Horsenettle and Cuckoos: Yesterday at Frick Park

Books & Events, Plants & Fungi, Songbirds
Horse nettle at Frick Park, 30 July 2023 (photo by Kate St. John)

31 July 2023

Yesterday morning’s walk at Frick Park had great weather, lots of participants and good birds.

Members of the Frick Park outing on 30 July 2023 (photo by Joe Fedor who held my phone-camera)

Early in the walk we encountered horsenettle (Solanum carolinense), pictured above, whose flowers are similar to those of its relatives in the Solanaceae or Nightshade family including tomatoes, potatoes and eggplant (called aubergine in the UK). Though it’s not a nettle, its common name refers to the thorns on its leaves. Did you know the leaves smell like potatoes when crushed? Thorns prevent me from trying this.(*)

Best Birds were a very cooperative yellow billed cuckoo and an elusive green heron. The cuckoo posed for us, the green heron zoomed away. Later the heron zoomed in and landed above us near a second green heron. Two!

In the Nine Mile Run valley I marveled at this confluence of a muddy tributary with the main stem of Nine Mile Run. This, in microcosm, is like the confluence of the clear-running Allegheny with the muddy Monongahela River at The Point.

Main stem of Nine Mile Run (clear) is joined by a tributary, 30 July 2023 (photo by Kate St. John)

Our eBird checklist is here and shown below.

Frick Park–Nine Mile Run, Allegheny, Pennsylvania, Jul 30, 2023 8:30 AM – 10:30 AM
1.75 miles, 24 species, 17 participants

Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura) 2
Yellow-billed Cuckoo (Coccyzus americanus) 2 Good looks at one of them
Chimney Swift (Chaetura pelagica) 2
Ruby-throated Hummingbird (Archilochus colubris) 1
Green Heron (Butorides virescens) 2
Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) 3
Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens) 5
Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus) 1
Red-eyed Vireo (Vireo olivaceus) 3
Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata) 5
Carolina Chickadee (Poecile carolinensis) 3
Tufted Titmouse (Baeolophus bicolor) 2 Youngster chasing an adult for food
Carolina Wren (Thryothorus ludovicianus) 3
European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris) 5
Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis) 5
American Robin (Turdus migratorius) 12
American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis) 3
Field Sparrow (Spizella pusilla) 1
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia) 7
Baltimore Oriole (Icterus galbula) 4
Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula) 2
Scarlet Tanager (Piranga olivacea) 1 Female seen briefly
Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) 7
Indigo Bunting (Passerina cyanea) 3

(photos by/for Kate St. John)

(*)NOTE: This just in! An article about edible Nightshades in The Guardian includes potatoes, tomatoes and eggplant: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2023/jul/31/the-truth-about-nightshades-four-online-myths-about-potatoes-tomatoes-and-aubergines.)

On Cape Cod It’s Always Shark Week

Fish, Frogs, Water and Shore
Great white shark, South Africa (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

30 July 2023

This may be the last day of Shark Week on the Discovery Channel but on Cape Cod it runs all year. A new study published this week in Marine Ecology Progress Series tagged and counted great white sharks (Carcharodon carcharias) off the coast of Cape Cod, Massachusetts and found that 800 individuals visited the area from 2015 to 2018. That means Cape Cod may have the highest density of white sharks in the world.

Fortunately all the sharks weren’t there at the same time. As lead author Megan Winton of the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy (AWSC) explains, great white sharks are highly migratory. Their population peaks on the Cape from July to November when the water is warm, as shown in this screenshot from AWSC’s logbook for 2022. Individual sharks spend a few hours or a few weeks in the area. (Click here to see AWSC’s shark data and download their shark app.)

AWSC white shark logbook by month for 2022 (screenshot from AWSC)

The sharks are attracted to the Cape by the abundance seals, one of their favorite foods. A Google Haul Out survey of southeastern Massachusetts estimated maximum counts of gray seals at 30,000 to 50,000 animals in 2012 to 2015. Harbor seals arrive in the fall and add to the seal population. No wonder sharks show up. Gray seals provide a lot of meat, weighing as much as 800 pounds.

