Weather (cold, rain, heat) and predation (possibly snake? snakes) took a toll on fledgling success during this 15th year of monitoring. Eastern Bluebird results were the lowest for the past six years. Tree Swallows were the third lowest for the same period. The addition of new baffles and box relocations hopefully will remedy the predator problem.Occupancy rate was 94% of boxes present.
Monitors: Nick Kerlin and Mark Nale
Date: 8/19/26 5:09 am From: KATHLEEN BECHDEL <0000d165c6a818d5-dmarc-request...> Subject: Fall Schedule of Events
Hello,
Below is the list of fall events. All of this information is available on the websitehttps://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.scbirdcl.org%2F&data=05%7C02%<7Cscbirdcl...>%7Cd3bc92f0947144531eea08defde998c1%7C7cf48d453ddb4389a9c1c115526eb52e%7C0%7C0%7C639227376912246689%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=2B08ye1zeF%2FU8NupOnJgBPL2nmeWQu5bLKZLD%2FWDsX0%3D&reserved=0 .
Fall 2026 Field Trips of the State College Bird Club
All field trips are open to members and non-members.
This field trip is open to members and non-members.
Heron Watch at Fisherman's Paradise
Tuesday, September 8, 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm (Raindate September 10)
Trip leader: Julia Plummer
Heronry at Fisherman's Paradise, at the end of Spring Creek Road, Bellefonte, PA. Watch the Great Blue Heron return to their roosts on the hillside behind the fish hatchery. Meet at the gate to the fish hatchery on the bridge between the first two parking areas. Bring a folding chair to set up along the fence.
This field trip is open to members and non-members.
This field trip is open to members and non-members.
Tudek Park
Saturday, September 19, 10:00 am - 11:00 am
Trip Leader: Constanza Ehrenhaus
This walk will be designed for beginner birders, especially families with children. Of course, all are welcome. The area is stroller-friendly, and the walk will be kept to one hour to fit younger learners' attention spans. We will meet in the parking lot.
This field trip is open to members and non-members.
Penns Prairie at Tri-County Municipal Park, Centre Hall, PA
Sunday, September 27, 7:30 am - 9:00am
Trip Leaders: Andrew Bechdel and Leigh Rix
Penn's Prairie is a multi-purpose park integrating recreation, wildlife conservation, and historical prairie restoration and preservation. The park is located at 2400 Upper Brush Valley Road, Centre Hall, PA 16828.
Join Andrew Bechdel and Leigh Rix (Watershed Specialist and Education Coordinator for Centre County Conservation District) for a leisurely walk throughout Penns Prairie Park outside Centre Hall, Pa. This newly developed, multi-purposed park provides opportunities for a variety of avian life such as nesting grassland sparrows, Red-headed Woodpeckers, and American Kestrels. Although this park has been open to the public since August of 2018, an understanding of avian life is still in the works and we hope to increase community efforts in helping understand the changes throughout the development of the park.
This field trip is open to members and non-members.
Canoe Creek State Park
Saturday, October 3, 8:00 am - 9:30 am
Trip Leader: Connor Schmitt
Connor Schmitt will lead a walk through a variety of habitats at one of Blair County's top birding spots. The walk will include scanning the lake for waterfowl, walking through a meadow and on a boardwalk that hugs the lake. This field trip is also sponsored by the Juniata Valley Audubon Society.
After entering the park, drive straight to the T in front of the large parking area. Turn left and park at the farthest lot next to a picnic pavilion and the restrooms.
This field trip is open to members and non-members.
**This trip has yet to be scheduled** Bald Eagle State Park
Trip Leader: Bob Snyder
We will meet at the Swimming Beach at Bald Eagle State Park and visit various locations around the main park area including the beach, winter launch, the Sunken Road Overlook. Additional possible locations will be a drive to the top of the dam for a short walk down the service road to view Hunter's Cove and the emergency spillway marsh at the dam.
We will be looking for waterfowl on the lake and also hope to find winter birds such as Northern Shrike, Snow Buntings, American Pipits and American Tree Sparrows.
Please consider the weather and wear appropriate cold weather gear and sturdy boots. An orange vest is also recommended. Binoculars, spotting scopes and cameras are also encouraged.
This field trip is open to members and non-members.
Date: 8/14/26 5:51 am From: Constanza Ehrenhaus <cxe1169...> Subject: Board members needed for new non-profit
Hi all,
Trillium Pennsylvania is a recently incorporated nonprofit dedicated to making environmental education affordable and accessible to people of all ages. Our work focuses on environment, education, and equity to foster love and respect for nature through diverse educational programs. We believe that understanding our environment creates connection, and that connection inspires people to protect and preserve it.
To help grow our initiative, we are looking for dedicated volunteers to serve on the Board of Directors. The candidates should believe that caring for the environment is a shared responsibility, that education is essential to environmental protection, and that these opportunities should be accessible to everyone, regardless of economic status.
We are especially looking for people with experience in accounting, legal services, educational programming, fundraising, and event organization. This list is not exclusive, if you are interested in participating and bringing your unique skills to Trillium Pennsylvania, we would love to hear from you!
