Category Archives: Schenley Park

Not in Your Field Guide

Plants & Fungi, Schenley Park


This flower stumped me for years.

It’s everywhere along the trails in Schenley and Frick Parks but I could not key it out in my Newcomb’s Guide — and for good reason.  It’s not in the book!

Last weekend I learned that this is goutweed, ground-elder or bishop-weed (Aegopodium podagraria), a Eurasian plant in the carrot family that’s gone wild.  It is so successful that it’s now ranked as invasive in six states.  Pennsylvania is one of them.

I’m embarassed to say it’s in my front garden but I didn’t plant it there.  It spread from my neighbor’s garden next door.

When it arrived I thought it was pretty.  Little did I know that nurseries advise – or ought to advise – that this plant should be kept isolated.

In Schenley Park its leaves are solid green as in this photograph but in my garden the leaves are variegated.  That pretty trait is lost when it goes wild.

And wild it is!  The plant forms dense, deeply-rooted patches whose removal is back-breaking work.

Since I don’t have the time to do that right now I am hoping a miracle will keep it at bay for another month until I begin the task.

I wonder if that would be waiting too long….?

(Thanks to Chuck Tague for this photo and for identifying it for me)

A Novel Location

Peregrines, Schenley Park
Pitt peregrine fledgling perched on the globe atop Carnegie Museum (photo by Mary DeVaughn)

4 June 2011

Some time yesterday afternoon the second peregrine chick at the Cathedral of Learning flew for the first time but she didn’t land high on the home “cliff.”

When I got to Fledge Watch after work I counted only three peregrine chicks and two adults.  I wasn’t worried about the fourth but I had no idea where she was.  Many minutes later I noticed an unusual lump on the globe at Carnegie Library & Museum.

The fourth chick!  We joked that she wanted to check out a book.

None of the Watchers had seen her fly but we were treated to quite a show when her father tried to convince her to come home.

Around 7:00pm E2 came back from Schenley Park with prey in his talons.  He made a big show of flying past her at eye level, showing her the food.  Then he landed near the top of Heinz Chapel steeple and made a big show of plucking it.  When he finished he flew past her again and again, showing the prey but refusing to land.  “Here’s your dinner,” he said, “but you can’t eat here.  Follow me home.”

She made begging calls but didn’t fly so E2 circled above Schenley Plaza, still showing the prey.

That’s when we got a treat.  Dorothy flew off the Cathedral of Learning, circled with E2, then flipped over and did a prey exchange.  Woo hoo!  Applause from the Watchers!

Dorothy delivered the meal to the two unfledged chicks on the nestrail, but watching them eat her dinner was too much for Globe Girl.  She flew off the museum, made a big circle over us… and she landed near the globe again.   Oh well.

After 8:00pm my husband and I walked through Schenley Plaza and saw that Globe Girl had made it home… sort of.  I found her by looking for the shouting robins.  Globe Girl was perched on the roof of Stephen Foster Memorial Theater, surrounded by angry robins.  Safe but embarrassed!

By now I’ll bet she’s perched somewhere else.  I hope it’s not another novel location.

(photo by Mary DeVaughn)

Pitt Peregrine Fledge Watch: Evenings too!

Peregrines, Schenley Park

Here’s an update on next week’s Fledge Watch at the Schenley Plaza tent across from the Cathedral of Learning.

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NEW!  I’ll also be at Fledge Watch on the evenings of Tuesday May 31, Thursday June 2 and Friday June 3, 5:30pm to 7:00pm. .

The complete schedule is:

MONDAY MAY 30 (Memorial Day):  midday 11:00am-1:00pm

TUESDAY MAY 31:  midday 1:00pm-2:00pm –and- evening 5:30pm-7:00pm

WEDNESDAY JUNE 1:  midday 1:00pm-2:00pm ONLY

THURSDAY JUNE 2:  LONG midday Noon-2:00pm –and- evening 5:30pm-7:00pm

FRIDAY JUNE 3:  LONG midday Noon-2:00pm –and- evening 5:30pm-7:00pm

SATURDAY JUNE 4:  LONG midday 10:00am-2:00pm

SUNDAY JUNE 5:  no time set yet.

So far the weather looks good but watch the blog for updates.  I won’t be there in a thunderstorm, and if something comes up to prevent me from attending (no way!), I’ll post that too.

Come join me!

(Click here for the location of the Schenley Plaza tent.)

(photo of the Schenley Plaza tent by Kate St. John)

Now Blooming … and a Quiz

Plants & Fungi, Quiz, Schenley Park


This week in Schenley Park, the hillsides are dotted with the white plumes of False Solomon’s Seal.

