National Aviary to open Sky Deck

The National Aviary is opening its rooftop Sky Deck this Saturday, weather permitting, where visitors at least 42” tall can watch African birds of prey flying free twice a day throughout the summer.

The Aviary is the only zoo in the U.S. to fly a massive martial eagle, appropriately named "Dillon", and it is the only zoo with black kites in its collection—six of whom swoop and dive to snatch chick feet out of the air with their talons.


Cathy Schlott, Manager of Animal Training, says to witness the birds flying free, exhibiting their wild behavior, gives people a breathtaking, awe-inspiring experience. Lanner falcons are being trained to pursue lures, but they won’t be ready this weekend because rain has delayed their progress. Schlott says the trainers wouldn't mind working in the rain, but birds will just sit in the trees if it's raining.

Birder/Photographer to Speak at Aviary

The National Aviary is hosting a free lecture this evening at 7:30 by birder and photographer Richard Crossley, whose new “Crossley ID Guide: Eastern Birds” is said to be the first real-life approach to identification.

Richard Crossley hails from Yorkshire, England but says he got his green card to live in the U.S. because by his mid-twenties, he was already an internationally recognized bird expert. Photography came later for him—he says modern technology like digital photography and Photo Shop make his lifelike scenes possible.

Crossley says if you’ve learned all the birds that come to your feeder, you can attract different birds by adding moving water and plants they will visit. He suggests going on the internet to find out where the best habitats are for seeing birds that may be new to you.

Crossley says while some bird populations have been adversely affected by human activity, others, like hawks, are increasing in number.

Aviary and Penguins

The National Aviary is leading efforts in the protection of African penguins.

A hundred years ago, there were an estimated 1.5-million African Penguins – now only 10 percent of that population remains. In September, the penguins, which breed in Namibia and in South Africa were placed on the endangered species list.

Steven Sarro, Director of animal programs at The National Aviary says there are several causes for the decrease in their population – such as the increase of commercial fisheries, current changes due to climate change and habitat destruction and modification – like oil spills.

"When an animal becomes endangered, you’re taking a member of the web of life out of the equation. It’s sort of like the butterfly effect, if you remove one piece of the puzzle that impacts other pieces of the puzzle in that eco-system, he said.“

On Tuesday, the aviary announced that it received accreditation from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. They are now part of the Association’s Species Survival Plan, a breeding program that aims to preserve genetically diverse populations of endangered and threatened species.

The Aviary hopes to see the birth of its first African penguin chick within the next year.

Aviary Shows Off New Exhibits, Attractions

The National Aviary in Pittsburgh today unveiled its $18.5 million expansion that took 3 years to complete. Aviary Executive Director Patrick Mangus says they renovated 35,000 square feet of space, added 10,000 square feet, built 2 major new exhibits: "Penguin Point" and "The Grasslands," added a state of the art classroom, and a new grand entrance and lobby space. Mangus says they also built the world's first indoor FliteZone Theater to present free-flight bird shows...
"In 25 minutes, we take our visitors to South America where they experience macaws and parrots, to Africa with hooded vultures, to Europe with Eurasian eagle owls. Here in the U.S., we're looking at Harris hawks that reside in the southwest and gulls from the Gulf Coast and probably everybody's favorite...the bald eagle."
Mangus says what visitors see are not tricks..."These birds are actually exhibiting natural behaviors in an indoor environment. It's something unique. It really showcases the exciting behaviors of birds but also showcases how we are impacting their habitat and threatening their way of life. There's a strong environmental message but it's also exciting and entertaining."

The first show at the FliteZone, "Wings," opens October 9th.
Mangus says another highlight of the expansion is the construction of a rooftop sky deck for raptor shows where birds of prey fly through the park and act on their trainers' instructions. That will open Memorial Day and will only be presented during warm weather months.

The expansion was funded through philanthropies, foundations, state grants and individuals

Bird Babies Born at National Aviary

Lots of babies have been born at the National Aviary this summer. Baby birds that is.

Ten species have produced chicks including the cape thicknee, the golden-breasted starling, white crested laughing thrush, blue-bellied roller, crested wood partridge, shaft-tail finch, scarlet -headed blackbird, crested oropendula, boat-billed heron and fire-tufted barbet.

Other birds are nesting. The aviary credits the baby boom to specialized diets and habitats and exhibit conditions.

