Peregrine Falcon Visits Midtown Bird Roost

A Peregrine Falcon on the prowl visited the bird roost at the Nebraska Medical Center on the evening of July 28th. It swooped around for a time, causing the gathering birds to get perturbed, and then swooped up to land on a medical center building sign and sat there for a good long while, keeping a close look around.

During this time of the evening, many European Starling had already landed in the trees at the midtown Omaha roost. Numerous Common Grackles had already done the same. Most of the expected Purple Martins were still airborne, as several hundred would soon to settle in for the night, as they have done each season for the past few years.

There was only a single person enjoying the spectacle of the congregating birds, especially the martins as they gather about, calling in their musical chords and enjoying their time in the sky before alighting into the roost trees.

The species recognized to be present in this vicinity these days are:

• American Robin
  
• Peregrine Falcon
  
• Western Kingbird
  
• Rock Pigeon
  
• House Sparrow
  
• European Starling
  
• Common Grackle
  
• House Finch
  
• American Crow
  
• Mourning Dove
  
• Barn Swallow
  
• Chimney Swift, more especially up towards the Blackstone District and eastward of 40th and Farnam Streets
  

There is also the Common Nighthawk, Downy Woodpecker and Northern Cardinal occurring in the vicinity, again in the Blackstone District.

One thing predominantly missing at the midtown martin roost were the banners on the walkway. The Nebraska Medical Center has been remiss in getting these up in a timely fashion, as bird strikes resulting in the death and injury to birds has been repeatedly documented. The banners should already be in place. The following picture is indicative and also shows how the window decals are also looking decrepit.

Update

On a humid Saturday evening, there were thousands of martins seen in the skyscape above the medical center campus, as they flew before roosting among the precious few trees. The Peregrine Falcon was perched upon its roost of an artificial construct on the west side of a big building, as previously seen.

Among the important features for this Saturday night, was a family of watchers. A couple and their son were enjoying the multitude of martins. Father and son eventually walked beneath the roost trees because they cared to experience an understanding of being among the multitude of birds amidst the the trees so appreciated.

They knew about the roost and came to see the birds.

How wonderful that there is some appreciation for the gathering of these birds!

Bugly Action at Memorial Park in Omaha

While intent on taking floral pictures at the rose garden at Memorial Park, there was no realization of the bugly activity going on amidst many of the rose blossoms. Only later, when looking at the photographs was the extent of their bug activity blatantly evident. They were certainly being active in their antics.

This image was especially surprising in its result. A gold-headed bug. Have not seen one of them before.

The quality of the conditions meant that more than 450 pictures were taken during the late afternoon and evening. It was a first to completely drain all of the juice from a fully charged camera battery.

Only a portion of the pictures taken still remain. Editing meant multiple deletions and with a cantankerous camera, well sometimes an image is just worthless.

The blooming flowers are a great attraction in various ways. During my visit, there was a wedding couple and their giggly photographer. Then there was some event with people looking for art pieces (for whom a group photo was taken) among which was the metal art-work in the middle of this distinctive Omaha garden. It was Saturday (July 25th), which helps explain the ongoing antics. Nearby residents were walking about as well with a couple strolling among the many sorts of roses. At least two buses as needed to move many people came and went. There were limousines as well taking up space for a while.

An identification on the particular species of the busy bugs would be appreciated, but will certainly need some further consideration.

The bugs in the pictures are the Japanese beetle (Popillia japonica), according to Steven Spomer, research entomologist at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, adding in a late July email that "they are all over Omaha now."

Attentive Library Staff at UNO a Treasure

This is an expression of heartfelt gratitude for some staff at Criss Library. After troubles getting information transferred from a portable hard drive to a DVR recordable disc on Thursday, another attempt was made during Friday morning, July 24, 2015. There were some more thwarts during the effort.

It started with having to get change since there were constrictions on needing some particular legal tender for another vending machine. Then the adjacent change machine was out of order. Change to suitable bills was , however, promptly provided at the circulation desk upstairs.

