Category Archives: Books & Events

Next Week: A DUCKumentary

Books & Events, Water and Shore

Fall migration brings waves of ducks through western Pennsylvania, so now’s the perfect time to learn more about them.

Next Wednesday, November 14 at 8:00pm PBS NATURE will premiere  An Original DUCKumentary, a delightful program about the birds who’ve mastered water.

The show opens as baby wood ducks hatch and prepare to leave their nest.  Their mother comes to greet them, then flies to the pond and calls.  Whoa!  She can fly but they must fall 70 feet to reach her!  No wings, just the will to join their mother, and off they go.  The first rule of a baby duck’s life:  Mom calls, we follow.

The baby ducklings learn and grow.  We see their tiny feet paddling underwater and slow motion video of their parents leaping from water into air.  And wow!  Their dad is beautiful!

That’s not all.  Ruddy ducks make powerful dives using only their feet.  South American torrent ducks master river rapids.  Common eiders literally fly underwater to reach the ocean floor.   And sprinkled throughout we meet the cutest baby birds on the planet — like this little redhead.

Watch An Original DUCKumentary on WQED, Wednesday November 14 at 8:00pm.  If you’re outside WQED’s viewing area, check your local PBS listings.

You’ll see ducks from a whole new perspective.

(photo from PBS NATURE, An Original Duckmentary)

My Name Is Halloween

Books & Events, Water and Shore
Halloween crab (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

In honor of the day here’s a critter whose name is Halloween.

Red land crabs, also called harlequin or Halloween crabs (Gecarcinus quadratus), are nocturnal burrowing crabs that live on the Pacific coast from Mexico to Peru. They spend their lives in sand dunes, moist forest or mangroves but they need the ocean to reproduce so they don’t stray far from shore.

From above these crabs look black and orange.  They’re even more colorful from the side.

Trick or Treat!

(photo from Wikimedia Commons. Click on the image to see the original)

p.s.  As Hurricane Sandy approached Pittsburgh on Monday many municipalities rescheduled Trick-or-Treat to Saturday Nov 3, so there will be no costumed kids at our door tonight. Kind of odd considering everything in Pittsburgh is just fine.  Not so in New York City where our nephew reports he was not flooded but has no electricity.

Magic of the Snowy Owl

Beyond Bounds, Birds of Prey, Books & Events

Ten months ago thousands of young snowy owls came here for the winter.  That irruption was unusual, an atypical episode in a life spent in one of the harshest habitats on the planet.

Where did those young owls come from?  What were their lives like in the arctic?  How do they thrive in a place so foreign to our experience?

Next week we’ll find out how when PBS NATURE premieres Magic of the Snowy Owl.

The program begins in familiar territory, a farm in Wisconsin where two young snowies hunt the winter fields.  Meanwhile their parents are back home in perpetual darkness.  The show’s excellent footage of the arctic night gives a real taste of life in the dark.

In spring the camera crew searches for nesting owls, eventually finding a pair alone.  Their solitude might not be a good sign.  Will there be enough to eat?  Will their young survive to adulthood?

Peregrine nestcam fans will love watching close-ups of Mother Owl with her cute babies.  The saga of Father Owl’s hunt for food will sound familiar, but the dangers of polar bears and the plague of mosquitoes will not.

 

And there isn’t enough food.  Eventually the parents have to move their entire family to the coast even though the babies can’t fly yet.  The young have to walk and swim(!) to get there.

The family’s endurance is amazing.  The snowy owls are almost magical.

Don’t miss Magic of the Snowy Owl on Wednesday October 24 at 8:00pm on WQED.  Check local PBS listings if you’re outside WQED’s viewing area.

(photos of snowy owls in the arctic from PBS NATURE)

 

p.s. If you like to identify birds by ear, you’ll enjoy the soundtrack of the arctic summer.

Birding Opportunities Through October

Books & Events

There are plenty of birding opportunities in the month of October.  Here are a few that came across my desk in the last week.

