Nature Moncton Information Line

Wednesday, 3 June 2020

June 3 2020

NATURE MONCTON INFORMATION LINE, June 03, 2020 (Wednesday)

To view the photos mentioned in this edition go to http://nminfoline.blogspot.ca .

To respond by e-mail, please address your message to the information line editor, nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com .

Please advise the editor at nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com if any errors are noted in wording or photo labelling. Note that corrections, deletions, or delayed additions may not always appear on the Info Line and email transcript but will always appear on the BlogSpot. For this reason, it is recommended that those wishing to look at historical records use the BlogSpot rather than the email transcript. The BlogSpot can always be accessed from the website.

For more information on Nature Moncton, check the website at www.naturemoncton.com .

Edited by: Nelson Poirier nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Transcript by: Brian Stone bjpstone@gmail.com

Info Line # 506-384-6397 (384-NEWS)

** A second day to share a GREAT CRESTED FLYCATCHER [Tyran huppé] photo. David Lilly got an excellent photo of a Great Crested Flycatcher in the Jemseg area on Monday which is an expected territory for this species. The vocalization of the Great Crested Flycatcher is unique and is a good one to learn to know when one is in the area as they can be quite vocal.

** Our male waterfowl are beautifully dressed in their breeding plumage but can sure look tattered when they go into eclipse and non-breeding plumage. Barb Jennings was in the right place at the right time at Centennial Park to see a pair of WOOD DUCKS [Canard branchu] in full breeding plumage beside a Wood Duck that had started going into eclipse very early. Guides say it can indeed happen as early as June 01, so this has to be an ‘early bird’. Gilles Belliveau comments that from his observations Wood Ducks can be the first male ducks to go into eclipse and molt.

** John Massey sends a nice photo of an INTERRUPTED FERN showing the fresh, dark interruptions of sporophytes midway on the fertile stalks surrounded by the sterile vegetative stalks.

** Ray Gauvin continues to share his interest in the Moon and its continuous action. His photo shows a waxing gibbous Moon as of June 01. “Waxing” means it is getting larger and “gibbous” refers to the shape which is less than the full circle of the full Moon, but more than half (hump shape).

** Susan Atkinson is another caretaker of a lawn that is letting the Dandelions bloom freely to help the emerging Queen Bees get their important pollen supply to start their nests.

** Sterling Marsh comments that he gets an occasional visit to his feeders from a male RING-NECKED PHEASANT [Faisan de Colchide] plus the occasional female. However on Tuesday morning there was some interesting action that he had never seen before. The BLACKBIRDS were harassing the Pheasants by running up behind the male and tugging on his beautiful tail as seen in Sterling’s photos. He assumed they wanted the spilled seeds for themselves.

** We only have a short time window to take note of our conifer trees as they produce pollen and seed at the moment. Brian Stone got a recent photo of a Pine with a close up of its reproductive activity. Gart Bishop labeled the photo so we can understand what we are seeing and he also gives a great commentary, which I am attaching below, to help us realize what we are really seeing. Thank you Gart.

“I cannot make out a female cone (flower) on this photo, but if it were present it would be at the tip for pine. In Larch, the female cones (looking like pink rose buds, form laterally (on the side) on the twigs. Some info on the flowers. All conifers have separate male and female cones (flowers), usually on the same tree. The flowers do not have normal flower parts such as calyx (sepals) corolla (petals) stamens or pistils. Once the male cones release their pollen, (lots of pollen!) into the wind, the cones shrivel up and fall off. The female cones which are initially small, will, once pollinated, develop into what we recognize as pine cones. Some pine cones stay on the tree for multiple years, others like Balsam Fir, mature and disintegrate in the fall while still on the tree……Gart”

** We haven’t had any photos yet of the beautiful Canadian Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly that is so associated with the blooming of Lilacs that they are very attracted to. I am attaching a photo of one nectaring Lilac blooms on Tuesday.

nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Nelson Poirier,

Nature Moncton

GREAT CRESTED FLYCATCHER. JUNE 1, 2020. DAVID LILLY

WOOD DUCKS ( MALES SHOWING BREEDING PLUMAGE AND ECLIPSE PLUMAGE). JUNE 1, 2020. BARB JENNINGS

WOOD DUCK (MALE) GOING INTO ECLIPSE NON BREEDING PLUMAGE. JUNE 1, 2020. BARB JENNINGS

WOOD DUCK (MALE) GOING INTO ECLIPSE NON BREEDING PLUMAGE. JUNE 1, 2020. BILL JENNINGS

CANADIAN TIGER SWALLOWTAIL BUTTERFLY. JUNE 2, 2020. NELSON POIRIER

INTERRUPTED FERN. JUNE 2, 2020. JOHN MASSEY

DANDELIONS LEFT FOR BEES. JUNE 2, 2020. SUSAN ATKINSON

RING-NECKED PHEASANT HARASSED BY RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD. JUNE 2, 2020. STERLING MARSH

WAXING GIBBOUS MOON. JUNE 01, 2020. RAY GAUVIN

PINE TREE. JUNE 01, 2020.. BRIAN STONE

PINE TREE REPRODUCTIVE STRUCTURE LABELLED BY GART BISHOP. JUNE 01, 2020.. BRIAN STONE PHOTO

Tuesday, 2 June 2020

June 2 2020

NATURE MONCTON INFORMATION LINE, June 2, 2020 (Tuesday)

To view the photos mentioned in this edition go to http://nminfoline.blogspot.ca

To respond by e-mail, please address your message to the information line editor, nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

For more information on Nature Moncton, check the website at www.naturemoncton.com

Edited by: Nelson Poirier nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Transcript by: david.cannon@rogers.com

Info Line # 506-384-6397 (384-NEWS)

** Early June is surely a period of intense blooming. There are a lot of spring plant photos today and a chance to review them and look closely at any that you may not be familiar with, as well as some ferns. I’ll try to get them arranged in series to peruse easier.

** Jamie Burris photographed a GREAT CRESTED FLYCATCHER [Tyran huppé] on a powerline near their Riverview home on Monday. This is quite an uncommon bird to see in the Moncton area, but nesting in the area has been uncommonly recorded. They are much more common in the Grand Lake area and western New Brunswick. A great yard bird to get! They will nest in man-made bird boxes and natural cavities.

** Mac Wilmot continues to enjoy his GREAT HORNED OWL [Grand-duc d'Amérique] family on his Lower Coverdale property. He is now able to confirm 2 owlets out of the nest but they will not be flying for a time yet. Mac got a photo of the male parent with the female present but in too much of a hurry - possibly with groceries for her rapidly growing family on mind. Mac took a close-up of the already well-developed claw weaponry of one owlet. They are very used to Mac now and seem to be very aware that he is not a threat.

** Gordon Rattray shares an array of flora photographs from the Nature Moncton Caledonia Gorge field trip: A queen TRICOLOURED BUMBLE BEE [BOURDON TRICOLORE] on a DANDELION gathering pollen for a fodder to start a new nest, a BUNCHBERRY in bloom showing the central business part of the seed production with the side sterile ray petals to attract pollinators like the bumble bee, DWARF RASPBERRY in flower that will produce a fruit very similar to a raspberry but often not as tasty, GOLDTHREAD, named by its golden coloured underground roots that has been used medicinally as a toothache remedy (and it works!), HOBBLEBUSH with a floral arrangement similar to the Bunchberry with the same plan in mind, INTERRUPTED FERN showing the sporophyte stalks with the interruptions of spore-producing parts half-way up the fertile stalks, LILY-OF-THE-VALLEY, which has a large cultivated version and a smaller wild version, a NORTHERN BEECH FERN with its bowtie basal pinna, PAINTED TRILLIUM, PIN-CHERRY with its pin-cushion style clump of blossoms, RED-BERRIED ELDER that will end up with a cluster of not-edible-for-humans red berries, SENSITIVE FERN, that is very sensitive to cold frosty nights like last night, a TROUT LILY that takes 7 years to produce that bloom, and suspected COWSLIP. Cowslip is a garden escapee which Gart Bishop helped us with.

** Aldo Dorio got a photo of one of our 4 EMPIDONAX FLYCATCHERS with white eye ring and 2 white wing bars that are tricky to identify on a photo, but much easier to separate if heard vocalized. The 4 most likely in New Brunswick, in order, would be: ALDER FLYCATCHER [Moucherolle des aulnes], LEAST FLYCATCHER [Moucherolle tchébec], YELLOW-BELLIED FLYCATCHER [Moucherolle à ventre jaune], and WILLOW FLYCATCHER [Moucherolle des saules]. Aldo also got a frontal photo of a male EASTERN TOWHEE [Tohi à flancs roux] in a tree which is an uncommon visitor to NB but seems to be becoming more frequent. Gilles Belliveau’s sharp eye had to rescue us on this one.

** Jane LeBlanc came across a lone male SURF SCOTER [Macreuse à front blanc] in the Bay of Fundy at St. Martin’s on Monday. Most would have passed through by this time to their breeding grounds to the north of us.

