Almost the whole group (5 out of 6) at the Schenley outing, 26 Oct 2025 (photo by Charity Kheshgi)

27 October 2025

Yesterday morning six of us came out to look for birds at the Bartlett end of Schenley Park. I had high hopes for sparrows but we only saw song sparrows. It was cold and the birds did not become active until the day warmed up at 10:15am. By then we were done.

At first we stayed in the sunlit warmer areas, then walked the interior up the Falloon Trail and walked to Circuit Drive on the golf course. That’s where things got interesting.

We saw an 8-point buck in a tiny woodlot sandwiched between the road and the now-closed hole near the maintenance garage. He posed nicely for several of us and leapt away while Roger Day snapped this action shot. This buck was the second 8-point I’ve seen in four days; their antlers were different.

8-point buck leaps out of the tiny woodlot at Schenley golf course, 26 Oct 2025 (photo by Roger Day)

Further down the road I found stark evidence of deer damage in the park. These northern white-cedars (Thuja occidentalis) would normally have branches and greenery all the way to the ground (click here to see what I mean) but cedars are a favorite food of white-tailed deer who eat them up as far as they can reach.

Deer damage to northern white-cedar at the golf course, Schenley, 26 Oct 2025 (photo by Kate St. John)

Best Birds were two immature Cooper’s hawks (Astur cooperii) flying together and calling. Shortly thereafter we briefly saw an adult Coopers hawk hunting in the same area. Perhaps the youngsters were whining for food. No wonder the birds were hiding!

Here’s our checklist at https://ebird.org/checklist/S281480409. Most birds were heard and not seen.

Schenley Park, Allegheny, Pennsylvania, US
Oct 26, 2025, 8:30 AM – 10:20 AM
17 species

Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura) 1
Cooper’s Hawk (Astur cooperii) 3. 2 immatures together, vocalizing. 1 adult nearby
Red-bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus) 5
Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens) 2
Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus) 1 Heard
Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus) 1 at CL
Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata) 3
American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) 5
Tufted Titmouse (Baeolophus bicolor) 1
Golden-crowned Kinglet (Regulus satrapa) 1 <—- this was a bonus bird at the end
Carolina Wren (Thryothorus ludovicianus) 3
American Robin (Turdus migratorius) 16
American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis) 6
White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis) 4
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia) 6
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) 4
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Setophaga coronata) 1