Going back downstairs, the machine with the needed DVR discs was not working. Another trek of stairs ensued to inquire at the circulation desk.

What followed is something that can only be appreciated. What happened was done in a professional, personal and exemplary manner. Once it was realized that the vending machine was not working, several staff members made a huge difference (do not want to be discriminatory or misspell a personal name, so apologies for not including them). There was several folks that deserve recognition for providing assistance, comments, and even a few nice words and going beyond on a task they decided was right in providing service.

They did then indicate that the vending machine was not working, despite it being "worked" to address the problem. The thing was completely inoperational.

Rather than make excuses, they provided alternatives. Now, that is attention to service.

Then, when further issues arose, step-by-step each was resolved. The computer steps, after a personal hitch, worked just great. When it comes to data, mistakes just don't work.

The efforts of the library staff were a special response that could be used to define service because of what they did.

Recognition is needed and that is the purpose of this missive. Also, a huge THANK YOU. So many thanks to Criss Library staff at the University of Nebraska-Omaha for what they have done for me as a patron, and certainly for the multitude of others that rely on this community space to learn and further knowledge.

If it was up to me and there was a suitable option, I’d buy each of the wonderful staff a tasty ice-cream cone on this hot day of July. May their day be special.

Omaha Wetland Mitigation at Fontenelle Forest Lowland

Wetland fill activity by Omaha Public Works is currently being mitigated by the construction of replacement habitat at lowlands of Fontenelle Forest on Gifford Point, east of Bellevue, Nebraska.

Mitigation wetlands at two sites near the Great Marsh will comprise a few-tenths less than 4 acres, and are being done at a rate where for every acre of wetland impacted, 1.5 acres are meant to be created, according to project details known to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. City of Omaha, and the Fontenelle Forest Association, the site owner.

The mitigation is the result of natural wetlands being filled due to facility improvements at the Missouri River Wastewater Treatment plant in southeast Omaha, along the Missouri River.

One of the sites is adjacent to a previous mitigation site of 2.5 acres constructed through regulated project activities associated with the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, according to a FFA personnel.

A local contractor created ground depressions to "promote ponding" and the growth of wetland plants. Culverts to allow stormwater movement were also part of the recently completed construction activities.

Wetland plants will be planted this autumn by the Prairie Plains Resource Institute, with assistance by volunteers associated with the forest, director William S. Whitney indicted in an email. "Our greenhouse manager has grown a few thousand wetland grasses and forbs for transplanting into the engineered wetlands." Examples of species to be included are swamp milkweed, prairie cordgrass, winged lythrum, pink joe-pye and others, he said. There will be at least 600 individual plantings, according to plans defining project requirements.

Gifford Farm, a state-owned site used extensively for school-children education, is located just to the north of the locale, so the wetlands can also be used for educational activities, and well as the obvious habitat and floral diversity values.

This is the first project for PPRI in the immediate Omaha area, Whitney indicted in an email.

The approximate final cost for the project financed through Omaha Public Works is approximately $360,000, a city official indicated.

This project was required by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to meet mitigation requirements of Section 404 of the Clean Water Act.

Monitoring of the site will continue for a ten year period, to ensure project goals are met.

June photograph of one of the the project sites. Image courtesy of the Public Works Department.

 

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The following details were provided by the Omaha office of the Corps of Engineers regarding the species of plants associated with the mitigation sites at Fontenelle Forest.

