Seuly

For some reason, the 2 falcon cams in Pittsburgh are not working at the moment. Maybe they are doing maintenance on them. There is a falcon cam in Harrisburg that is working now. You can view it here: http://www.dep.state.pa.us/dep/falcon/

Last night was big for Pittsburgh's falcons for egg laying! Dorothy laid here 3rd egg overnight at the COL. Tasha laid her first egg at 04:48, less than an hour ago, at the Gulf Tower!

Dorothy has laid a second egg at the COL. http://www.aviary.org/cons/falconcam_cl.php

There is a falcon in each nest right now. The COL nest has one egg so far. You can really hear the wind whipping around, up so high!

Right now, Dorothy is sitting on the egg at the COL nest.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azV5bC2br-Q&feature=rec-fav-watch-cur_emp-exp_stronger_r2 Trains nowadays mount cameras in their cabs, facing forward and backward, the same way police cars do. This video is a rearward camera. This is video of a train that ran through a tornado. Be patient as the video runs a bit before the action. First there is the normal rearward view from the last of three engines, with the trees looking normal. Then you begin to see rain, and then, halfway through the video the trees begin to sway violently and branches are flying . . . and then "it" begins. (Amazing...) More info & pics here: http://www.crh.noaa.gov/lot/?n=20080107tor Railroad surveilance video captures train derailed by a Tornado January 7, 2008 in Havard, IL The tornado moved across the Chicago and Northwestern railroad where it blew 12 railroad freight cars off the track. The train was moving at the time the tornado hit it...so as the main engine stopped...the remaining cars on the track continued along it and slammed into the front part of the train. This caused a few more cars to derail...including one containing hazardous materials that caused the evacuation of the town of Lawrence. Local news article Union Pacific spokesman Mark Davis said no one was injured when one locomotive and 12 freight cars derailed Monday around 4 p.m. in Harvard in McHenry County.One tank car, which leaked for hours before being contained Monday night, contained shock fluid, Davis said. Another tank car that ended up on its side contained ethylene oxide, a flammable material widely used to sterilize medical supplies, but a Union Pacific manager on the scene determined that tank was not leaking, Authorities ordered the evacuation of about 500 residents in the nearby unincorporated town of Lawrence because of the potential for a hazardous materials situation, said Capt. David Shepherd with the McHenry County sheriff's office. No injuries were reported, he said. Three other derailed cars on the train headed to Janesville, Wis., from North Lake contained auto parts, and seven more were empty, .Crews prepared Monday night to move the cars away from the tracks."It's very muddy conditions in the area, so it'll take a while,"

The female peregrine falcon at the Catherdral of Learning/University of Pittsburgh laid her first egg last night. This is the earliest Dorothy's ever laid, even earlier than the female peregrine at Gulf Tower (Tasha2) who is normally one of the earliest peregrines to lay in the Eastern US. ("Dorothy" was named when she was banded in Wisconsin in 1999.)

There is a falcon in the nest box at each location right now.

The Cathedral of Learning cam shows a sleeping falcon now. You can hear the city traffic below.

You can leave the cam on in the background while you do other things. When the birds come to the nest, they are very vocal, so you will know when to watch. I have both cams going at the same time! Pittsburgh's peregrines are getting ready to nest and are very active right now. Here is a Peregrine Falcon live cam at the Cathedral of Learning in Pittsburgh. Because there are infrared lights, you can watch both night and day. http://www.aviary.org/cons/falconcam_cl.php There is more info on the page. You have to click on the alternate view to see it refresh every 15 seconds. Alternate view info is below: If your computer can't handle streaming, or if you want to capture snapshots, the Cathedral of Learning has a snapshot camera here: http://aviary.org/cons/FalconCam/Cathedral_refreshCam.php Good Peregrine info here: http://www.wpconline.org/pittfalcons/facts.html Frequently updated info here at a Bird Blog with Kate St. John: http://www.wqed.org/birdblog/ ____________________________________________________________________________________ The Gulf Tower Peregrine cam in Pittsburgh is here: http://www.aviary.org/cons/falconcam_gt.php

The deadline to sign up, whether to count at your feeder or go out in the field is December 27.

You can also contact Jocelynn at 583-5110 or her Brookville number, 379-3510.

Here is an approximation of the count circle boundaries: Center at Eat n Park. North to trestle just south of Brockway on 219. South to Sykesville/Troutville. East to Luthersburg/DuBois Reservoir. West to Reynoldsville and west of Falls Creek to Kyle Lake.

Here is more info: Compiler: Jocelynn Smrekar (smrekar@pennswoods.net) Count Date: 2009-01-03 Count Status: Open to all Participants. Please preregister. Compiler's Comments: Contact Jocelynn Smrekar at: smrekar@pennswoods.net for specific information on the DuBois, PA count. Sectors will be assigned, maps distributed, participants paired, etc. according to the number of participants so please let me know you will be participating that day. We will meet at 1:00 p.m. to evaluate our progress at location TBA. Center Circle is the intersection of Route 255 and Shaffer Road. We would love to have your help!

The CBC is done every year during a certain time frame before and after Christmas. The DuBois count is on Jan. 3 this year. Counts are done all over the country during this time to compare the winter bird populations from one year to the next. This can indicate changes in the environment, which will ultimately affect humans. One counts each different species and the total # of each species. The goal is to get as many different breeds of birds as possible in a 24 hour period, along with as many individual birds as possible. Anyone can count at feeders and/or go out in a certain area surrounding DuBois (which is a 15 mile diameter circle). Counters in the field each do a certain area so there is no duplication of data. Counters can go out singly or in groups of 2 or more. I used to help Jocelynn run the CBC count for several years. If anyone is interested in participating, please contact Dr. Smrekar (contact info above) to sign up and get a tally sheet.

Yes, Dr. Jocelynn Smrekar at Clarion University 814-393-1622, jsmrekar@clarion.edu is still the local CBC coordinator.