Gray seals at Nantucket NWR (photo from Wikimedia Commons)
Gray seals at a haul out in Nantucket NWR (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

During our recent trip to Cape Cod I saw lots of seals at Chatham Fish Pier. Several swam by the fishing boats but the vast majority were hauled out on a sand bar across the harbor. See that lumpy line of gray blobs? Those are gray seals.

Gray seals line the edge of the sand bar across from Chatham Fish Pier on Cape Cod, 12 July 2023 (photo by Richard St. John)
Gray seals line the edge of the sand bar across from Chatham Fish Pier on Cape Cod, 12 July 2023 (photo by Richard St. John)

While on the Cape I didn’t see any sharks but I did see a No Swimming shark sign at Race Point. I was looking for birds and, as it turns out, diving seabirds give the hint that a shark may be nearby. Both feed on schools of fish, the birds from above, the sharks from below.

The abundance of sharks and seals in Cape Cod’s waters is an environmental success story. Gray seals were almost extinct in U.S. waters by the mid 20th century because of bounty hunting in Maine and Massachusetts from the late 1800s to 1962. The seal population began to recover, slowly, when the bounties ended. Sharks made a comeback because of the seals.

Learn more in this ABC News interview with lead author Megan Winton of Atlantic White Shark Conservancy.

video embedded from ABC News on YouTube

p.s. Well, technically, it’s only Shark Week for 5 months on Cape Cod — mostly from July to November.

(photos from Wikimedia Commons and by Richard St. John, graph is a screenshot of AWSC’ logbook website; click on the links to see the originals)

Seen at Jennings Last Week

Phenology, Plants & Fungi
Shrubby St. Johnswort at Jennings, 21 July 2023 (photo by Kate St. John)

29 July 2023

Just over a week ago the Botanical Society of Western Pennsylvania and Wissahickon Nature Club made their annual visit to Jennings Prairie for late July wildflowers. All of these species and more were seen on Friday 21 July. Shown here are:

This thimbleweed still has petals, Jennings, 21 July 2023 (photo by Kate St. John)
Dense blazing star, Jennings, 21 July 2023 (photo by Kate St. John)
Yarrow, Jennings, 21 July 2023 (photo by Kate St. John)

This photo of rattlesnake plantain shows the flower buds. Click here or on the photo to see the entire plant with basal leaves.

Rattlesnake plantain in bud, Jennings, 21 July 2023 (photo by Kate St. John)

Culver’s root was in bloom at Jennings but too far from the trail for a cellphone photo. I found this one blooming on Thursday in a garden near Dippy the Dinosaur at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History. Do you see the bumblebee?

Culver’s root near Dippy statue, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, 27 July 2023 (photo by Kate St. John)

See more photos at the Wissahickon Trip Report and click here for the complete list of species.

(photos by Kate St. John)

Bird News Lately

Migration, Musings & News
Celebrity in Central Park, Flaco the Eurasian eagle-owl, February 2023 (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

28 July 2023

A selection of photos and videos this month around the web:

In February a Eurasian eagle-owl named Flaco escaped from the Central Park Zoo and became a celebrity. He’s still hanging out in July.

In Florida, swallow-tailed kites are preparing to migrate.

In Europe, migration has already begun across the Strait of Gibraltar.

(embedded from Twitter)

Who’s Singing Now?

Phenology, Vocalizations
Song sparrow singing in August (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

27 July 2023

In late July, who’s singing now?

Almost no one.

Birds sing during the breeding season to claim territory and attract mates but most songbirds wrap up the breeding season by mid-July. When breeding’s over they stop singing.

You’ll hear a handful of exceptions, though, among songbirds who nest many times each year. Song sparrows and northern cardinals raise multiple broods and have active nests in late July. Both are still singing though not as vigorously.

You won’t hear songs from birds who have finished breeding but you will hear their contact calls. Common grackles raise only one brood per year and by July they are already in flocks, sweeping through the woods and foraging on the ground.

Common grackle in flight (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

You might not see them on the shady forest floor but you’ll hear them making “chucking” sounds like this. (Note: There are additional birds making noise in the background of this recording.)

Birdsong will drop off completely next month. Take note of the few singers now.

