Outdoors category, Page 8
Deer are leaping to their deaths in northwest Pennsylvania
It’s raining deer in a small northwestern Pennsylvania town, and residents say that’s disgusting and dangerous. Approximately 25 whitetail deer have leaped to their deaths from the U.S. 219 bypass that runs through the town of Johnsonburg, Elk County, in recent years, according to a recent report by WJAC-TV of...
Pittsburgh Hays bald eagles welcome 2nd chick with viewers from 50 countries
In their 10th year of nesting, the Pittsburgh bald eagles in Hays welcomed their second chick of the season on Tuesday morning. A third egg is expected to hatch between Friday and Sunday, according to the Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania and PixCams, which sponsors the live webcam where viewers...
Study identifies potential east suburb path to connect Westmoreland, Allegheny trails
Allegheny County officials on Friday released a feasibility study for a project connecting the Westmoreland Heritage Trail to the Great Allegheny Passage by way of the Turtle Creek Valley, which runs through Pittsburgh’s east suburbs. Several proposed routes could serve to link the Westmoreland Heritage Trail from its western terminus...
Endangered Indiana bat mostly gone from southwestern Pa. but longer migration holds hope
The tiny wings of the endangered Indiana bat seem to be taking the creature on longer journeys. The Pennsylvania Game Commission recently documented the longest known, single-season migration of the federally and state-endangered bat from Pennsylvania to Kentucky. As the migration, at least 418 miles, broke the record for longest...
Murrysville PixCams brings live footage of wildlife and more into homes
While PixCams of Murrysville is best known for its live Pittsburgh Hays bald eagle webcam, the small company has been expanding and now has 30 live webcams. They rolled out a new product for the public, businesses and nonprofits to set up their own live webcam system and broadcast it...
O’Hara officials hope to expand Community Park trail repairs through grants
O’Hara Township is seeking a second round of grants in as many months to finance a trail stabilization project in O’Hara Community Park. Township officials on March 8 approved applications for a $125,000 grant through the Commonwealth Finance Authority’s Statewide Local Share Assessment Program, and a $62,500 grant through the...
More stocking planned after opening day of Pa. trout season
The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, with some help from the Tri-County Trout Club, has stocked Deer Creek in Emmerling Park, Indiana Township. It was the first time since the beginning of the covid pandemic that volunteers from the trout club could assist in transferring thousands of trout from commission...
Steelworkers in West Mifflin celebrate 1st eagle egg of season
Workers at the U.S. Steel Works Irvin plant in West Mifflin last month successfully diverted a great horned owl that was pestering nesting bald eagles at their home on mill property. Now they are celebrating the first eagle egg of the season. The female eagle delivered early Sunday evening. “We...
Trout stocking is underway. Here’s how the Westmoreland fishing community is preparing for the upcoming season
There’s something fishy in Westmoreland County’s waters. During the next three months, hatchery-raised rainbow, brown and brook trout will be released into the county’s waters for anglers to catch during trout season, which opens statewide April 2. Locally, the first trout of 2022 were released Tuesday in Loyalhanna Creek. Throughout...
Report: Pa. hunters, sport shooters spend more than $1.8B on their sports
Hunters and target shooters in Pennsylvania spent more than $1.8 billion on their sports in 2020, according to a new report from the Sportsmen’s Alliance Foundation. The report looked at the economic impact of hunting and target shooting at the national, state and legislative district levels. The researchers found that...
Officials: More than 80 starving manatees in rehab across U.S.
More than 80 rescued Florida manatees are in rehabilitation centers across the U.S. as wildlife officials try to stem starvation deaths by the marine mammals because of poor water quality. The latest numbers were released Wednesday by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service...
Nearly half of U.S. bald eagles suffer lead poisoning
America’s national bird is more beleaguered than previously believed, with nearly half of bald eagles tested across the U.S. showing signs of chronic lead exposure, according to a study published Thursday. While the bald eagle population has rebounded from the brink of extinction since the U.S. banned the pesticide DDT...
What is snowmobiling worth to Pennsylvania’s economy?
