Category Archives: Books & Events

Penguin Cam!

Books & Events


Are you starved for live bird activity on your computer?  Do you miss the peregrine webcams?

Well, here’s something to pique your interest while you wait for spring.  The National Aviary has installed a Penguin Cam at their African penguin exhibit.

If you haven’t met these penguins yet you’ll soon find out they’re photogenic, sociable and cute. 

Because their native climate in South Africa is similar to Pittsburgh’s the penguins live outdoors with glass viewing areas for visitors.  The clear cylinder at the back of the image is one such viewing area so don’t be surprised if you see a person in it.  There’s no sound on the video but you can watch the penguins all night because infrared light illuminates the scene. 

If you’re familiar with the Aviary’s peregrine falconcams, you’ll notice the Penguin Cam is similar but better than ever.  PixController helped set it up, Wildearth.TV is streaming, and the new equipment behind the scenes is more reliable.  The picture is sharper, the colors brighter and the image is much less likely to freeze.  It’s such a good arrangement that this equipment is planned for the falconcams next spring. 

Check out the Penguin Cam.  Try out the new chat.  Click on the image above to watch the action. 

After you meet the penguins online I’m sure you’ll want to see them in person at the National Aviary. 

(screenshot of the National Aviary’s Penguin Cam)

p.s.  Scroll down the Penguin Cam webpage to learn more about African penguins and see a short video.

Happy Birthday Blog!

Books & Events


Outside My Window is three years old today.

Back in 2007 I started blogging when WQED’s Web Director, Joan Guerin, said I told good stories about birds and should write them down.  Little did I know that my effort would last this long and attract so many readers.

When I began I was afraid I’d run out of things to say but that worry is laid to rest.  Peregrines give me more than enough to write about from February through June.  Birds, flowers, trees and insects occupy spring, summer and fall.  Winter is fallow so I plan a series such as Friday’s Bird Anatomy lessons to keep me going.  I thought I’d be done with anatomy by now, but birds have more body parts than I expected.  😉

Outside My Window has done more than I expected, too.  Here are some surprising statistics:

There’s one more thing I didn’t expect:  Blogging has changed my life.  I now spend part of every day writing and I even get up early to do it.  I’ve made a whole new set of friends — you, my readers — and look forward to meeting more of you in the coming year.

Thanks so much for your support.  You inspire me to keep writing every day.

(Birthday crow by Joan Guerin at WQED)

p.s. Do you have a favorite post?  A suggestion for new topics?  Leave a comment and let me know.

bird-thday

Clock Change

Books & Events


Tonight’s the night.  We gain an hour of sleep.  We lose an hour of evening daylight.

When we turn the clocks backward from Daylight Savings Time to Standard Time the transition is smoothed by giving us all a well rested Sunday morning but I must admit I’m not fond of the change.  It’s a shock to my system when the sun sets at 6:11pm tonight, then at 5:10pm tomorrow.

Last March when we turned the clocks forward it took me almost a week to get used to it.  Obviously I live by the clock.  If I was a bird I’d live by the sun, leaving the roost at sunrise and returning at sunset. 

And that’s the one advantage of changing time zones without going anywhere.  We’ll get a new view of what the birds are doing. 

Starting Monday evening I’ll be leaving the office at sunset, the perfect time to watch the crows.

(animated nature clock by Nevit Dilmen on Wikimedia Commons.  Click the image to see the original.)

Happy Halloween!

Books & Events, Insects


Here’s a trick: You won’t find these dragonflies in western Pennsylvania in late October. 

The Halloween Pennant, named for his orange and almost-black colors, is only here in the summer. 

Here’s a treat: If you live in Florida, Halloween Pennants are present year-round.  For you, today’s a good day look for this timely insect.  You’ll find him on the tip of a weed, riding the wind.

(photo by Julie Brown.  Click on the photo to see the original.)

A Murder of Crows

Books & Events, Crows & Ravens


As of last night, Pittsburgh’s huge winter flock of crows had not arrived yet but I expect them any day now.  In the meantime I’ve been learning more about crows, and you can too.

Coming this Sunday, October 24, at 8:00pm on PBS’s Nature is an excellent program on crow intelligence called A Murder of Crows. 

Crows have been watching us for a very, very long time but it’s only recently that scientists have begun to watch back.  Here’s what they’ve found out.  Did you know that…

  • Crows watch us more than we watch them.
  • Crows can recognize the faces of people who’ve hurt them.
  • Crows teach each other which people are dangerous so the entire flock knows who to avoid.
  • Crows probably got a bad reputation because we know they’re a lot like us (intelligent and social), but crows will do the things that humans will do that we aren’t particularly proud of.

This is just a taste of what you’ll learn from A Murder of Crows this Sunday, October 24 at 8:00pm on PBS. 

In Pittsburgh, it’s on WQED.  Perhaps our crows will arrive in time to see it.

(photo from Shutterstock by Al Mueller)

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p.s.  A “murder of crows” is a flock.  As the show opens there’s a very good black and white animation of a crow flock that is frankly rather scary.  Even I, who love crows, found it disturbing but it was the only disturbing image in an otherwise upbeat and fascinating program.

Reminder: Things With Wings Sunday, Sept 26

Books & Events

Things With Wings Sunday, September 26, arrives this weekend.  Starting at 2:30pm, WQED will broadcast 4.5 hours of programs about birds and birding.  There will be no re-broadcast so don’t miss it!  Here’s the line-up with links to my reviews of the shows:

 2:30pm, On The Wing: The Swifts of Chapman School  (This review is from our first broadcast of this show in Sept 2009.  Still applies!)

 3:00pm, Journey of the Broad-winged Hawk

 4:00pm, Rare Bird

 5:00pm, A Summer of Birds

 6:00pm, Opposable Chums: Guts & Glory at the World Series of Birding

Opposable Chums coming this Sunday

Books & Events


Last, but by no means least, on Things With Wings Sunday is a program on the inspiration, exasperation, perspiration and total elation of my favorite pasttime: birding!

First broadcast in May 2009, Opposable Chums: Guts and Glory at the World Series of Birding is all about the premier birding competition held every year on one day in May in New Jersey.  The World Series of Birding (WSB) pits teams of birders against each other and the clock to find the most species they can in 24 hours.

It’s a far friendlier contest than it sounds.  Long before the competition begins the teams gather pledges toward their species counts.  As the big day approaches they scout the state for hard-to-find birds and hold a Swap Meet to trade notes on where to find them.  High counts help everyone because the pledges go toward bird conservation.  WSB raises $500,000 or more every year.

So what do birders do at the World Series of Birding?  Opposable Chums follows the teams, as fast-paced as they are.  In and out of cars, up and down the beach, bird jokes and coffee, you get the flavor of the contest and if you’re a birder, you’re challenged by the video clips of birds WITH NO SUBTITLE TO IDENTIFY THEM.  I caught the fever.  I had to identify those birds!  I called out their names as I watched.  I was into it!

At the end of the program I wanted to go birding.

Watch Opposable Chums at 6:00pm on Sunday September 26 on WQED … and tell me… what’s your count?   Show will also air on Sunday, 6 January 2013 at 5:00pm.

(logo from the Opposable Chums website.  Click on the logo to visit the website)