** With all the blooms coming out, CEDAR WAXWINGS [Jaseur d'Amérique] find the petals and parts of several blooming plants a foraging delicacy. Ray Gauvin shares a video of Cedar Waxwings enjoying the exploding blooms of RED MAPLE in his Shediac area yard. Take a look at the action in the attached video link.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/x2oqjld0b6ix8xx/CEDAR%20WAXWINGS%20.MAY%2018%20%2C%202020.%20RAY%20GAUVIN.%20MOVIE.MOV?dl=0

** In answer to J. Lestage’s query about decreased number of gulls [goélands] in the Shediac - Cap Pele area, Roger Leblanc wonders if it could be that adult gulls are now tending nests on islands and fewer birds are moving about. It is the only reason suggested so far and if indeed the case, only temporarily.

Roger LeBlanc also reports a pair of Eastern Bluebirds has arrived to evaluate his yard nest box real estate in Notre Dame. The male is exuberantly singing with satisfaction; however the female will make the ultimate decision. Roger agrees with the male!

Dan Sullivan came across a nesting of a pair of GREAT HORNED OWL in the Shediac area on Saturday. There were 2 owlets present. From reports, this owl seems to be doing well this season with 3 known nest sites of 2 young ones which of course must mean others are out there. The 3 known ones seemed to have chosen urban areas and are doing well.

** Brian Stone got an excellent photo of 2 BLUISH SPRING MOTHS mating. This is not a commonly encountered moth so suspect Brian has a hot spot for them or it’s a very good year for them. It’s really blooming time and Brian adds to Gordon Rattray’s photos with LUPINS emerging, the CRABAPPLE trees we are all enjoying right now, whose fruit will be so welcomed by the fruit connoisseur birds next winter. Keep in mind; every bloom we see in today’s photo will be pollinated mainly by those queen bees’ progeny, moths, butterflies and other super important pollinators. Brian also got CANADA MAYFLOWER in bloom, BUNCHBERRY in pre-bloom, and COMMON MILKWEED shoots really springing up fast to be ready to welcome the MONARCH BUTTERFLIES [Monarque].

nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Nelson Poirier,

Nature Moncton

GREAT CRESTED FLYCATCHER. JUNE 6, 2020. JAMIE BURRIS

EASTERN TOWHEE (MALE). JUNE 1, 2020. ALDO DORIO

GREAT HORNED OWL. JUNE 1, 2020. MAC WILMOT

GREAT HORNED OWLET. JUNE 1, 2020. MAC WILMOT

GREAT HORNED OWLET WEAPONRY. JUNE 1, 2020. MAC WILMOT

GREAT HORNED OWL. MAY 30 2020. DAN SULLIVAN

GREAT HORNED OWLETS. MAY 30 2020. DAN SULLIVAN

BLUISH SPRING MOTHS MATING. JUNE 01, 2020. BRIAN STONE

BUNCHBERRY. MAY 30, 2020. GORDON RATTRAY

BUNCHBERRY (PREBLOOM). JUNE 01, 2020. BRIAN STONE

CANADA MAYFLOWER. JUNE 01, 2020. BRIAN STONE

CRABAPPLE FLOWERS. JUNE 01, 2020. BRIAN STONE

CRABAPPLE TREE. JUNE 01, 2020. BRIAN STONE

DWARF RASPBERRY. MAY 30, 2020. GORDON RATTRAY

GOLDTHREAD. MAY 30, 2020. GORDON RATTRAY

HOBBLE BUSH. MAY 30, 2020. GORDON RATTRAY

LUPINS. JUNE 01, 2020. BRIAN STONE

LILY-OF-THE-VALLEY. MAY 30, 2020. GORDON RATTRAY

PIN CHERRY. MAY 30, 2020. GORDON RATTRAY

PAINTED TRILLIUM. MAY 30, 2020. GORDON RATTRAY

RED-BERRIED ELDER. MAY 30, 2020. GORDON RATTRAY

TRICOLORED BUMBLEBEE ON DANDELION. MAY 30, 2020. GORDON RATTRAY

TROUT LILY. MAY 30, 2020. GORDON RATTRAY

COWSLIP. MAY 30, 2020. GORDON RATTRAY

INTERRUPTED FERN. MAY 30, 2020. GORDON RATTRAY

NORTHERN BEECH FERN. MAY 30, 2020. GORDON RATTRAY

COMMON MILKWEED PATCH. JUNE 01, 2020. BRIAN STONE

SENSITIVE FERN. MAY 30, 2020. GORDON RATTRAY

SURF SCOTER. JUNE 1, 2020. JANE LEBLANC.