(photo from Wikimedia Commons; click on the link to see the original)

The Heat Loop

Climate Change, Weather & Sky
Hot weather sunset (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

26 July 2023

The weather is hot and getting hotter. Excessive heat plagued the West, Texas and Florida and now, in the next 6-10 days, the heat will move southeast with soaring temperatures at 100°F+.

U.S. 6-10 day temperature outlook, 31 July – 4 August as of 7/25/2023 (map from NWS)

It’s not just the air that’s hot, the ocean is too. This timelapse video from Colin McCarthy @US_stormwatch shows ocean temperature anomalies from 22 February to 21 July. The hottest colors — the highest above normal — are off the Pacific coast of South America and in the North Atlantic near Newfoundland.

Warming water off the coast of South America is the developing El Niño, part of the cyclical El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) that affects weather and climate around the world.

The real surprise is off the coast of Newfoundland where Colin McCarthy says “The North Atlantic is in uncharted territory. The entire ocean basin is a record-smashing 1.5°C (2.7°F) above normal.”

Both are easier to see in this static map from NOAA.

NOAA sea surface temperature anomaly (partial map) as of 24 July 2023, 0600 EDT

Hot water makes the air hot as Newfoundlanders can tell you. Summers are usually so cool there that only 1 in 5 households in St John’s, NL have air conditioning, at least as of 2019. That is probably changing this summer as temperatures soar into the 90s.

Hot water makes hotter air makes hotter water in an endless feedback loop.

With El Niño on top of climate change I don’t think it will end well.

p.s. Today’s news Florida ocean records ‘unprecedented’ temperatures similar to a hot tub!

(photo and map credits are in the caption; click the links to see the originals. The Heat Loop diagram is by Kate St. John)

Who’s Smarter? Raven or Crow?

Bird Behavior, Crows & Ravens
  • Common raven (photo from Wikimedia)
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25 July 2023

Scientists say that the smartest animals have large brains and have become so intelligent because their lifestyles force them to solve complex ecological (ex: food, habitat) and social problems (ex: long-term social bonds that may include absences).

Ravens and crows both have large brains relative to their body size and both are good at problem solving. The Raven Diaries (@theravendiaries) takes a look at which species acts smarter and why.

video embedded from @theravendiaries on YouTube

So which one is smarter? It’s a hard call between crows and ravens.

Crows understand the concept of zero and know that 0 precedes 1, a feat that beats small humans.

Ravens were tested against chimps and came up equally intelligent: Young Ravens Rival Adult Chimps in a Big Test of General Intelligence. They were also equal if not better at “theory of mind,” the ability to imagine what others are thinking: Ravens have paranoid, abstract thoughts about other minds.

For example, this video shows two ravens guessing what the other is thinking and act accordingly.

video embedded from BBC Earth on YouTube

Kaeli Swift of Corvid Research is often asked if ravens are smarter than [you-name-it] animal. Here’s the long answer.

Are ravens smarter than a___?

(credits are in the captions)

Frick Park Outing, Sun. July 30, 8:30a

Books & Events
Queen Anne’s lace and fleabane, Frick Park, 20 July 2021 (photo by Kate St. John)

24 July 2023

Summer flowers are blooming, insects are humming, and songbirds are wrapping up the breeding season.

Join me for a bird & nature walk in Frick Park on Sunday, July 30, 2023, 8:30a – 10:30a.

Meet at the Nine Mile Run Trail Parking lot to walk Frick Park’s boardwalk and Nine Mile Run loop.  

Park anywhere along Commercial Street but meet at the Nine Mile Run Parking area (screenshot map from Google)

The meeting place is on the Swissvale side of the Parkway bridge so if you park on Commercial Street at the Boardwalk or Firelane Trail, cross Commercial Street and take the path under the Parkway bridge to reach us. You’ll see the Nine Mile Run Trail parking lot as soon as you’re under the bridge.

From Commercial Street at Frick Park follow the path to the meeting place

Near the meeting place we’re sure to see Queen Anne’s lace, fleabane, and goldfinches. If we’re lucky we’ll see orchard orioles, part of the family that nested near the creek.

Dress for the weather and wear comfortable walking shoes. Bring binoculars and field guides if you have them.

Before you come, visit my Events page in case of changes or cancellations. The outing will be canceled if there’s lightning or heavy rain.

