Peregrine falcon, Gusto, in flight in 2022 (photo by Chad+Chris Saladin)
13 February 2025
Though it’s been cold and snowy, Chad+Chris Saladin are busy monitoring peregrine territories in northeastern Ohio to see who’s present and who is not.
On Sunday 9 February they caught up with Gusto, the male peregrine who’s been resident at the Hilliard Road Bridge site over the Rocky River since 2021. While Chad took photos Chris captured a video of Gusto watching and preening on a branch, then doing a tap dance on the ice before he took off.
p.s. You probably noticed that Gusto pooted before he took off. Birds typically lighten their load before takeoff by getting rid of useless “baggage.” So they poot before they fly.
Bald eagles are top predators who will eat crow nestlings, fledglings and unwary adults if the opportunity arises, so crows learn from a very young age to watch out for eagles.
Even in the nest young crows hear and see their parents drive off hawks and eagles. In their first year of life, which they spend with their parents, they learn the rules of harassment.
When a lone crow sees an avian predator he perches prominently and calls for reinforcements.
When his buddies arrive the crows work as a mob to drive away the predator.
When the situation is acute and the mob is left behind, a solo crow may harass an eagle even though he’s the only one left. Sometimes he does something daring.
Ten years ago photographer Phoo Chan went to the shore at Seabeck, Washington to photograph the bald eagles who arrive in large number during the midshipman fish run (Porichthys sp). He was very lucky to capture photos of a lone crow riding on an eagle’s back. See more in his article below.
The Eurasian green woodpecker (Picus viridis) is a bit unusual. Instead of drilling trees he spends most of his time on the ground, poking his beak in the soil.
Predominantly [eats] ants, chiefly meadow-dwelling species of genera Formica (winter) and Lasius (spring to autumn); generally, larger ant species preferred.  …
Uses bill to sweep away moss, dead leaves, other debris, or snow; pecks funnel-shaped holes up to 12 cm (4.7 in) deep in ground, and procures prey with action of the very long tongue; such holes may be exploited in lengthy and repeated visits. When snow cover heavy, can dig tunnels almost 1m (more than 3 feet) long to reach prey.Â
These traits may remind you of a North American woodpecker. Though not closely related, our northern flicker (Colaptes auratus) also forages on the ground for ants and shouts in the spring.
Short-eared owl in Lawrence County, Jan 2025 (photo by Steve Gosser)
17 January 2025
When Debbie and I went to Lawrence County last Sunday we knew we would see sandhill cranes but our real target, our Fingers Crossed hope, was to see a short-eared owl (Asio flammeus). Friends had told us about them and we’d seen Steve Gosser‘s stunning photos on Facebook.
We were very lucky. While we were watching the cranes a photographer drove by and told us where to find a female (dark plumage) roosting near the ground. On our way there we saw a paler bird, probably male, perched on playground equipment.
Short-eared owl, female, 14 Dec 2024 (photo by Steve Gosser)
I wore the wrong boots last Sunday because I forgot how much we would stand in the snow to watch birds. My feet were cold. It made me grumpy. I was not liking winter at that point.
But when I got home I put the bad boots away and pulled out my Sorrels and I’ve been happy ever since. Winter has some big advantages. Steve describes it perfectly.
p.s. The weather next week will be particularly challenging, especially on Monday 20 January when Pittsburgh’s high will be 9°F with a low of -5°F. Bundle up!
Crows flying over Riverview area, Dec 2022 (photo by Jeff Cieslak)
15 January 2025
After the big push to find Pittsburgh’s winter crow flock for the Christmas Bird Count in late December I took a break and merely enjoyed them. Searching and counting is hard work so I didn’t look for crows and if I saw them I certainly didn’t count them. Thankfully, you’ve been letting me know what you see.
Fred’s comment yesterday makes me wonder if crows are roosting on Downtown buildings.
Last Friday, 1/10/25, just before 7 am there were thousands of crows flying around and roosted in trees of the little park on First Ave downtown (across from PNC) and perched on all the buildings around. Their collective cawing would have made conversation at normal levels difficult. Having seen similar numbers in Oakland and Schenley in the early evening, made me wonder if they make the pre dawn rally to town.