Snowmobiling adds $65 million to Pennsylvania’s economy each year, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. More than 40,000 snowmobiles are registered with the department, which requires registration and titling of all snowmobiles in the state. Registration is $20 for two years. Titling is $22.50. In addition,...
Deer hunting popularity on rise in Pennsylvania
When it comes to hunting, there’s no doubt that the white-tailed deer is the premier game animal in the country due to its widespread range and the opportunities that sportsmen have to pursue it. A recent report by the National Deer Association (NDA), however, highlights just how popular deer hunting...
For 10th year, Pittsburgh Hays’ bald eagles lay 1st egg while nests more than double in county
The Pittsburgh Hays bald eagles laid their first egg of the season on Friday around 6:30 p.m., which marks their 10th breeding season on a heavily wooded hillside above the Monongahela River. The pair are the first bald eagles to successfully breed within Pittsburgh’s city limits in more than 150...
Bear reports spike during pandemic as harvests also rise in Western Pa.
Looking at the statistics, it appears there are more black bears in Allegheny and Westmoreland counties. But state officials aren’t sure if that really is the case. For the public, however, it seems black bears are popping up all over urban settings. In late December, a Pennsylvania Game Commission game...
Westmoreland Heritage Trail officials move ahead with short Export extension
Getting across Route 66 remains the key challenge to its completion, but the plan this year is to get the Westmoreland Heritage Trail about 700 feet closer to Delmont. Export council this week gave the go-ahead for trail officials to move forward with extending the western half of the trail...
Cure cabin fever with a number of outside activities in Western Pennsylvania
When winter comes, many of us tend to hunker down and get cozy inside. The Scandinavian cold-weather hygge lifestyle has been popular in recent years — cuddling up in fuzzy sweaters and blankets, making a cup of tea and a pot of soup, reading a book or watching a movie,...
Mill workers at U.S. Steel Irvin plant construct peaceful solution for owl vs. eagle spat
After a great horned owl knocked a bald eagle off a branch near its nest at a Pittsburgh steel mill, workers at the company are trying to protect the once-endangered bird — by giving aid and comfort to its fellow raptor. On wooded property that’s part of the U.S. Steel...
Saint Vincent walks attract birdwatchers in fair or foul weather
The rough “chip” of the cardinal and the “potato chip, potato chip” call of the American goldfinch were among sounds that pierced the winter sky Wednesday morning during a bird walk at the Winnie Palmer Nature Reserve in Unity. Before leading a group of about 15 Saint Vincent College students...
Pa. hunters turn in 5th-largest bear harvest, including 722-pounder in central Pa.
Hunters killed 3,659 Pennsylvania black bears in 2021, the fifth-best bear harvest ever and the second largest since 2011. That total included a 722-pound male, taken with a shotgun Dec. 4 during the extended season for bear, in Letterkenny Township, Franklin County, by Wade Glessner of Shippensburg. That was the...
French Creek wins Pa. River of the Year; 2nd place Monongahela will still party on
French Creek, in the northwestern Pennsylvania, has been named 2022 Pennsylvania River of the Year by the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR). One of the most environmentally diverse small waterways in the country, French Creek took almost half the votes in a contest with three other bodies of...
Owner of Lock 3 Bait & Tackle shop puts ‘gone fishing’ sign out for final time
Lee Murray didn’t do market research or create a formal business plan when he opened the Lock 3 Bait & Tackle shop on Freeport Road in Harmar in March 1986. But the avid fisherman knew that, like him, there were other people who value the personal service that comes with...
Hempfield ice fisherman says of pursuit: ‘It’s addictive’
On a bitter cold day when most people would rather be inside, Ryan Parker of Hempfield not only wants to be in the elements, but he patiently sits out in them. Parker is one of that breed of angler who do not put away their rod and reel when winter...
There’s actually plenty of life in the winter, as traipse through Murrysville nature reserve shows
The woods can be full of life in the wintertime — you just have to know how to find it. It can be a good time to hunt for seeds or locate wild plants, said herbalist Lindsey Praksti. Finding what you’re looking for can be a challenge, though. “At that...