Hope to see you there!

(photos by Kate St. John)

Birds React to Anti-Bird Spikes: Hah!

Bird Behavior
Anti-bird spikes on signs and ledges in Germany (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

23 July 2023

In case you missed it …

Pigeons nesting among bird spikes, Church of Saint Ginés of Arrecife, Canary Islands (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

When Auke-Florian Hiemstra published Bird Nests Made From Anti-Bird Spikes on 11 July 2023, the news spread like wildfire. The Guardian and the BBC immediately announced his report that Eurasian magpies and carrion crows incorporated spikes in their nests in the Netherlands and Scotland. The birds’ ironic re-use of our threatening material captured the Internet’s imagination.

Are the birds thumbing their noses (beaks) at us when they use anti-bird spikes? For the most part, no.

In the city it’s pretty common to see plastic in nests. For example this pigeon (nesting on top of anti-bird spikes!) included a length of red plastic wire in its nest. Notice the pigeon’s head behind the bend in the wire.

Pigeon nesting among bird spikes at Passage Vendôme, Paris, 2013 (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

Hiemstra (@AukeFlorian) explains that Eurasian magpies (Pica pica) look for spiky things, like thorn branches, to protect the top of their dome-shaped nests. But thorn trees are hard to find in the city so …

video embedded from NowThisEarth

His tweet thread below includes photos and videos of other birds’ plastic use. If you aren’t on Twitter, click here to see his entire thread.

So nesting birds aren’t thumbing their noses at us but parrots probably are. In Australia, where cockatoos live in the wild, they show their attitude toward our anti-bird attempts. Take that you nasty spikes! Hah!

embedded YouTube video from ViralHog

Magpies and crows use our plastics in creative ways. Parrots mess with our minds. 😉

(photos from Wikimedia Commons, tweet and videos embedded. Click on the captions to see the originals)

Flowers, Trees and Signs This Week

Insects, Phenology, Plants & Fungi, Spotted Lanternflies
Water beads on wax begonia, 17 July 2023 (photo by Kate St. John)

22 July 2023

Other than a few thunderstorms it’s been a quiet week in Pittsburgh.

At the Cathedral of Learning the garden beds are beautiful with begonias while the peregrines, Carla and Ecco, hang out and finish molting. The pair is no longer courting but sometimes bow together — less than once a day in late July.

Carla (on left) bows with Ecco at the Cathedral of Learning, 20 July 2023 (photo from the National Aviary snapshot camera at Univ of Pittsburgh)

On Thursday I was lucky to find the right mix of sun and shade to show off eastern enchanter’s nightshade’s (Circaea canadensis) bur-like fruits. They are notoriously difficult to photograph.

Enchanter’s nightshade near Herrs Island, Pittsburgh, 20 July 2023 (photo by Kate St. John)

On 13 July a brief storm blew through Pittsburgh and broke this more than 100 year old London plane tree near Carnegie Library.

London plane tree at Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh broken by strong wind on 13 July 2023 (photo by Kate St. John)

Meanwhile spotted lanternfly (SLF) red nymphs are everywhere, soon to become winged adults. I found thousands of them along the Allegheny River Trail near Herrs Island plus three adults, the first I’ve seen this year. This winged adult probably just emerged from the crumpled exoskeleton above it. Eewwww!

Spotted lanternfly adult near red nymphs on the Three Rivers Rowing Association building across from Herrs Island, 20 July 2023 (photo by Kate St. John)

A few people along the trail were stamping on the nymphs and might have been recording their victories in the Squishr app (described here by WHYY). However, as Howard Tobias remarked a few weeks ago, “Tramping on spotted lanternflies is like trying to empty the ocean with a spoon.”

Are you upset by the bugs? Go hit the Panic Button at Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh in the Main branch Music Department, 2nd floor. This Panic Button, built into a bookcase, used to be part of the old security system but was disconnected decades ago. Press it to your heart’s content. Very satisfying.

The Panic Button at Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh (photo by Kate St. John)

And don’t forget to …

Confirm your paperwork? Or throw it in the bin? at Carnegie Museum, Pittsburgh, 19 July 2023 (photo by Kate St. John)

(photos by Kate St. John)