PPRI Wetland Species List 2014-2015 (119 spp.)
Grasses (11)			Wetness	% of Mix
Calamagrostis	canadensis	Bluejoint	OBL	0.49%
Calamagrostis	stricta	Northern Reedgrass	FACW	0.37%
Elymus	trachycaulus	Slender Wheatgrass	FACU	0.34%
Elymus	virginicus	Virginia Wildrye	FAC	3.48%
Glyceria	striata	Manna grass	OBL
Hordeum	jubatum	Foxtail Barley	FACW
Leersia	oryzoides	Rice Cut Grass	OBL	0.47%
Panicum	acuminatum	Tapered Rosette Grass	FACW
Pascopyrum	smithii	Western Wheatgrass	FACU
Spartina	pectinata	Prairie Cordgrass	FACW	4.42%
Sphenopholis	obtusata	Prairie Wedgegrass	FACW	0.03%
Sedges/Rushes (30)			Wetness	% of Mix
Carex	brachyglossa	Yellowfruit Sedge	FAC
Carex	brevior	Fescue Sedge	FAC
Carex	cristatella	Crested Sedge	FACW	0.14%
Carex	emoryi	Emory's Sedge	OBL	0.21%
Carex	gravida	Wetland Gravida	OBL	1.81%
Carex	hystericina	Bottlebrush Sedge	OBL
Carex	interior	Interior Sedge	OBL
Carex	laeviconica	Smooth Cone Sedge	OBL	6.09%
Carex	molesta	Troublesome Sedge	FAC	0.34%
Carex	pellita	Wooly Sedge	OBL	0.09%
Carex	praegracilis	Clustered Field Sedge	FACW
Carex	sartwellii	Sartwell's Sedge	OBL	0.03%
Carex	scoparia	Broom Sedge	FACW	1.03%
Carex	stipata	Saw-beak Sedge	OBL	0.70%
Carex	tribuloides	Blunt Broomsedge	FACW	1.36%
Carex	vulpinoidea	Fox Sedge	OBL	0.14%
Eleocharis	palustris	Common Spikerush	OBL
Eleocharis	erythropoda	Bald Spikerush	OBL	0.03%
Fimbristylis	puberula	Hairy Fimbry	OBL
Juncus	balticus	Baltic Rush	OBL	0.16%
Juncus	dudleyi	Dudley Rush	FACW	1.47%
Juncus	interior	Interior Rush	FAC	0.30%
Juncus	marginatus	Grassleaf Rush	FACW
Juncus	torreyi	Torrey's Rush	FACW	0.06%
Schoenoplectus	acutus	Chairmaker's Rush	OBL
Scirpus	atrovirens	Dark Green Bulrush	OBL	2.73%
Scirpus	maritimus	Prairie Bulrush	OBL
Scirpus	pallidus	Pale Bulrush	OBL	0.30%
Scirpus	pendulus	Rufous Bulrush	OBL	0.27%
Scirpus	pungens	Common Threesquare	OBL
Legumes (5)			Wetness	% of Mix
Astragalus	canadensis	Canada Milkvetch	FACU	0.25%
Dalea	leporina	Foxtail Dalea	FACU
Desmanthus	illinoensis	Illinois Bundleflower	FACU	1.82%
Glycyrrhiza	lepidota	Wild Licorice	FACU	0.06%
Lotus	purshianus	Deervetch	FAC	0.11%

 

