Disappointing Conclusion To Bald Eagles’ Breeding Season

In Hays there will be no eaglets. Late Friday the Western Pennsylvania Audubon Society confirmed that the second of two eggs laid a month ago was no longer viable. The first broken egg was pushed out of the nest March 14.

“We’ve been watching all day — their behavior seemed unusual, kind of baffling,” said Audubon executive director Jim Bonner. “A screen shot from 10:25 a.m. looked conclusive to me. It looked like a broken, flattened egg being lifted out of the nest. I doubt that the first broken egg would look that intact after two weeks. We are unfortunately at this time saying the egg looks to be lost.”

It was a disappointing conclusion to the bald eagles’ third breeding season. The 6 1/2-year-old female laid the first egg Feb. 17 and the second Feb. 20, to the glee of thousands of eagle watchers in Pittsburgh and beyond watching streaming video from a wildlife camera mounted near the nest.

This is the second year the state Game Commission has permitted the camera system, donated by the Murrysville-based PixController security camera company, and this year managed by the local Audubon chapter.

Read more:

http://www.post-gazette.com/local/region/2015/03/27/No-Hays-eaglets-in-2015/stories/201503270393

Pittsburgh Bald Eagles’ Egg Expected To Hatch This Week

For birdwatchers and fans of the great outdoors, 2014 was a red letter year when a pair of nesting bald eagles along the Monongahela River in Hays successfully hatched and reared three young eagles.

The pair started with two eggs this year but lost one about a week ago when it broke. The remaining egg is expected to hatch sometime this week.

Though it is normal for eagles to hatch one or two eggs each spring, eagle sightings remain something of a novelty in the region. Bald eagle fans regularly flock to the Three Rivers Heritage Trail just west of the Glenwood Bridge to watch the pair on the hillside above Route 837.

Worldwide, millions keep tabs on the eagles, day and night, by way of a video stream on the Pittsburgh Bald Eagles website ( http://triblive.com/news/projects/pittsburgheagle)

Read more: http://triblive.com/neighborhoods/yourmckeesport/yourmckeesportmore/7992465-74/eagles-eagle-bald#ixzz3VENJJ1Ow
Follow us: @triblive on Twitter | triblive on Facebook

Pittsburgh Eagle Watchers Flock Together For A Special Summer

A map of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with its neighborhoods labeled. For use primarily in the list of Pittsburgh neighborhoods. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Thunder crashed in the hills above Hays, and rain spilled over each side of the Glenwood Bridge on a recent Saturday, but Dana Nesiti didn’t flinch.

He had been in the area since 7:30 that morning, scanning the skies. For as long as two bald eagles have been nesting in a suburban hillside along the Monongahela River, people like Mr. Nesiti have been watching.

The 52-year-old, camouflage-clad West Mifflin resident first stationed himself along the bike trail below the eagles’ nest in February 2013, when the pair hatched their first eaglet in a nest that would collapse and be rebuilt in a nearby tree over the course of a year. Eventually, it served as home to three baby eagles that have become the focus of many a Pittsburgher’s attention.

All of this year’s newborns had hatched by early April, when traffic on the Three Rivers Heritage Trail along East Carson Street increased considerably.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/outdoors/2014/08/11/Eagle-watchers-flock-together-for-a-special-summer/stories/201408060008#ixzz3A6F1hnrv

First Hays Eaglet Fledges, 2 Still In The Nest

A map of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with its neighborhoods labeled. For use primarily in the list of Pittsburgh neighborhoods. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The first of the three Hays eaglets took flight Friday on national Bald Eagle Day, designated by Congress to celebrate the successful recovery of the bald eagle in North America.

At 10:14 a.m., eagle watchers monitoring live video from a wildlife camera watched as one of the three eaglets hopped off a tree branch behind foliage and exited the picture in its first flight. People gathered on the Great Allegheny Passage trail reported the adolescent eagle soared near the nest accompanied by its mother.

“Yes, we can confirm this. It’s a fledging,” said Bill Powers, president of PixController, the security camera company that donated the camera in partnership with the Pennsylvania Game Commission.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/outdoors/2014/06/20/First-Hays-eaglet-fledges-2-still-in-the-nest/stories/201406200176#ixzz35HyztrjF

Pittsburgh Bald Eagles Live Cam

A pair of bald eagles have taken up residence in a Pittsburgh neighborhood and two of their three eggs have hatched.  If you want to see the live video feed of the eagles, click here: http://www.pixcontroller.com/eagles/index-old.htm

Pittsburgh Post Gazette story about the eagles: http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/outdoors/2014/03/28/Experts-say-baby-eagle-is/stories/201403280187

How A Pittsburgh School, Empty For 30 Years, Became Home To Electronics Firm

A map of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with its neighborhoods labeled. For use primarily in the list of Pittsburgh neighborhoods. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Hays School had been empty for 30 years when Bob Dagostino drove by one morning and saw the “For Sale” sign. He copied the number and called for a tour. At the time, his electronics business Downtown was outgrowing its third location.

“At our other place, [employees] sat an arm’s length apart,” said Chuck Roberts, vice president of Dagostino Electronic Services. “Bob brought me in look at the school and I said, ‘Why don’t we get a renovated space?’ and he said, ‘No, no, this is our headquarters.’ He had a vision.”

It often takes vision to remake a century-old school. Pittsburgh has scores of them, some in private hands, some long vacant, several converted into apartments and 19 still to be sold. Pittsburgh Public Schools has contracted with Fourth River Development to sell them.

The former Schenley High School in North Oakland sold last year for $5.2 million and is slated for luxury housing. McCleary School in Upper Lawrenceville sold last year for $410,000 to a residential developer. Morningside School has been approved for sale to the Urban Redevelopment Authority for $275,000, also for housing; negotiations are underway “as we speak,” said Patrick Morosetti, sales and leasing manager for Fourth River Development.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/news/education/2014/02/24/How-Pittsburgh-school-empty-for-30-years-became-home-to-electronics-firm/stories/201402240060#ixzz2uGDkAqAk