Category Archives: Books & Events

Journey of the Broad-Winged Hawk

Books & Events, Migration


Every year beginning in late August, broad-winged hawks head south on a 4,500 mile journey from their nesting territories in North America to their winter grounds in Central and South America.  It’s a journey many of us witness at Pennsylvania hawk watches. 

In WQED’s second offering on Things With Wings Sunday (September 26), we will broadcast a beautiful award-winning documentary, Journey of the Broad-winged Hawk.  

The program, produced by New Hampshire Public Television, traces the journey of the hawks and connects with people who watch them along the way. 

It starts in New Hampshire’s White Mountains where we learn how the hawks ride thermals, pauses at Hawk Mountain to watch the migration, then travels down to Corpus Christi where huge kettles of broad-wings fly by during the week of September 23-30.  By the time the hawks reach Texas there are more than 540,000 of them on the move. 

Some broad-wings will spend the winter in Ecuador so the program follows them there to highlight two beautiful places —  Maquipucuna Preserve and Condor Park in Otavalo — where we meet the people of Ecuador who protect bird habitat and educate others about birds. 

Along the way we learn that, for broad-winged hawks our mountains and coastlines are highways and both New Hampshire and Ecuador are “home.”   

The hawks and their journey connect us across two continents.

Don’t miss Journey of the Broad-winged Hawk on Things with Wings Sunday, September 26 at 3:00pm.

(photo of Ecuador’s mountains from NHPTV’s Journey of the Broad-winged Hawk)

Things With Wings Sunday – Sept 26

Books & Events

Mark your calendars for Things With Wings Sunday, September 26.

Starting at 2:30pm, WQED will broadcast 4.5 hours of programs about birds and birding.  Here’s the line-up:

  • 2:30pm, On The Wing: The Swifts of Chapman School
  • 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

I’ll tell you more about these shows as the time approaches, but there are so many I have to start right now.

The first program will be a re-broadcast of On The Wing: The Swifts of Chapman School.  It tells the story of the Vaux’s swifts who put on an amazing aerial display every evening during fall migration as they swirl to roost in the chimney of a Portland, Oregon elementary school.  The event has become a cult phenomenon in Portland, attracting hundreds and thousands of observers each year.

I reviewed this show last year just before we first broadcast it, so click here to read more and see the trailer.  There’s a bonus if you click.  I give you tips on where to find swirling chimney swifts in Pittsburgh.

(photo from Dan Viens, creator of On the Wing)

Feed your Nestcam Addiction

Books & Events, Nesting & Courtship


Sigh.  It’s been four to six weeks since we had nesting peregrines to watch on the webcams. 

Many of us are going through withdrawal, but there’s hope that we won’t have to stop watching yet.  There are still a couple of active nests to feed our addiction.

On Friday I got a newsletter from Cornell Lab of Ornithology with a link to their nestcams.  Of their six active nests, my favorite is the Chimney Swift in New York state.  What a cool C-shaped nest of tiny twigs!   Click on the image above to see for yourself. 

And if you have another favorite nestcam let us know where it is by leaving a comment.

We have to watch birds on camera!

(Screen capture of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology Nestcam home page.  Click on the image to go to the site.)

This Land

Books & Events


On our nation’s birthday…

This land is your land, this land is my land
From California to the New York Island
From the Redwood Forest to the Gulf Stream waters
This land was made for you and me.

As I went walking that ribbon of highway
I saw above me that endless skyway
I saw below me that golden valley
This land was made for you and me.

I roamed and I rambled and I followed my footsteps
To the sparkling sands of her diamond deserts
While all around me a voice was sounding
This land was made for you and me.

When the sun came shining, and I was strolling
And the wheat fields waving and the dust clouds rolling
A voice was chanting, As the fog was lifting,
This land was made for you and me.

This land is your land, this land is my land
From California to the New York Island
From the Redwood Forest to the Gulf Stream waters
This land was made for you and me.
— lyrics from This Land Is Your Land by Woody Guthrie, 1944

(photo by Brian Herman)

.

p.s.  Chuck Tague’s blog has eagle photos for today’s celebration.

Peregrine Chat Tonight with Dr. Katzner

Books & Events, Peregrines

Last month’s chat about peregrine falcons with Dr. Todd Katzner was so popular that he’ll be holding another one tonight. 

Tune in to the Cathedral of Learning Chat from 7:00 to 7:30pm for another informative discussion.

Dr. Katzner is a raptor expert, the Director of Conservation and Field Research at the National Aviary, and the co-editor of a new book, The Eagle Watchers, an insiders’ view of what it’s like to study eagles in remote locations around the world.

A lot has happened in our peregrines’ lives since the last chat so I’m sure you’ll have questions about the Gulf Tower’s “blended family,” about the banding and about fledging — just to name a few.

To participate, login at the “Please sign in or sign up for free” links on the Cathedral of Learning webcam page. 

Don’t miss it!

(photo of Dr. Katzner with just-banded peregrine falcon in Scotland, courtesy Todd Katzner)

Save These Dates: Chat and Fledge Watch

Books & Events, Peregrines

Two peregrine-related events are coming soon.  Save these dates! 

  • PEREGRINE CHAT:  Next Wednesday, May 19 from 7:00pm to 7:30pm, Dr. Todd Katzner of the National Aviary will guest moderate the Cathedral of Learning webcam chat to answer your questions about peregrine falcons.  Dr. Katzner is a raptor expert and the Director of Conservation and Field Research at the National Aviary.  To participate, login at the “Please sign in or sign up for free” links on the Cathedral of Learning webcam page.   For more background, see this blog about the chat held on April 28.