Hawk Watch:
October is a great time to watch hawks, falcons and eagles on their southward journey.  Click on the embedded links for details:

Three Rivers Birding Club holds outings almost every week.  Summarized below are the outings through October.  Click here for September details and here for October’s information.
Saturday, September 29 – Harrison Hills Park – leader: Jim Valimont, 8:15 AM
Saturday, October 6 – Presque Isle  – leader: Shawn Collins, 9:00 AM
Sunday, October 7 – Frick Park – leaders: Jack and Sue Solomon, 7:30am
Saturday, October 13 – Pymatuning Area – leader: Bob VanNewkirk, 9:00 AM
Sunday October 28 – Moraine State Park – annual Three Rivers Birding Club picnic and bird walk, 8:00 AM.

The Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania holds outings at their three locations: Beechwood Farms Nature Center, Todd Sanctuary and Succop in Butler, Pennsylvania.  I’ve summarized the birding activities below but be sure to follow this link to the calendar and sign up online:
Friday, September 28 – Discovery Morning Walk at Todd Sanctuary
Wednesday, October 3, 9:00am – RADical Days Senior Hike at Beechwood
Wednesdays in October 10 through 31, 9:00am – Discovery Morning Walk at Beechwood
Thursdays in October 11 through 25, 9:00am – Discovery Morning Walk at Succop, Butler, PA

Pleasant Hills Arboretum Fall Bird Walks:
Bob Mulvihill will lead a series of bird walks at Pleasant Hills Arboretum on Saturdays: September 29, October 13, and October 20.  Meet at the Arboretum parking lot on West Bruceton Road at 8:00am. Walks will last one to two hours.  Bring binoculars if you have them.  All ages and skill levels are welcome.

 

Grab your binoculars.  See some birds.  🙂

(photo from Wikimedia Commons.  Click on the image to see the original)

 

Free Admission in Allegheny County

Books & Events

In the next three weeks over 40 venues and programs will offer free admission as a way of saying “Thank you for your support.”

Here in Allegheny County we pay an additional 1% sales tax, half of which goes to the Allegheny Regional Asset District (RAD) to provide funding for regional libraries, parks and trails, sports facilities, arts and cultural programs.

Every year RAD-supported organizations say “Thank You” to the public by offering free admission and programs during the Asset District’s “RADical Days,”  this year from September 20 (today!) through October 13.

There are many, many arts and cultural offerings.  Listed below are nine fun and free science and nature activities coming up soon:

  • Today, Thursday September 20: Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, free admission 9:30am to 5:00pm.   That’s where this orchid was photographed.
  • Sunday, September 23:  Free admission to the Carnegie Science Center, 10:00am to 5:00pm.  Great exhibits and hands-on science.
  • Sunday September 23:  Free admission, 11:00am to 3:00pm, to Riverquest‘s EXPLORER, the world’s first green educational vessel, docked next to the Carnegie Science Center.
  • Saturday, September 29:  Allegheny County Parks Hartwood Acres Hay Day.  Fun fall activities for kids of all ages.  Free admission 11:00am to 4:00pm.
  • Sunday September 30:  Free admission to the National Aviary, 10:00am to 5:00pm.  See birds!
  • Sunday September 30:  Free admission to the Carnegie Museum of Natural History, noon to 5:00pm.  See dinosaurs!
  • Saturday October 6:  Upper St. Clair Boyce-Mayview Park free admission, 2:00pm to 8:00pm, to The Outdoor Classroom’s guided creek explorations, birding, insect safaris, crafts, plus an evening campfire roasting marshmallows.
  • Sunday October 7:  Free admission to the Pittsburgh Zoo and PPG Aquarium, 9:00am to 5:00pm (admission gates close at 4:00pm).
  • Saturday October 13: Allegheny County Parks‘ South Park Hay Day.  More fun fall activities for kids of all ages.  Free admission noon to 4:00pm.

And that’s not all!  Click here for the complete list of RADical Days events and all the information you’ll need to participate.