False Solomon’s Seal is a perennial plant in the Lily family that grows in moist woods and thickets.  It goes by many names including Solomon’s plume, False Spikenard, Treacleberry, Maianthemum racemosum and Smilacina racemosa.

The plant sprouts every year from creeping rhizomes so you usually find its long slightly zigzag stems in sizable clumps.  The leaves’ upper surface is parallel to the stem so the plants lean to one side.  Interestingly, an entire clump tends to lean the same direction, all of them showing their leaves to the sun and their white flowers to pollinating bees and beetles.  It looks like the whole clump is doing “The Wave.”

False Solomon’s Seal produces red berries in the fall that are eaten by birds and rodents.  People sometimes use the plant as a laxative and deer browse it occasionally but it’s not one of their favorites.  Perhaps the deer know about its laxative effects.

So this is False Solomon’s Seal, but what plant is “true”… and why?  Leave a comment with your answer.

(photo from Wikipedia.  Click on the photo to see the original)

Wet Visitors

Migration, Schenley Park, Songbirds


Yesterday morning I stopped in Schenley Park on my way to work even though it looked like the rain would resume at any minute.

The thick, low clouds were ominous.   Nonetheless, as soon as I stepped out of my car I heard a Tennessee warbler high in the oak next to me.  I rarely see this warbler in western Pennsylvania so I worked to find him.

This took a long time.  The Tennessee warbler is gray-green and smaller than oak leaves.  My particular warbler was not moving much.

Five minutes later and now across the street for a better view I was still looking for him when it started to rain.

Forget the umbrella!  I saw him move lower.  Eventually he perched in an open bush at eye level, still singing.  Success!

And now there were many warblers at eye level.  On the hillside behind the Visitors Center I saw a second Tennessee warbler and heard,  “Chip chupety swee-ditchety.”

A beautiful Canada warbler with a bright yellow belly and black necklace sang in an opening below me.  He moved slowly and let me see him from all angles.  What a nice reward after my long search for the camouflage bird.

In the end the rain helped me find them.  This flock of migrants had been waylaid by the weather and when the rain forced the insects beneath the leaves, the warblers followed.

This morning it’s raining again.  The Post-Gazette says it will rain until July. (!)

I wonder if I’ll find wet visitors in the park today.

(photo of a Canada warbler by Cris Hamilton)

Save the Date: Pitt Peregrine Fledge Watch!

Books & Events, Peregrines, Schenley Park

Coming soon, my favorite week of the year:  Pitt Peregrine Fledge Watch!

As amazing as it seems, Dorothy and E2’s youngsters will be ready to fly at the end of this month.  They’ll lose their fluffy, white, Buddha-look and become sleek with brown and cream-colored feathers.  And then they’ll learn to fly.

While they’re learning, the young peregrines walk and flap on the ledges above their nest.  It’s easy to see them with binoculars so I sit at the Schenley Plaza tent (shown here) to watch the fun.

Come join me!  See the youngsters exercise their wings.  See Dorothy and E2 show their kids how to fly.  Swap stories about peregrines and the nesting year.

Save these dates, weather permitting.  (I guarantee the weather will change this schedule, so watch the blog for the latest updates.)

  • Monday May 30 (Memorial Day), 11:00am to 1:00pm.  The youngsters will be visible near their nest, but won’t be ready to fly.
  • Tuesday May 31, and Wednesday June 1, 1:00pm to 2:00pm.  I’ll spend my lunch hour at the tent.  Come join me!
  • Thursday and Friday June 2 & 3, noon to 2:15pm.  I’m staying longer on Thursday and Friday because I think they’ll be the best days. (I may be wrong!)
  • probably Thursday evening, 5:30pm to 7:00pm.  If Thursday is good, I’ll be there after work, too.
  • Saturday June 4, 10:00am to 2:00pm. Almost all the chicks will have flown by Saturday but the last one keeps the family’s focus on the nest area.
  • Sunday June 5, no time set yet.  This is a rain date whose schedule depends on what the peregrines are doing.

Don’t miss the fun.  Plan on joining me at the tent for Pitt Peregrine Fledge Watch.

See this link for news of last year’s fun and this Peregrine FAQ that describes what you’ll see on camera as the young peregrines leave the nest.

(photo of the Schenley Plaza tent by Kate St. John)

Fringetree

Schenley Park, Trees


Here’s a beautiful, small tree whose name escaped me until Dianne Machesney sent me a photo.

American Fringetree (Chionanthus virginicus) blooms in late May with delicate white fringe-like flowers.

At the northernmost edge of its range it’s considered Threatened in Pennsylvania, but landscapers plant it as an ornamental. That’s why I see it in Schenley Park and Dianne found it in North Park.

Keep an eye out for this beautiful tree.  This one is native — not the same as the Chinese fringetree.  It’s worth a look.

