Category Archives: Bird Behavior

Making the World Safe for Young Ravens

Raven harassing a red-tailed hawk in California (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

27 June 2025

Ravens are omnivores whose varied diet includes roadkill, rodents, grasshoppers and the nestlings of smaller birds. Since ravens are the largest “songbird” all the smaller birds mob ravens. Ravens in turn mob hawks.

Watch how adult ravens keep the world safe for their youngsters in this video by Vance Crofoot.

video embedded from Exploring Wildlife with Vance Crofoot on YouTube

p.s. Ravens also attack bald eagles. This photo is from Orcas Island, Washington. I’ve seen the same thing at Hays Woods.

Raven harassing a bald eagle (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

Yellow Crashes the Party at Pitt Peregrine Nestbox

Yellow crashed in on her mother. Carla left quickly. 23 June 2025 (photo from the National Aviary snapshot camera at Univ of Pittsburgh)

25 June 2025

On Monday afternoon, 23 June, Carla and Ecco bowed at the nest then Carla was preening when her daughter “Yellow” crashed in. Carla left so quickly that the snapshot didn’t capture it.

Yellow had nothing else to do so she hung out in the heat.

(photos from the National Aviary snapshot camera at Univ of Pittsburgh)

It seems like the “kids” ought to be ready to leave home but they typically don’t depart until mid July. It’s going to be a long couple of weeks for Carla and Ecco.

Avoiding The Kids

Ecco and Carla strengthen their pair bond, 19 June 2025, 11:54am (photo from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

21 June 2025

After this year’s Pitt peregrine youngsters learned to fly, they stayed away from the nestbox as if to say “That’s the babies’ crib and we aren’t babies anymore.” Instead they perfected their flight skills and relentlessly pursued their parents for food. The nestbox became a peaceful zone where Ecco and Carla could renew their pair bond and avoid their demanding “kids.”

Ecco and Carla bow renew their pair bond, 20 June 2025, 12:10pm (photo from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

All of that changed yesterday when their daughters invaded the nestbox. Blue barged in while her parents were bowing at 1:30pm and scattered them like ninepins. In a few minutes Yellow joined her.

video embedded from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

The juvies stayed for 45 minutes while their parents avoided them. Ecco and Carla did not return until almost 3:00pm. I’m surprised they came back on the same day.

Cool Facts About Catbirds

Gray catbird, May 2012 (photo by Shawn Collins)

18 June 2025

We tend to take gray catbirds for granted but here are some cool facts you might not know. For instance:

  • Gray catbirds (Dumetella carolinensis) are monotypic, the only species in their genus. The catbird’s genus name Dumetella means “small thorny thicket” a reference to his habit of singing from inside thorny thickets instead of from a prominent perch.
Gray catbird (photo from Wikimedia Commons)
  • Males and females look alike except for these subtle differences.

Sexes show similar appearances in all plumages, although females average duller than males and average less-extensive rufous on longest undertail coverts.

Birds of the World: Gray Catbird appearance
  • Catbirds use their sense of smell to find their way on migration(!) as described in this vintage article: Sniffing Their Way North.
  • They are present all year in some parts of the U.S. (purple areas below) but most of us see them only in the breeding season. In Pittsburgh they typically arrive in late April and leave in mid October.
Range map of gray catbird from Wikimedia Commons
  • They nest in the middle of thickets and lay turquoise blue eggs.
Cowbird nest with an egg (photo from Wikimedia Commons)
  • Catbirds are rarely parasitized by brown-headed cowbirds because they recognize cowbird eggs in their nests and kick them out. Note the color! described in this vintage article Cat Versus Cow.
Catbird (blue) and cowbird (speckled) eggs (photo by Chuck Tague)
  • Male catbirds are jazzmen! Their song is an improvisation rather than a direct imitation. Read more at: Virtuoso

Here’s the catbird’s song:

Gray catbird song (recording by Michael Hurben, Xeno Canto #925322)

(video from Wikimedia Commons)

And here’s his “meow.”

Gray catbird meow-ing (Xeno Canto 819785)

Enjoy his song this month. He’ll stop singing soon.

Peregrine Update Southwest PA, 11 June

Three pre-fledglings at Westinghouse Bridge, 8 June 2025 (photo by Dana Nesiti)

11 June 2025

By now most peregrine sites in southwestern Pennsylvania have fledged or are in progress. At East Liberty Presbyterian steeple the youngsters will fly next week. Here’s the news from the most active sites.