(photo of an orchid at Phipps Conservatory by Sage Ross, March 2011, on Wikimedia Commons. Click on the image to see the original)

 

p.s. WQED-FM is one of the many arts and cultural organizations offering free admission.  On Saturday October 13, noon to 1:00pm, take a free tour inside our Carolyn M. Byham Studio and meet “QED Morning Show” host Jim Cunningham as he broadcasts LIVE from Katz Plaza, 655 Penn Ave in the Cultural District, Downtown Pittsburgh.

What To Our Wondering Eyes…

Books & Events, Insects


If you haven’t had a chance to see the awesome results from International Rock Flipping Day last Sunday, here’s what we found:

Nature Closeups — cool views of a daddy long legs in Georgia
Alex Wild, Scientific American — five treasures in Illinois
Rebecca in the Woods – a beaver makes it interesting in Wisconsin
Fertanish Chatter — millipedes, spiders, and a little blue guy near D.C.
poikiloblastic — a Notre Dame petrologist finds a rock with a defense strategy
Growing with Science Blog — weevil with an elephant snout in Phoenix
Wild About Ants — and a blog about the ants found near the weevil
Powell River Books Blog — disappointment at Bellingham Bay
Walking with Henslow — much to see in Madison
Roundrock Journal — did that spoon really biodegrade? and an armadillo in Missouri
Mainly Mongoose — dwarf mongooses in South Africa (so cute!)
Random Hearts — a heart in a brick
Wanderin’ Weeta — spider sex in the Lower Fraser Valley, BC
Rock, Paper, Lizard (The Interpreter) — a drama of search, imminent birth, and a rubber boa
Beasts in a Populous City — a journey through Rock Creek Park, D.C.
Lilac Gate — a toad has prepared for winter in Ottawa
Outside My Window – two camels and a leopard in Maine (that’s my hand about to find them, above)
Skepchick — Skepchick’s readers contribute their rock flips

And a wealth of under-rock finds in the #rockflip Flickr pool.

(photo by Kate St. John)

Flipped A Rock, Found A Leopard

Books & Events, Insects

Though I’m back in Pittsburgh for International Rock Flipping Day (IRFD) I decided to flip a rock while in Maine, hoping for better results than I’ve found at home.

At first I met with no success.

I rolled the smooth egg-shaped rock pictured in my IRFD announcement blog but found only spider webs.

I tried a few rocks in a tidal pool but was unable to get a clear photograph of the underwater inhabitants.

Then I tried this one, a granite rock in Northeast Harbor.  It was obviously cut for a purpose with an odd notch at the top left, a half moon circle at bottom, and a chiseled mark on its face, but it was discarded and became a garden border.

And so I flipped it…

 

… and found the best stash I’ve seen in the four years I’ve participated in IRFD.

Pictured above are a proliferation of grubs (top center), two translucent copper-colored insects with hind legs like crickets (I have since learned these are camel crickets) and one gray snail with leopard spots and no shell (right side).

I couldn’t identify the grubs and cricket-insects but I googled “gray snail with leopard spots in Maine” and found the Limax maximus otherwise known as the great grey slug or leopard slug.

The leopard slug is truly an exotic creature.  Consider this:

  • According to Wikipedia it’s one of the largest keeled air-breathing land slugs in the world. Adults can be 4-8 inches long.
  • Originally from Europe they were first documented in basements in Philadelphia in 1867.  By now they live in both Maine and Pittsburgh so I could have found this slug at home.
  • Though it looks like a snail without a shell it actually has a small shell on its back under its skin shield.  When frightened it draws its head under the shield.  That’s why this one looks headless.
  • Leopard slugs are active at night and even then they aren’t very active.
  • They will eat anything, even other slugs.  So I wonder: Why are there other critters under the rock?  Won’t the slug eat them?
  • They live about 3 years, taking 2 years to reach sexual maturity.
  • They are hermaphrodites, each one equipped with eggs, sperm, and a large, elaborate, translucent, white penis that emerges from a hole on the right side of their necks.
  • Most amazing of all is their elaborate courtship and mating ritual in which they entwine and drop down on a strand of slime (read about it here).