 

(photo by Dianne Machesney)

UPDATE: MAY 22, 2011:  Fringetree is now blooming in Schenley Park.

Keep the Rain Out of the Drain

Books & Events, Schenley Park, Weather & Sky


It rained again last night. And yesterday. And last week.

This year’s rainfall is already 4.38″ above normal; 67% more than we usually get.  All the excess rain fell since February 1.

This has caused flooding, though nothing extraordinary for Pittsburgh in the spring, and a less publicized problem called combined sewer overflow.

Prior to the 1940’s the older towns in Allegheny County built their sewage collection systems to do two things at once:  carry rainwater off the streets (storm sewers) and collect sewage (sanitary sewers).  It was cheap to build combined sewers because they only require one pipe.  There was no law against building new systems this way until the 1940’s when we could no longer tolerate the problem it caused.

The problem is that when it rains too much the sewage treatment plants cannot handle the inflow of rain+sewage so the excess goes directly into the river.  As little as 1/4-inch of rain can cause a combined sewer overflow in Allegheny County.

Fixing this problem will cost billions of dollars, but fix it we must.  Allegheny County is under a consent decree that requires us to finalize a plan by 2012 and fix the problem by 2026.  (It’s about time we did!   Click here for a very interesting history of river use and water treatment in the Pittsburgh area.)

Meanwhile there’s something each of us in Allegheny County can do to prevent rainwater from overflowing the sewers.  Last year the county changed the plumbing laws so that we’re allowed to unhook our downspouts from the sewer system and install rain barrels or rain gardens to prevent the rain from going down the drain.

You can learn how to do this at a seminar at noon next Wednesday, March 23, at Schenley Park Visitors’ Center called Keep the Rain Out of the Drain.  Click here to for more information and to let them know you’d like to attend.

Every little bit helps.

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

Mid-March Phenology

Phenology, Schenley Park


As I walked to the Cathedral of Learning at lunchtime yesterday, I made a list of all the new Spring things I found despite the chilly weather:

  • Crocuses blooming at Schenley Plaza.  These, in fact.
  • House finches, northern cardinals, robins and song sparrows all singing.
  • Male common grackles puffing up and saying “Skrinnk!” to each other.
  • European starlings singing songs that sound like killdeer and meadowlarks.
  • More dark-eyed juncoes than before — they’re on the move.
  • A bright ice halo around the sun that became a sundog.
  • Ducks and geese migrating.  (Saw a tundra swan fly north, high over the Cathedral of Learning)
  • Spring peepers and woodcocks at Middle Creek last Sunday.  (none of those in the city)
  • Freezing nights and above freezing days.  It’s maple sugar time.
  • Immature peregrine falcons wandering and migrating.

Do you have a list of Spring things you’ve seen lately?  Leave a comment to let us know.

And about that last item in the list:  While I was observing the halo around the sun I saw a peregrine falcon fly in from the west very high up, nearly a dot.  The bird came a little lower as it approached the Cathedral of Learning (CL) but it was still quite high when it saw E2 and Dorothy mating near the nest.  It then passed over the CL to the east and used thermals to rise higher and higher. From below it looked dark, perhaps a juvenile.  When it was a tiny dot in my binoculars it moved off to the north.  I’m glad it was no threat to my two favorite peregrines. It was just passing through.

(photo by Kate St. John)

p.s.  Here’s a definition of phenology and a list for Western Pennsylvania.
p.p.s. This is my 1,000th blog entry.

Winter Weeds: Staghorn Sumac

Schenley Park, Trees, Winter Weeds & Trees


Though this plant is not a “weed” I decided to include it in the Winter Weed series because it’s such an important food for birds.

Staghorn sumac is a shrub-like tree in the Cashew family that often forms thickets.  In autumn it drops its large compound leaves to reveal stout, densely fuzzy twigs with dark red fruit clusters at their tips.

The clusters are shaped like candle flames and, like flames, they point upward.  The fruits are small reddish berries about the size of peppercorns studding the structure.  Birds perch on the clusters and pull off the fruits, as this downy woodpecker is doing.  Even when most of the fruits are gone the “candle flame” structures persist through the winter.

Though birds like the fruit they ignore staghorn sumac in fall and early winter, just as they ignore crabapples, because they aren’t palatable yet.  This winter the crabapples were ready to eat first.  Freezing weather in December softened the crabapples so that by early January the starlings and robins mobbed the trees and left a mess on the sidewalk.

They still ignored the sumac until last weekend.  On Sunday I found a flock of robins feasting on staghorn sumac in Schenley Park.  Some of the berries sprinkled the snow with tiny red dots.

When I found the dots I looked up.  What a good clue for finding birds!

(photo by Marcy Cunkelman)