Cathedral of Learning, Univ of Pittsburgh

The young Pitt peregrines are really hard to find now. The best viewing I’d had in a few days was on Monday 9 June when I found 2 adults and 1 juvenile. Later a second juvenile flew off the Cathedral of Learning (CL) toward UPMC, circled back, and landed on the CL. Obviously they are flying so well that I cannot find them anymore. Except …

Yesterday Blue Girl surprised Ecco at the nest so she stuck around hoping he’d return with food. No chance. She bopped around in the nestbox pretending she was learning to fly. “I don’t wanna grow up!”

photos from the National Aviary snapshot cam at Univ of Pittsburgh

East Liberty Presbyterian Church, Pittsburgh
Peregrine chick looks out of the nest, East Liberty Presbyterian steeple, 7 June 2025 (photo by Adam Knoerzer)

The young peregrines at East Liberty Presbyterian steeple may be a week away from flying. Adam Knoerzer’s photos above and below were taken four days ago when the chicks were already exercising their wings.

Peregrine chick exercising its wings, East Liberty Presbyterian steeple, 7 June 2025 (photo by Adam Knoerzer)

Yesterday, 10 June, they were lying flat but looked browner than on 7 June. The edge of the nest reveals an unhatched egg.

Peregrine chicks lying flat plus unhatched egg, East Liberty Presbyterian steeple, 7 June 2025 (photo by Adam Knoerzer)

Stay tuned for news as they fledge.

Sewickley Bridge, Ohio River

Gene Henderson has been visiting the Sewickley Bridge frequently in the past week and has watched the youngsters progress. From in the nestbox to ledge walking to fledged and begging. Gene expects they will be flying so well in the next day or two that he won’t be able to find them.

On 3 June before they left the box.

On 10 June, ledge walking …

… and whining from the top of the bridge, “I flew, now feed me!”

Westinghouse Bridge, Turtle Creek near Monongahela River

Dana Nesiti stopped by the Westinghouse Bridge on Sunday and saw three youngsters. By now they’ve probably fledged. Dana’s video is 15 minutes long.

SUMMARY FOR SOUTHWEST PA

Southwestern Pennsylvania peregrine sites are listed in the table below. Help fill in the blanks below by visiting a site near you. Leave a comment if you find anything!

Pitt Peregrine Progress: Flying and Whining

2 sisters: Pitt peregrine fledglings Blue and Yellow hang out and whine on 15South at the Cathedral of Learning, 7 June 2025 (photos by Kate St. John)

8 June 2025

My husband walked over to the Cathedral of Learning (CL) yesterday and texted me before he went indoors, “Just arrived at CL. I hear lots of begging peregrine babies!” I was preparing to drive home from Frick so I detoured to Pitt and stepped out to look.

I got lucky. The young peregrines would have been impossible to find on their third or fourth day of flying but they were noisy.

  • The two sisters Yellow and Blue were whining on the 15th floor roof ledge facing Forbes Avenue. Slideshow above.
  • Carla was perched above them on 28th floor southeast (28SE) stone peak, inaccessible to begging youngsters.
  • GreenBoy flew around the top of the building with lots of flappy flight and settled at 38 southeast (38SE) roof ledge watching the sky for his father, Ecco.
  • Ecco flew by to check on the “kids” but he didn’t stop (no photo). More whining!
Carla at 28SE, 7 June 2025 (digiscoped by Kate St. John)
Green Boy at 38SE roof ledge, 7 June 2025 (digiscoped by Kate St. John)

In half an hour of watching yesterday I saw the entire peregrine family!

If you stop by the Cathedral of Learning in the next several days check out these tips for finding the young peregrines: Fledge Watch Tips: Have They Flown? And Where?

Eventually they will perch on other buildings but when they are on the CL they typically perch at the floors marked in this photo taken from the sidewalk in front of Phipps Conservatory.

Cathedral of Learning as seen from Phipps sidewalk (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

All 3 Pitt Peregrines Have Flown

Peregrine juvenile, probably Blue, at 38SW under the (offline) CL Tourcam (photo by Kate St. John)

6 June 2025

When we arrived yesterday for Fledge Watch at Schenley Plaza, we could tell that all three juveniles had flown(*). None were visible on the camera or nestrail and though I walked around the Cathedral of Learning looking for fledglings, none were visible anywhere. It was hot.

