Red aphids coat false sunflowers in Schenley Park, 6 August 2022 (photo by Kate St. John)
9 August 2022
Every August the false sunflowers in Schenley Park become covered in red aphids. My first reaction is disgust, then I look for aphid predators and protectors.
Aphid predators include ladybugs, syrphid flies (hover flies), parasitic wasps and lacewing larvae. Their protectors are the ants who harvest their honeydew.
The ants were out in full force and chased off a ladybug that flew to escape them.
Ants harvesting aphid honeydew, Schenley Park, 6 August 2022 (photo by Kate St. John)
The ladybug found a safer place to munch on aphids. No ants in sight.
Ladybug predator of aphids, Schenley Park, 6 August 2022 (photo by Kate St. John)
Syrphid flies hovered and darted among the leaves, choosing to lay eggs where there would be plenty of aphids for their larvae to feed on.
Syrphid fly on a leaf near the aphids, Schenley Park, 6 August 2022 (photo by Kate St. John)
Larger predators lay in wait to eat the aphid eaters. Can you see the spider inside this flower?
False sunflower with aphid on outer petal, spider lurking inside flower, 3 August 2022 (photo by Kate St. John)
Here’s a hint. His feet are dangling are at the bottom of the circle.
Spider lurking inside the flower (photo by Kate St. John, retouched)
I’m sure there were many more predators lying in wait for aphids. This video shows what to look for.
Wingstem from bud to seed, Schenley Park, 3 August 2022 (photo by Kate St. John)
6 August 2022
By early August many flowers have already produced seeds. Wingstem (Verbesina alternifolia) above displays every step in the process: buds, new flowers, fading flowers and seed packets.
The three-flanged seed pods of American wild yamroot (Dioscorea villosa) are as distinctive as its pleated leaves.
American wild yamroot leaves and seeds, Jennings 29 July 2022 (photo by Kate St. John)
Greater celandine (Chelidonium majus) now has both seed pods and flowers (seeds in shadow at left). This alien plant is easy to find in Schenley Park because it is toxic to deer.
Greater celandine with seeds in the background, Schenley Park, 3 August 2022 (photo by Kate St. John)
Twelve of us met in Schenley Park yesterday morning and walked East Circuit Road in search of birds. As expected in late July the birds were quiet, though we did manage to see or hear 27 species. Our checklist is here and listed at the end.
Best Bird was a pileated woodpecker hammering on a fallen log in the darkest woods. The photo above is not from our walk. Chad+Chris Saladin had better light for their photo in May 2020.
I forgot to take a picture of the group. 🙁 Here is my one photo from the walk: Yellow hawkweed (Pilosella caespitosa) blooming in the grass.
Hawkweed blooming at Schenley Park, 31 July 2022 (photo by Kate St. John)
eBird checklist: Schenley Park, Allegheny, Pennsylvania, Jul 31, 2022 8:30A – 10:30A Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura) 2 Chimney Swift (Chaetura pelagica) 8 Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) 2 Red-bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus) 4 Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens) 1 Hairy Woodpecker (Dryobates villosus) 2 Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus) 1 Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus) 5 Eastern Wood-Pewee (Contopus virens) 1 Heard Red-eyed Vireo (Vireo olivaceus) 1 Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata) 4 American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) 7 Carolina Chickadee (Poecile carolinensis) 6 Tufted Titmouse (Baeolophus bicolor) 1 White-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis) 1 House Wren (Troglodytes aedon) 3 Young with obvious gape-beak Carolina Wren (Thryothorus ludovicianus) 1 European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris) 2 Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis) 1 Wood Thrush (Hylocichla mustelina) 1 Heard one making agitated call American Robin (Turdus migratorius) 15 House Finch (Haemorhous mexicanus) 2 American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis) 3 Chipping Sparrow (Spizella passerina) 1 Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia) 2 Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula) 1 Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) 5
(pileated woodpecker photo by Chad+Chris Saladin; hawkweed photo by Kate St. John)
Chicory with fly, Schenley Park, 15 June 2022 (photo by Kate St. John)
19 June 2022
Wildflowers bloom in two spurts in southwestern Pennsylvania: Woodland wildflowers in April before leaf out, “field” flowers in July-August after the solstice.
May and June are practically flowerless except for a few non-natives blooming in Schenley Park last week. Some are invasive. They thrive because deer don’t eat them.
UPDATE! JUNE 7 FLEDGE WATCH IS CANCELED DUE TO RAIN
The first week of June is jam-packed with outdoor opportunities. Join me at Schenley Plaza or Schenley Park for these fun activities:
Pitt Peregrine Fledge Watch, Schenley Plaza, June 4, 5 and 7
Phipps Bio-Blitz, Schenley Park, June 5
Pitt Peregrine Fledge Watch, Schenley Plaza, June 4, 5
Pitt Peregrine Fledge Watch is a drop-in event to swap peregrine stories and watch the young birds learn to fly from the Cathedral of Learning. I’ll have my scope on hand for a zoomed in view of the youngsters exercising their wings. Bring binoculars or camera. Check the Events page before you come in case of weather cancellation.