Pittsburgh’s crows may have split or moved their roost this month and I wouldn’t be surprised if they did. Bitter cold temperatures like last night’s 7°F prompt crows to spend the night on a warm rooftops rather than in bare trees.
UPDATE: check the comments for additional news on 15 Jan.
And here’s a treat for crow watchers: In Lawrence, Massachusetts the Crow Patrol sees crows after dark on roofs and trees using infrared cameras. Notice how crows’ eyes glow white in infrared light. 🙂
Pileated woodpecker skull from Pitt peregrine cache area, 10 Jan 2025 (photo by Kate St. John)
11 January 2025
Yesterday the Univ of Pittsburgh, the National Aviary, and I prepared for the upcoming peregrine nesting season by cleaning the nestbox and falconcams.
After examining the indoor side of the camera equipment Bob Mulvihill of the National Aviary and Gracie Jane Gollinger from Pitt IT braved 10°F weather on the ledge. Camera cleaning went well despite the cold weather and there was nothing to clean at the nestbox. However …
Bob Mulvihill and Gracie Jane Gollinger traverse the ledge, 10 Jan 2025 (photo by Kate St. John)Bob Mulvihill cleans the snapshot camera, 10 Jan 2025 (photo by Gracie Jane Gollinger)
When Bob stepped out on the landing that leads to the cameras, we were amazed that the area at his feet was strewn with partially eaten prey. I kept a list. Some were hard to identify.
Rock Pigeon (Feral) 1
Yellow-billed Cuckoo 3 or 4
Black-billed Cuckoo 1
Pileated Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 1 (yellow feathers)
European Starling 1
Wood Thrush 2 or 3
Up to 5 cuckoos! The landing was clean when the chicks were banded on 21 May 2024 so the cache was left since then.
Bob stands among dehydrated peregrine prey: 2 yellow-billed cuckoos and a northern flicker (photo by Kate St. John)More peregrine prey on the landing, 10 Jan 2025 (photo by Kate St. John)
The most interesting find was the skull of a pileated woodpecker. I assumed that peregrines would never capture a bird with such a dangerous beak but I was wrong.
Pileated woodpecker skull from Pitt peregrine cache area, handheld for scale, 10 Jan 2025 (photo by Kate St. John)Female pileated woodpecker skull from peregrine cache area, found 10 Jan 2025 (photo by Kate St. John)
Why so many prey items at this spot? Perhaps it was a favorite dining area where the adults dropped off food for last year’s youngsters.
Why so many cuckoos? The Pitt peregrines have always had a fondness for cuckoos, probably because their flight is floppy which makes them easy to catch. My only regret is that the peregrines caught so many cuckoos and wood thrushes.
Here’s the crew after our successful visit.
Left to right: Dante Bongiorni (Pitt Facilities Mgmt), Bob Mulvihill (National Aviary), Doug Cunzolo (Bob assist), Gracie Jane Gollinger (with hat, Pitt IT), Megan Hinds (National Aviary), Kate St. John (“The Peregrine Lady”) — photo by Gracie Jane Gollinger
Where have the swallows gone while it’s snowy and cold in Pennsylvania?
In January all the tree swallows (Tachycineta bicolor) in North America are on their wintering grounds from coastal North Carolina to Texas, the Caribbean, and Central America. Most of them are in Florida, as you can see on eBird’s abundance map for the week of 4 January.
Pair of peregrines on ice floes in the Allegheny River, 12 Jan 2018 (photo by Dave Brooke)
5 January 2025
Harsh winter returns to a large swath of the U.S. today through Tuesday, 5-7 January. From Kansas to Delaware, encompassing the Ohio River end to end, 14 states have Winter Storm Warnings including the southern tier of Pennsylvania.
After it snows low temperatures here will drop into the teens and single digits, 18°F to 9°F on Tuesday through Friday. This will be low enough to form ice on the Allegheny River as it did seven years ago when ice floes lured the Tarentum peregrines to land on the river. For a trip down memory lane see this vintage article.
White-fronted nunbirds (Monasa morphoeus) are at their most interesting when they sing in “group choruses of loud gobbling, barking notes, sustained for up to 20 minutes at a time, chiefly at the beginning and end of day.” — quoted from Birds of the World.