At noon we noticed a juvenile silently perched in the shade under the CL tourcam. It was Blue Girl. I saw her blue tape through my scope. She preened and sometimes opened her wings, a motion that says, “Here I am, parents, in case you want to bring food.” If she was really hungry she would have whined.

Peregrine juvenile grooming at 38SW (photo by Kate St. John)
Peregrine juvenile, probably Blue, at 38SW under the (offline) CL Tourcam, 5 June 2025 (photo by Kate St. John)

A few minutes later we saw Carla feeding a juvenile on the opposite corner at 38SE.

Carla feeding a juvenile at 38SW, 5 June 2025 (photo by Kate St. John)
Carla feeding a juvenile at 38SW, 5 June 2025 (photo by Kate St. John)

Now that the juvenile peregrines are hard to find, Fledge Watch is over.

(*) My guess on when they flew: One or two probably fledged on the afternoon of 4 June and the remainder yesterday morning 5 June.

How To Find An Owl

Brewer’s blackbird attacks American barn owl, San Luis Obispo County, CA (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

20 May 2025

What is the easiest way to find an owl? Listen for angry birds.

Songbirds always view owls as dangerous but during the nesting season they loudly mob owls to drive them away from their nests and fledglings. This attracts more birds to join the chase. What a ruckus! Here are some examples.

In this video blue jays mob a mother screech-owl who is taking a break near her nestbox in Florida. She isn’t going to leave the area so the mobbing isn’t going to work. Notice her reaction!

video embedded from MyBackyardBirding on YouTube

Her behavior is notable because:

Screech Owl uses newly documented scary daytime defensive posture against annoying Blue Jays and Mockingbirds consist of wide eyed blinking and open mouth snapping to look more intimidating.

— video description from MyBackyardBirding on YouTube

American crows bravely mob a great horned owlet, making it very easy to find this branching youngster.

video embedded from Richard Hoeg on YouTube

Crows chase an adult great horned owl when it’s near their nest or fledglings. But there is real danger in this activity! The owl will eat the crow if he can catch him. There are moments in this video when the crow takes a big chance. (Watch for the cameo appearance of a mockingbird.)

video embedded from The Real Saunders Photography on YouTube

RARE BIRDS! I could not resist starting this blog with a rare songbird chasing a rare owl. Both birds in the top photo — a Brewer’s blackbird and an American barn owl — are extremely rare in southwestern Pennsylvania. If I saw a barn owl being chased by a Brewer’s blackbird in the Pittsburgh area, no one would believe me. Both birds occur regularly in San Luis Obispo County, California where the photo was taken.

The Kittiwake Hotel

Black-legged kittiwake at Svalbard, Norway (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

9 May 2025

Black-legged kittiwakes (Rissa tridactyla) are small members of the gull family that nest communally on sea cliffs.

Black-legged kittiwake sea cliff colony in Seward, AK (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

They are also happy to nest near humans as they do Lowestoft Telephone Exchange building in the UK.

At Kiberg, Norway a building’s exterior was refurbished to house kittiwake nests. As of 25 March this year, the Kittiwake Hotel was fully booked.

Kiberg has a human population of about 200 people.

View of Kiberg, Norway (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

It seems there are more kittiwakes in Kiberg than there are humans. 🙂

*A NOTE ON NAMES: In Europe these birds are simply called “kittiwakes” but North America there are two species: black-legged and red-legged kittiwakes.

Ravens Playing in the Sky

Tumbling Ravens

(photo embedded from Kristie Clarke-Rozsa on Flickr; click on the photo to see the original)

8 May 2025

Ravens (Corvus corax) are becoming more common in Pittsburgh so that I see them now about once a week. Never a flock, just one or two ravens at a time.

If Pittsburgh had a lot more raven pairs or even flocks of “teenage” ravens, we’d get to see them playing in the sky. Photographer Kristie Clarke-Rozsa captured a raven game in Chilliwack, BC, Canada, described below.

Two ravens tumbling down to the ground playing pass the stick, whoever lasts the longest before chickening out wins!

— description of photo at top by Kristie Clarke-Rozsa on Flickr

To see raven games in motion, visit this 2018 vintage article with my all-time favorite raven video.

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