile, GOOD JOB!

Downtown Pittsburgh: (photo at top) Yesterday, 10 March 2024, I stopped by the Third Avenue nest site in Downtown Pittsburgh and found a peregrine at home.

Cathedral of Learning, Univ of Pittsburgh: Carla’s new behavior is a good sign. Last weekend she initiated courtship at the nest and Ecco brought her breakfast on camera. Watch the Pitt peregrines online at the National Aviary Falconcam at the University of Pittsburgh.

Carla and Ecco at the Cathedral of Learning nest (video from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

East Liberty Presbyterian Church, Pittsburgh: Many birders have confirmed the peregrine pair in East Liberty including videos from Adam Knoerzer at Pittsburgh Falconuts Facebook group and this ebird photo by Malcolm Kurtz. I visited on 4 March and found both birds on the steeple. Where and when will they nest?

62nd Street / Highland Park / Aspinwall Bridges (Allegheny County): No photos but on 8 March Justin Kolakowski reported at Six Mile Island, “Watched as a male and female pair chased off a Bald Eagle that was flying upriver, and then perched on the water tower.” (Six Mile Island is between the 62nd and Highland Park Bridges.)

Tarentum Bridge (Allegheny-Westmoreland County line): Dave Brooke, Meredith Cellitti, Dick Nugent and I have all visited the site in the past two weeks. On 7 March I confirmed incubation with the photo below. Hatch is expected in mid-April.

Female peregrine incubating at the Tarentum Bridge nest, 7 March 2024 (photo by Kate St. John)

Rt 422 Graff Bridge over the Allegheny River, Kittanning: Hooray for Dave Brooke! He found a peregrine here on 25 February.

Peregrine at the Graff Bridge, 25 Feb 2024 (photo by Dave Brooke)

Westinghouse Bridge: Hooray for Dana Nesiti who found both peregrines at home on 3 March.

Peregrine at Westinghouse Bridge, 3 March 2024 (photo by Dana Nesiti)
Second peregrine at Westinghouse Bridge, 3 March 2024 (photo by Dana Nesiti)

Speers/Belle Vernon Bridge: Kudos again to Dana Nesiti for finding a peregrine at the Speers/Belle Vernon bridge on 25 February. This site had not been viewed since May 2023.

Peregrine at Speers/Belle Vernon Bridge, 25 February 2024 (photo by Dana Nesiti)

4 Weeks To Go!

There’s still time to look for peregrines before they get sneaky in early/mid April. Visit one or more of these sites and let me know what you see. Leave a comment with sightings or questions.

(photo credits are in the captions)

Red Spots That Warn and Attract

Adult eastern newt swimming (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

10 March 2024

Last Thursday I went looking for fairy shrimp(*) at Todd Nature Reserve and found amorous red-spotted newts (Notophthalmus viridescens) instead. The newts attracted my attention because I had never seen adults before, let alone their courtship.

When you think “red-spotted newt” you probably visualize the red eft, the juvenile terrestrial, dry-skinned phase that lasts 1-3 years. Since red-spotted newts can live up to 15 years this phase is not a high percentage of its lifetime, but it is unforgettable.

Red eft, juvenile phase of the red-spotted newt (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

Red efts wander fearlessly overland because their bright orange color and red spots outlined in black are a warning to predators: “Don’t eat me! You’ll regret it.”

Red eft on a mossy rock (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

The skin of juveniles and adults secretes tetrodotoxin (TTX), the same neurotoxin found in pufferfish that causes paralysis and death.

According to Wikipedia, TTX “can enter the body of a victim by ingestion, injection, or inhalation, or through abraded skin.” But this hasn’t stopped anyone from holding red-spotted newts. Apparently this activity is just fine.

Red eft in hand at Dolly Sods (photo from Wikimedia Commons)
Adult red-spotted newt in hand (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

Fortunately people don’t eat newts except …

Poisonings from tetrodotoxin have been almost exclusively associated with the consumption of pufferfish.” … [In North America there is] at least one report of a fatal episode in Oregon when an individual swallowed a rough-skinned newt (Taricha granulosa) on a dare.

Wikipedia: Tetrotodoxin

The red spots warn predators. They also attract female newts during the breeding season.

Courtship in newts is fascinating. The male will lure and entice the female with his many red spots and wiggling tail, which releases pheromones (specialized chemicals). The male, with his hind legs, will grasp the female just behind her forelimbs and then rub his chin along her snout just prior to external fertilization.

Connecticut Dept of Energy and Environmental Protection: Red-spotted newt

She likes his red spots. He embraces her.

Courtship of red-spotted newts (photo by Judy Walls linked from Vermont Reptile and Amphibian Atlas)

It’s very sweet to see this in Spring.

(credits are in the captions)

(*) p.s. Click here to learn about fairy shrimp.

Seen This Week

Sunny and 75 degrees at Schenley Park, 4 March 2024 at 4pm (photo by Kate St. John)

9 March 2024

The weather doesn’t know what to do with itself in Pittsburgh. Some days it rains all day (today for instance). Some days it’s hot and sunny. Some days it’s chilly and overcast. This week we saw it all.

On Monday and Tuesday hot sunny weather (74-75°F) encouraged everyone to get outdoors. I waited a while to get a photo, above, without a lot of people in it. Just around the bend the sun was so low in the sky at 4:40pm that it made long shadows.

Long shadows and 75 degrees at Schenley Park, 4 March 2024 at 4pm (photo by Kate St. John)

That beautiful day came after a foggy rainy weekend, seen at Duck Hollow below. The Monongahela River was running high because of all the rain.

Duck Hollow, 2 March 2024 (photo by Kate St. John)

All kinds of critters were busy this week including a striped red ant on a trail in Schenley Park. What ant is this? Can you tell me its name?

Striped red ant, Schenley Park, 4 March 2024 (photo by Kate St. John)

On Monday I also found two refugees from water-logged soil on a sidewalk in Oakland. Not earthworms, these are invasive Asian jumping worms. Not good! Click here to see a brief clip of them squirming.

Asian jumping worms on the sidewalk on Craig Street, 4 March 2024 (photo by Kate St. John)

On Thursday 7 March I found new leaves of (maybe) corydalis at Todd Nature Reserve.

New corydalis leaves? Todd Nature Reserve, 7 March 2024 (photo by Kate St. John)

And on the way home I stopped at the Tarentum Bridge to check on the peregrines. The male was perched nearby while the female incubated eggs in the nest. This (lousy) digiscope photo shows the female’s wingtips visible in the nest box as she incubates with her tail toward us. This is early for most peregrines in southwestern PA but not for this bird. She’s always early.

Female peregrine incubating at the Tarentum Bridge nest, 7 March 2024 (photo by Kate St. John)

p.s. Don’t forget to turn your clocks AHEAD tonight. (egads! I fixed that awful typo. Thanks, everyone, for pointing it out.)

Upset Clock (photo by Kate St. John)

(photos by Kate St. John)