EASTERN BLUEBIRD (MALE). JUNE 1, 2020. ALDO DORIO

Monday, 1 June 2020

June 1 2020

NATURE MONCTON INFORMATION LINE, June 1, 2020 (Monday)

To view the photos mentioned in this edition go to

http://nminfoline.blogspot.ca

To respond by e-mail, address your message to the information line editor, nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Please advise the editor if any errors are noted in wording or photo labelling. Note that corrections, deletions, or delayed additions may not always appear on the Info Line and email transcript but will always appear on the BlogSpot. For this reason, it is recommended that those wishing to look at historical records use the BlogSpot rather than the email transcript. The BlogSpot can always be accessed from the website.

For more information on Nature Moncton, check the website at http://www.naturemoncton.com

Edited by: Nelson Poirier nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Transcript by: David Christie maryspt@mac.com

Info Line # 506-384-6397 (384-NEWS)

** Rick Elliot reports that fog and mist continued at Waterside for the 6^th day on Sunday, but it sure was not discouraging some special bird visitors. Among the AMERICAN GOLDFINCH [Chardonneret jaune] and PINE SISKINS [Tarin des pins] moving over their property earlier Sunday morning was a handsome adult male SCARLET TANAGER [Piranga écarlate] and a 1^st spring male INDIGO BUNTING [Passerin indigo]. These two pleasant recent visitors to Rick and Barb’s come after a TOWNSEND’S WARBLER [Paruline de Townsend] and a RED KNOT [Bécasseau maubèche] recently. Very lucky landlords!

** Jane LeBlanc got a photo of a female COMMON YELLOWTHROAT [Paruline masquée] warbler that shows just how bland her plumage is, compared to her black-masked, yellow partner. Jane also had an AMERICAN PAINTED LADY [Vanesse des perlières] arrive in her St. Martins yard on Sunday and got an awesome photo of this beautiful butterfly summer visitor.

** Jim Johnson of Scotch Settlement asked last week where all his hummingbirds were. They still had not arrived in numbers that he usually has. The wait is over because the mass arrived on Sunday, now having 20 RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRDS [Colibri à gorge rubis] present. All’s well that ends well.

** Yvette Richard got a pleasing photo of a pair of RING-NECKED DUCKS [Fuligule à collier] at the Memramcook lagoon and also a photo of a NORTHERN PINTAIL [Canard pilet] male in its best breeding plumage, and a NORTHERN SHOVELER [Canard souchet]. acting more reserved. She also got a photo of two scaup at the Grand-Digue lagoon. They appear to be GREATER SCAUP [Fuligule milouinan].

Yvette reports that she has 3 TREE SWALLOW [Hirondelle bicolore] boxes up and all three are occupied.

** I’m finding that the 18 swallow boxes in my Miramichi area are being very slow to get serious activity, whereas occupancy was 100% last year. I’m hoping that the cold spell we had earlier in May has just set things back a bit.

** Aldo Dorio is pleased to report that EASTERN BLUEBIRDS [Merlebleu de l’Est] have returned to his Néguac yard. They appeared earlier in spring scouting, and are now back with their suit-cases, fine-tuning their nest box. Aldo had a pair nest in the same box last year. Another lucky landlord.

** We have a query from J. Lestage about why he is seeing fewer gulls [goélands] in the Shediac, Cap Pelé area. Does anyone have any comments on that?

** Bob Blake reports morning temperatures, low temperatures, daily high temperatures as well and daily precipitation at his Second North River home. Bob sends a table to compare May of 2020 with May 2019. 2020 was warmer in general and precipitation less, even though we did have snow in May this spring. Bob’s table is attached below as he forwarded it.

Weather stats for May

2019		2020
morning temperatures	daily highs and rainfall	morning temperatures	daily highs and rainfall
+12-1 day +11-2 +10-1 +9-6 +8-3 +7-3 +6-2 +5-4 +4-4 +3-4	+23-1 +22-1 +21-1 +19-1 +17-3 +15-4 +14-3 +13-1 +12-5 +11-3 +10-1 +9-2 +8-3 159 mms. rain	+21-1 +20-3 +17-1 +16-1 +15-1 +14-1 +11-2 +10+2 +9-3 +7-6 +6-1 +5-1 +4-1 +3-2 +2-4 +1-1	+31-1 +30-1 +29-1 +28-2 +26-3 +25-2 +24-1 +23-1 +22-1 +20-1 +19-1 +18-3 +16-2 +14-4 +12-2 +10-2 +8-2 +6-1 +4-1 +3-1 59 mms. rain 2 cms. snow