Composites (28)			Wetness	% of Mix
Achillea	millefolium	Yarrow	FACU
Aster	ericoides	Heath Aster	FAC	0.35%
Aster	novae-angliae	New England Aster	FACW	0.09%
Aster	prealtus	Blue Willowleaf Aster	FACW	0.48%
Aster	simplex	Tall White Aster	FACW	0.35%
Bidens	comosa	Threelobe Beggarticks	OBL
Boehmeria	cylindrica	False Nettle	OBL
Boltonia	asteroides	False Aster	FACW	0.10%
Coreopsis	tinctoria	Plains Correopsis	FAC	2.63%
Erigeron	strigosus	Daisy Fleabane	FACW
Eupatorium	maculatum	Spotted Joe Pye Weed	OBL	0.57%
Eupatorium	perfoliatum	Boneset	OBL	0.45%
Euthamia	graminifolia	Grassleaf Goldenrod	FACW	0.01%
Grindelia	squarrosa	Gumweed	FACU
Helenium	autumnale	Sneezeweed	FACW
Helianthus	grosseserratus	Sawtooth Sunflower	FACW	0.70%
Iva	annua	Small Marsh Elder	FAC	0.14%
Lactuca	canadensis	Canada Lettuce	FACU
Lactuca	ludoviciana	Wild Lettuce	FAC
Liatris	lancifolia	Thickspike Gayfeather	FACW	0.07%
Ratibida	columnifera	Upright Prairie Coneflower	UPL
Rudbeckia	hirta	Black-eyed Susan	FACU	0.14%
Rudbeckia	laciniata	Cutleaf Coneflower	FAC	0.11%
Silphium	integrifolium	Entire-leaf Rosinweed	FACU
Silphium	perfoliatum	Cup Plant	FAC
Solidago	canadensis	Canada Goldenrod	FACU
Solidago	gigantea	Giant Goldenrod	FACW	0.03%
Vernonia	fasciculata	Ironweed	FAC	0.52%
Misc. Forbs (45)			Wetness	% of Mix
Agalinis	tenuifolia	Slender False Foxglove	FACW	0.07%
Alisma	trivale	American Water Plantain	OBL	0.06%
Allium	canadense	Canada Garlic (Sets)	FAC	0.34%
Allium	canadense	Canada Garlic (Seed)	FAC	0.07%
Ammania	coccinea	Tooth Cup	OBL	0.29%
Anemone	canadensis	Meadow Anemone	FACW
Asclepias	incarnata	Swamp Milkweed	OBL	0.04%
Asclepias	speciosa	Showy Milkweed	FAC
Asclepias	syriaca	Common Milkweed	FAC	0.34%
Epilobium	coloratum	Cinnamon Willow Herb	OBL	0.11%
Impatiens	capensis	Spotted Touch-me-not	FACW
Lobelia	cardinalis	Cardinal Flower	OBL
Lobelia	siphilitica	Blue Cardinal Flower	OBL
Lobelia	spicata	Palespike Lobelia	FAC
Lycopus	americanus	American Bugleweed	OBL
Lycopus	asper	Rough Bugleweed	OBL
Lysimachia	ciliata	Fringed Loosestrife	FACW
Lythrum	alatum	Winged Lythrum	OBL	0.15%
Mentha	arvensis	Field Mint	FACW
Oenothera	villosa	Common Evening Primrose	FAC	0.06%

 

Penstemon	digitalis	Smooth Penstemon	FAC
Penstemon	gracilis	Slender Penstemon	FACU
Penthorum	sedoides	Ditch Stonecrop	OBL	0.34%
Physalis	longifolia	Common Ground-cherry	UPL
Plantago	patagonica	Wooly Plantain	UPL
Polygonum	coccineum	Swamp Smartweed	FACW
Polygonum	hydropiperoides	Mild Water Pepper	OBL
Polygonum	lapathifolium	Pale Smartweed	OBL
Polygonum	pensylvanicum	Pennsylvania smartweed	FACW	0.08%
Potentilla	norvegica	Norwegian Cinquefoil	FACU	0.32%
Prunella	vulgaris	Self-heal	FACW
Pycnanthemum	virginianum	Mountain Mint	FAC
Ranunculus	macounii	Macoun's Buttercup	OBL	0.06%
Sagittaria	brevirostra	Shortbeak Arrowhead	OBL	0.07%
Sagittaria	calycina	Hooded Arrowhead	OBL
Sagittaria	latifolia	Broadleaf Arrowhead	OBL
Scutellaria	galericulata	Marsh Skullcap	OBL
Sisyrinchium	montanum	Strict Blue-eyed Grass	FAC
Teucrium	canadense	American Germander	FACW	0.03%
Thalictrum	dasycarpum	Purple Meadow Rue	FACW	0.12%
Tradescantia	bracteata	Bracted Spiderwort	FAC
Tradescantia	occidentale	Western Spiderwort	SAND
Verbena	hastata	Blue Vervain	FACW	0.18%
Verbena	stricta	Hoary Vervain	UPL
Verbena	urticifolia	Elm-leaf Verbena	UPL
				38.57%