Steve Sarro, Director of Animal Programs, says not all of the birds will stay at the Aviary. They have a partenership with other zoos and will send birds to those establishments.

The National Aviary has more than 600 birds representing nearly 200 species.

Aviary Tops Off

The National Aviary in Pittsburgh put the last beam in place on its $18.5 million dollar expansion. Aviary Executive Director Patrick Mangus says its is actually the third phase of the project that also included the new penguin exhibit and the new grasslands exhibit. The highlight of the final phase is a 125-seat free flight multi-media theater and a 50-seat rooftop outdoor theater. The outdoor theater will feature shows using raptors chasing after lures. The 10,000 square foot addition also includes a permanent classroom, a new entrance and a new café. Mangus says the plan is to have everything open by Labor Day. He says the project is fully funded at this point.

As the aviary grows its footprint it will also expand the number of birds on display. Mangus says the aviary currently has about 600 birds and he has plans to add 50-75 more. The new entrance area will be built using something called fritted glass. The panes are covered with a small dot pattern that allows light to pass through while at the same time appearing opaque enough that birds will not mistake it for a flight path. The goal is to show how a building can have light filled spaces without endangering wild birds.

Peregrine Falcon Chicks!

Dr. Todd Katzner, the National Aviary's Director of Conservation and Field Research, was lucky enough to be watching live video as the second and third eggs hatched yesterday within minutes. A fifth may hatch at any time.

He says both parents are feeding the chicks, which look like little fluff balls with beaks and droopy wings now but will grow quickly and resemble the adults in just 28 days. At that point, they will get bands and health checkups. They will stay near the nest even after they start flying and remain in the area until early fall. The adults stay year-round and defend their nest territory.


There are five eggs in a nest at the Gulf Tower. The female who laid the first two disappeared. Another female laid three of her own and is incubating all five. Katzner says it's possible, but would be surprising, if the first two hatch.

Live video of both nests is available, and highlights of the nesting season will be archived at aviary.org/falcon.

New Exhibit to Open at National Aviary

A new exhibit at the National Aviary in the North Side will profile birds that live in grassland habitats. Erin Estell says these environments, which can be found all over the world, are important to learn about.
“Grassland birds are among the fastest declining birds in North America right now,” she says.
The Grasslands exhibit will be the third exhibit at the National Aviary to have visitors and birds within the same space. The space is lined with a boardwalk, tall grasses, other greenery and, of course, grassland birds from different continents. Some birds are as local as finches in Pennsylvania, to various African birds.
The exhibit opens to the public on Saturday, March 20.

First Falcon Eggs Laid

The peregrine falcon female at the Cathedral of Learning has laid two eggs so far, while the female at the Gulf Tower, which is usually the first to lay, has yet to produce an egg.

You can see the nests on live streaming video with audio at the National Aviary website (www.aviary.org/falcon). Dr. Todd Katzner, director of Field Research and Conservation, says the female will lay two to five eggs--one every two days. She won’t sit on them much until she’s laid them all so the last-laid egg can catch up to the first-laid, and they'll all hatch in about 30 days.

When the chicks are 28 to 32 days old, they will be banded so their whereabouts can be tracked.

Predators like falcons kick off the bird breeding season, according to Katzner, because the many birds migrating through the region in early spring will provide meals for the falcon families.

Falcon populations, decimated in the past by hunting and pesticides, have recovered on their own to the point that they’re no longer on the federal Endangered Species list, though they are still on the Pennsylvania list. The most frequent cause of unnatural death now are power lines, wind turbines, cars, etc.

Aviary Expansion Shrinks

The National Aviary on the North Side says it is shrinking its expansion plans. Aviary Executive Director Patrick Mangus says the overall size of the project will shrink and the theater will fall from 200 seats to 125. He says although it does shrink the cost of the work, the budget was not the motivating factor. He says the Aviary realized it did not need all the space and the small theater will allow it to be used for events other than the free flight shows. The aviary hopes to use those shows as a focal point for visits. The original cost of the expansion came in at $22 million with options, including an expansion of the bird hospital, that could have pushed the cost above $28 million. Mangus says the new project will come in at $16.5 million. The Aviary has already raised that much for the project. The project is to be completed by Labor Day 2010.