    •  

  • PITT FLEDGE WATCH:  My favorite week of the year is coming — Pitt Peregrine Fledge Watch!   When the young peregrines are about to take their first flight I sit at the tent at Schenley Plaza and watch the fun.  Come join me!  We’ll see young peregrines flapping and adult peregrines flying.  We’ll see how Dorothy and E2 teach their kids to fly and we’ll have a grand old time.  Save these dates, weather permitting.  More details to follow in the days ahead.
    • Friday May 28, noon to 2:15pm.  Kick off the Memorial Day Weekend with peregrine fun.
    • Saturday May 29, 8:00am to 11:00am.  I’ll stay until noon if I know you’re coming!
    • Tuesday June 1, noon to 2:15pm.  This is the Rain Date for Friday May 28, but I’ll be at Schenley Plaza on June 1st even if it didn’t rain on Friday!
    • Wednesday and Thursday June 2 & 3, 1:00pm to 2:15pm.  I will also be there before and after work some days, to be determined.

Peregrine Chat Tonight with Dr. Katzner + his new Book

Birds of Prey, Books & Events, Peregrines

Tonight from 7:00pm-7:30pm, Dr. Todd Katzner will be on the Cathedral of Learning webcam chat to answer your questions about peregrine falcons.  

Dr. Katzner is Director of Conservation and Field Research at the National Aviary and a raptor expert who’s spent years studying eagles around the world. 

His experiences and those of others led him to co-edit a new book with Dr. Ruth E. Tingay — The Eagle Watchers — just released by Cornell University Press. 

In the book, Dr. Katzner and 28 other field biologists provide an insider’s view of what it’s like to study eagles in remote locations around the globe. 

Each chapter is a field trip, a personal narrative that chronicles harrowing and sometimes humorous adventures and provides rare insight into the lives and behaviors of eagles.  The book features stunning color photographs, information on raptor conservation, and a global list of eagle species and their conservation status.

Tingay and Katzner want their book to help birds of prey in more ways than one.  Proceeds from the book will benefit Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in Pennsylvania and the National Birds of Prey Trust in the United Kingdom.  

You can purchase The Eagle Watchers from Cornell University Press or Amazon. 

And remember, to participate in tonight’s online chat about peregrines just login at the “Please sign in or sign up for free” links on the Cathedral of Learning webcam page.

(photo from Cornell University Press and The National Aviary)

Chat with Dr. Todd Katzner, April 28 at 7:00pm

Books & Events, Peregrines

This Wednesday, April 28, Dr. Todd Katzner of the National Aviary will be available from 7:00pm-7:30pm in the Cathedral of Learning webcam chat to answer your questions about peregrines. 

Dr. Katzner is a raptor expert, the Director of Conservation and Field Research at the National Aviary and an Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Pittsburgh.  His research includes satellite tracking of eastern golden eagles to assess the risks of wind energy development in their migration corridor. 

To participate on Wednesday at 7:00pm, login at the “Please sign in or sign up for free” links on the Cathedral of Learning webcam page. 

Bring your questions for a lively discussion.

Streaming Webcams update

Books & Events

If you’ve been having trouble seeing the National Aviary’s streaming webcams, here are some technical tips on what to do.

  • If you used to be able to see the stream but now see a big, white, spinning circle or no video at all:  This means your computer thinks it’s connected to the stream but it it isn’t.  To set it straight, close all your browser windows.  Then open one browser window — !do not go to the webcam pages yet! — and empty cache.  To empty cache in Internet Explorer 8, choose Tools > Internet Options > [Delete] browsing history.   To really convince your computer to behave, reboot it, empty cache and don’t view either of the streaming videos until your computer has been running for about 5 minutes.
  • Chat problems:
    • Chat does not work on the Gulf Tower webpage.  You can sign in but you’ll see nothing.
    • If you sign into Gulf Tower chat it may confuse your computer.  Close your browser windows and reopen.  Only sign in to Cathedral of Learning chat.
  • If you’re having problems all the time:
    • Wildearth has learned that Firefox’s update 3.6 does not work with their web pages.  NOTE ON MARCH 23:  Firefox 3.6.2 does work.  If your Firefox is not on that version, you’ll need to update it
    • If you don’t have java enabled on your computer, you won’t be able to see the streams.
  • AUDIO WITH NO VIDEO was fixed (we hope) on March 24:  If you can hear the audio and see the ads but have no video, then empty your browser’s cache and reload the page.  In Internet Explorer 8, choose Tools > Internet Options > [Delete] browsing history.

If your problems persist after this Wednesday, please leave a comment here and I will forward it to the National Aviary or you can contact them yourself.

Where is the Nature Observer?

Books & Events

Brown marmorated stink bug (photo from The Bugwood Network via Wikimedia)Those of you who read Chuck Tague’s blog have noticed he hasn’t updated it since January 21.

I did too.  Around the end of January I emailed him saying “You must be away having fun since there’s no news on your blog.”

No, he isn’t away.  He’s alive and well but his blog has a bug.  There’s some kind of software problem that causes it to crash the minute he tries to change anything.  The best he is able to do is post this comment on his last entry.

JANUARY 28, 2010
DEAR READERS:
MY APOLOGIES.  BECAUSE OF A SOFTWARE PROBLEM I HAVEN’T BEEN ABLE TO ACCESS THE NATURE OBSERVER WEBSITE TO ADD OR EDIT FOR THE LAST WEEK.  TECH SUPPORT AT APPLE IS WORKING ON THE PROBLEM.
CHUCK

Meanwhile, Chuck’s been busy birding and taking pictures while he waits for Apple to make the bug go away.  It’s a pesky one and it’s still not solved.

It may be a real bug but it’s not a “true bug” like this brown marmorated stink bug that plagues us indoors.

😉

(photo from Wikimedia Commons, via The Bugwood Network at the University of Georgia.  Click on the photo to see the original at Wikimedia.)