Where:Schenley Plaza near the tent, shown above. When: Fledge Watch is weather dependent and will be canceled for rain or thunder. Check here before you come.
Saturday June 4, 11:30 to 1:00pm
Sunday June 5, 11:00 – 12:30pm, starts earlier after my BioBlitz walk (see below)
CANCELED DUE TO RAINTuesday June 7, 11:30 – 1:00pm
Who: I’ll be there with John English of Pittsburgh Falconuts Facebook group and lots of peregrine fans. (On June 7 John English will start the watch at 11:30a; I’ll arrive at noon.) Parking: On-street parking is free on Sundays. Otherwise you must use the pay stations on the sidewalks. Garage parking is available at Soldiers and Sailors Hall, just over a block away on Bigelow Boulevard.
Phipps BioBlitz Bird Walk in Schenley Park, Sun June 5, 8:30a – 10:30a
On Sunday June 5, Phipps BioBlitz will bring together families, students, local scientists, naturalists, and teachers for a biological survey of the plants and animals in Schenley Park. See and learn about birds, plants, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, mollusks and more. As part of the BioBlitz I will lead a bird walk 8:30am-10:30am. The event is free. No registration required. Read all about Phipps BioBlitz Day here.
Where: Starting from Phipps front lawn. You’ll see a sign for my walk. When: Sunday June 5, 8:30a-10:30a Parking: Free on Sundays! Note: As soon as the bird walk is over, I’ll adjourn to Schenley Plaza for Pitt Peregrine Fledge Watch.
(photo credits: Schenley Plaza tent by Kate St. John, Phipps Conservatory from Wikimedia Commons)
Blackpoll warbler, Schenley Park, 22 May 2022 (photo by Charity Kheshgi)
23 May 2022
Six of us gathered at Schenley Park yesterday morning in perfect weather for a bird and nature walk. (The sixth is taking the picture.)
Great weather for an outing in Schenley Park, 22 May 2022 (photo by Charity Kheshgi)
First on the agenda was a look through my scope at the Pitt peregrines. Though we were half a mile from the Cathedral of Learning we could see one adult babysitting and two fluffy heads looking out the front of the nestbox. This is where the chicks were standing as we watched.
3 peregrine chicks at the Cathedral of Learning, 26 days old, 22 May 2022
Inside the park, a pair of red-tailed hawks is raising three chicks about the same age as the peregrines. We paused on our walk to watch them eat. Best views are from here.
Scroll through Charity Kheshgi’s Instagram photos to see our Best Birds including the blackpoll warbler pictured above.
Trees with stacks of white flowers are drawing our attention this week in Pittsburgh. Perhaps you’re wondering “What tree is this? “
Horsechestnuts (Aesculushippocastanum) originated in Greece but have been planted around the world for their beautiful flowers. When fertilized the flowers become the familiar shiny buckeyes I played with as a child.
In Pittsburgh we call the tree a “buckeye” though it is just one of many buckeyes (Aesculus) in our area including natives of North America: yellow, Ohio, and bottlebrush.
A close look at horsechestnut flowers reveals that some have yellow centers, others red.
Wood thrushes (Hylocichla mustelina) are back in Schenley Park after their winter sojourn in Central America.
Yesterday this one used his beautiful voice to claim a nesting territory near the Bartlett tufa bridge. Click here or on the screenshot below to hear him sing.
Of all the birds he wins “Best In Song.”
(photo from Wikimedia Commons, video by Kate St. John)
Golden-winged warbler in Schenley Park, 4 May 2022 (photo by Charity Kheshgi)
5 May 2022
After yesterday morning’s downpour the sky never cleared and the air was so heavy that I didn’t expect to see good birds in Schenley Park, but when I arrived the soundscape was filled with the songs of rose-breasted grosbeaks, wood thrushes, Baltimore orioles, and many northern parulas. When I found the loudest parula I discovered he had a rare friend — a golden-winged warbler (Vermivora chrysoptera). The two of them were feeding on insects hidden in new elm leaves.
My post on the rare bird alert drew in other birders and photographers, including Charity Kheshgi whose photos are shown here. Rare birds usually visit for only 24 hours so everyone had to act fast.
Golden-winged warbler in Schenley Park, 4 May 2022 (photo by Charity Kheshgi)
Why is this bird rare?
The Golden-winged Warbler is a sharply declining songbird that lives in shrubby, young forest habitats in the Great Lakes and Appalachian Mountains regions. They have one of the smallest populations of any songbird not on the Endangered Species List and are listed as Near Threatened by the IUCN. An estimated 400,000 breeding adults remain—a drop of 66% since the 1960s. In the Appalachian Mountains the situation is even worse: the regional population has fallen by 98%. We’ve learned that the main reasons for the decline include habitat loss on the breeding and wintering grounds (Central and northern South America) and hybridization with the closely related Blue-winged Warbler.
Because of their precipitous decline, golden-winged warblers have been well studied for at least a decade. Seven years ago, scientists tracking this tiny bird in Tennessee discovered that it sensed the approach of violent storms and fled the tornadoes one day ahead. Read the amazing story of how golden-winged warblers flew 400 miles to the Gulf of Mexico to avoid the storms … and then came back.