More People Going to the Birds

National Aviary officials say they set an attendance record this summer. The Aviary says from May to August, paid attendance jumped 33% over the same period last year. National Aviary Executive Director Patrick Mangus says much of the spike can be attributed to interest in the new Penguin Point Exhibit. Mangus says it is hard to say how much impact the slow economy had on attendance. Out of town visits may have dropped but local visits by those taking “staycations” could have made up for the loss. Mangus says he hopes to see big numbers in the coming years even after the newness of the Penguin exhibit wears off. The National Aviary is still building a new FliteZone Theater that is scheduled to open fall 2010. The theater will house the popular live flight shows currently held in the courtyard. That addition is expected to boost admissions when it first opens.

National Aviary to open Penguin Exhibit Saturday

Believe it or not, one won't have to leave Pittsburgh, let alone the continent, to catch a glimpse of the threatened African Penguin anymore. On May 23, The National Aviary's will open its newest exhibit called Penguin Point. The Project Director of the exhibit, Erin Estell, says the area will showcase the rare birds from a 360 degree perspective. Visitors can view the penguins from inside the aviary or outside, in the same airspace as the penguins.

"You can actually hear them, you can smell them, you can get splashed by them as they're swimming in the pool," Estell says.

Also, there is a crawl-through space just for kids, where they can see the penguins swim underwater or on land close up.

The $1.7 million Penguin Point has intentions to breed the threatened species as part of the African Penguin Species Survival Plan. Admission to the exhibit is included in the regular aviary admission price. The Aviary's summer hours, beginning May 23, will be from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. everyday.

National Aviary to Have New Kind of Theater

Observing and learning about birds has always been as easy as going to the Northside-based National Aviary, but now they’re going a step further by constructing a first-of-its-kind theater. National Aviary Executive Director Patrick Mangus says the Helen M. Schmidt Theater will host an immersed 30-minute show of approximately 100 free-flight birds. It will be designed with the audience sitting in swivel chairs in the center, and the performance to go on around them, and above them, by using movable stages. The $23 million project will also include high definition videos and sound, and the expansion will be LED certified. Mangus says the former executive director developed the idea, and it goes beyond the free-flight shows the aviary has been hosting for five years now. Groundbreaking is on Wednesday, Earth Day, with expected completion in mid 2010.

Avairy Expansion Plans Made Public

The National Aviary on the North Side says it is ready to start work on a $23 million expansion. The focal point will be a new free flight theater which board chair Mike Finn describes as a “reverse theater in the round” with stages all along the walls and people sitting in the center. Birds will walk and fly from stage to stage and wall sized video screens will help transport visitors to the bird’s natural habitats. Most of the current space will be kept as it is with the additions being added around the perimeter. There will also be a free flight theater on the roof where birds of prey will fly through the park in search of a meal. Ground is to be broken in the spring with completion expected in June of 2010. About half of the money for the project has been raised. The public fundraising phase will begin soon and more foundation, corporate and state funding is being sought.

National Aviary Introduces Baby Penguin

There's a brand new baby penguin at the National Aviary in Pittsburgh. Sidney, an African penguin that was hatched at the Erie Zoo February 21st is making his debut this weekend.

He's named after Penguin hockey star, Sidney Crosby. African penguins are found on the west coast of South Africa. Sidney the penguin came to the Aviary at 3 weeks old. He's been living in quarantine and will not be moved in with the other four African penguins at the Aviary until this Friday, April 18.

Erin Estell, bird trainer at the Aviary, says Sidney is a healthy five pounds and is at his cutest now. He still has all of his baby feathers so he looks like a big, fluffy, brown cotton ball. But he is losing the down rapidly. She says in about a year and a half he will grow in all of his adult feathers giving him the tuxedo-looking appearance that penguins are known for.

Even though Sidney is referred to as a "he," Estell says they can't tell the sex of a baby penguin just by looking. She says DNA blood tests are used. But the testing won't be done until the penguin is a bit older. So there's a possibility Sidney is a female. One of the Aviary's other African penguins, Patrick, was named before a DNA test determined it was a female. But they kept the name.

Sidney makes his public debut at the National Aviary on Saturday, April 19, from 11:30 am to 1 pm, and again from 2:30 pm to 4 pm. On that day the Aviary will collect items from visitors to be used for animal enrichment, including: empty cardboard boxes, paper towel tubes, nuts in the shell, garden seeds, fun shaped pasta, and unsweetened dried fruit. More information is available at www.aviary.org.