Just like their leopard namesake, their spot patterns are unique from one individual to the next. So, yes, I found a leopard under a rock.

(photos by Kate St. John)

 

p.s. Be sure to see the comments below for links and videos of more under-rock finds.

And… don’t miss Wanderin’ Weeta’s round-up of *all* the rock-flipping blogs.  There are some really cute critters out there (think mongoose!).

Save The Date, Flip A Rock

Books & Events

It’s time to get ready. Sunday, September 9 is International Rock Flipping Day.

Begun in 2007 by Dave Bonta and Bev Wigney, International Rock Flipping Day (IRFD) is a blog carnival celebrated every year by flipping a rock, blogging what you find, and sending your blog link to Wanderin’ Weeta.

How international is it?  In 2010 the best find was a rock monitor (lizard!) in South Africa.

This year IRFD is expanded.  If you don’t have a blog you can still participate by posting your photos in the Rock Flipping Day Flickr group.

Ready to go?  Here are instructions from Wanderin’ Weeta:

  • On or about September 9th, find your rock and flip it over. Note the safety precautions below!
  • Record what you find. Any and all forms of documentation are welcome: still photos, video, sketches, prose, or poetry.
  • Important: Replace the rock as you found it; it’s someone’s home.
  • Post on your blog, or load your photos to the Flickr group.
  • Send the link to Wanderin’ Weeta or add a comment to her IRFD post.
  • She’s collecting all the links and will e-mail you the participants list so you can post it on your blog as well. If you’re on Twitter, Tweet it, too; the hashtag is #rockflip.
  • Click here to get the handy logo on Wanderin’ Weeta’s website.

And now, a word about safety from Dave Bonta:

One thing I forgot to do in the initial post is to caution people about flipping rocks in poisonous snake or scorpion habitat. In that case, I’d suggest wearing gloves and/or using a pry bar — or simply finding somewhere else to do your flipping. Please do not disturb any known rattlesnake shelters if you don’t plan on replacing the rocks exactly as you found them. Timber rattlesnakes, like many other adult herps, are very site-loyal, and can die if their homes are destroyed. Also, don’t play with spiders. If you disturb an adjacent hornet nest (hey, it’s possible), run like hell. But be sure to have someone standing by to get it all on film!

And a word about respect and consideration:

The animals we find under rocks are at home; they rest there, sleep there, raise their families there. Then we come along and take off the roof, so please remember to replace it carefully. Try not to squish the residents; move them aside if they’re big enough; they’ll run back as soon as their rock is back in place.

So pick your favorite rock on September 9 and flip away.  I wonder what we’ll find!

 

(photo of a smooth granite rock in Northeast Harbor, Maine by Kate St. John)

p.s. Stay tuned for my results on Sept 9.  Will I flip that rock in the photo?

Migration Has Already Begun

Books & Events, Migration, Water and Shore

It’s still summer — especially today with a forecast heat index of 100oF — but fall migration has already begun.

Shorebirds are on the move and this year we may see some rarities in land-locked western Pennsylvania because the drought has lowered water levels and exposed many mud flats.

Last Sunday Shawn Collins saw sanderlings at Tamarack Lake in Crawford County and on Tuesday five American avocets were a one-day-wonder at Yellow Creek State Park in Indiana County.

Check the edges of local lakes and you’ll likely find killdeer, sandpiper “peeps,” spotted sandpipers, solitary sandpipers, and lesser yellowlegs.  If you’re lucky you’ll find a surpise like the avocet pictured above.

And if thunderstorms or heat force you indoors, stop by Steve Gosser’s exhibit at Penn State’s New Kensington campus to see beautiful photographs of birds.

Steve’s one-man show, My Feathered Friends – Bird Portraits, runs through Friday, July 27.  This is your last chance to see it.   Click here for directions.

(photo by Steve Gosser)