At this time, all positions are unpaid, and our organization is run entirely by volunteers as we work toward sustainable growth.
If interested, please send an email to <trilliumpennsylvania...> including why you are interested in being part of this initiative, your skill set and what your previous experience has been.
Observation start time: 08:00:00 Observation end time: 12:45:00 Total observation time: 4.5 hours
Official Counter: Diane Stewart
Observers: Ken Tucker
Visitors: Barb Yoder helped out with spotting which was greatly appreciated.
Weather: Overcast with almost no winds out of the NW. Little variation in the temperature.
Raptor Observations: A nice variety for the first day of the 2026 season. Many TV and BV. The TV preferred the new tower leaving Nemo and friends to the old tower. The first eagles came through in pairs at 11:35, 11:51, and 12:00. All were soaring high on thermals.
Non-raptor Observations: Eastern towhees were quite vocal. Cedar Waxwings. Dark-eyed Junco. Goldfinches. Too many swallows to count. Nemo and a friend showed up on the first tower. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Darrell Smith (<oleagleye...>)
Date: 8/4/26 8:39 am From: Nick Bolgiano <nickbolgiano...> Subject: Fwd: Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers moving south
---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Nick Bolgiano <nickbolgiano...>
Date: Mon, Jun 22, 2026 at 5:56 PM
Subject: Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers moving south
To: SCBirds <SCBIRDCL...>
I have mainly been working on the third breeding bird atlas in Sproul State
Forest between Snow Shoe and Renovo, where I also have done two Breeding
Bird Surveys since 2002. A very interesting change in bird distributions
there is how Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers have moved about 30 miles south into
northern Centre Co and western Clinton Co since the second breeding bird
atlas in 2004-2009.
I first started finding sapsuckers on one of my BBS routes about 15 years
ago, but I would mainly find 1-2 . This number has increased rapidly the
last few years and this year, I counted 10 on the main route where I
typically find them. Where I find them is primarily in the northern part of
the state forest south of Renovo - along Grugan Hollow Rd, Pete's Run Rd,
and Dry Run Rd.
You can see the current atlas distribution of sapsuckers at this website:
In the second atlas, sapsuckers were previously present in parts of
Clearfield Co, where they are now, but the southern movement has occurred
in Lycoming, Clinton, and Centre Counties.
It is uncommon for northern birds to move south, but this is what is
happening with sapsuckers. If they continue to move at the current pace,
they could be in the Black Moshannon area within a few decades. The forest
there is similar to the forest in Sproul SF.
Date: 8/3/26 10:43 am From: Nick Bolgiano <nickbolgiano...> Subject: what birds survived the asteroid impact of 65 million years ago?
I summarize (and quote from) this interesting article. Nick Bolgiano
How Birds Survived the Dinosaurs’ Doomsday
By Steve Brusatte. May 2026. Scientific American 334(5): 44-51.
The author is a paleontologist who specializes in some of the first bird
species and especially those that survived the asteroid impact in the
Yucatan 65 million years ago that killed off the non-avian dinosaurs. This
article is about the characteristics of those several bird species that
survived that asteroid impact and were the ancestors of all descending
birds. Before the Cretaceous period ended 65 million years ago, “a
staggering array of birds†was present.
The asteroid impact had the force of one billion nuclear bombs and caused a
winter that lasted for years. Among all species that existed, roughly 3 of
4 went extinct. Most of these extinctions happened very quickly. All
forests would have burned and leafy plants would have disappeared because
sunshine was blocked. All species that depended upon a food chain would
have disappeared. What few birds survived?
There were two critical factors: where you lived and what you ate. “If you
were slow-growing, unable to burrow or shelter, lived in the trees or had
to eat a lot of food (especially plants) then game over.†“But if you grew
fast, could shelter or fly away from danger, loved on the ground or in the
water, and could eat seeds, then any of those assets would have been
beneficial and improved your odds at the poker table. And if you held all
of these? You would have a royal flush. Crown-group birds (i.e. members of
modern lineages) just happened to hold this hand, and they won the game.â€
Two species that survived, *Vegavis* and *Asteriornis*, were duck- and
chicken-like birds that were small, had beaks instead of teeth, and lived
in or near water, were fast growing, reaching the adult stage within one
year, and very likely survived on seeds.
Finding the skeleton of a mousebird in New Mexico dating from several
million years after impact implies that many primitive crown-group species
would have branched off relatively early in an evolutionary sense after
impact. The genomes of hundreds of current species imply that major groups
of contemporary birds would have originated then, although we don’t yet
have the fossils to prove it.
Date: 8/3/26 9:34 am From: Julia Plummer <julia...> Subject: Help with a survey
Hi everyone,
My friend Shannon, who is both a birder and an astronomer, is hoping to
develop some kind of joint astronomy & birding programming. She is asking
for additional feedback from people who are birders and/or amateur
astronomers. She created a short survey:
Shannon notes that this is not for research, but may inform possible public
programs or outreach events. I think the idea sounds pretty interesting. I
don't do as much amateur astronomy as I used to, but it seems like a
promising area to explore. Such as bringing together local astronomy clubs
and birding clubs for events.
