Nature Moncton Information Line

Sunday, 18 August 2019

August 18 2019

NATURE MONCTON INFORMATION LIE, August 18, 2019 (Sunday)

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 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://naturemoncton.com>.

Edited by Nelson Poirier, <nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com>

Transcript by David Christie, <maryspt@mac.com>

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

** On Saturday afternoon, Canadian Wildlife Service staff observed one of the best shows of shorebirds at Mary’s Point this summer, with several thousand roosting on the beach and about 50,000 more flying about. PEREGRINE FALCONS [Faucon pèlerin] made a few attacks and a MERLIN [] managed to catch a sandpiper.

On Wednesday, Yvette Richard visited the Cap Lumiere area to note approximately a dozen colourful Ruddy Turnstones, all seeming to be adult birds.

Brian Coyle’s attention was drawn to the raucous alarm calls being emitted by a pair of AMERICAN ROBINS in the bushes beside his house. He looked for a house cat on the ground as a likely source, but only when he glanced up to the top of a dead Tamarack tree beside the house did he see the source of their alarm. A Merlin was de-feathering a bird which he suspected may have been a robin fledgling. The backlighting made for poor quality photos. The parent robins showing a peculiar "head bobbing" behavior, as they harassed the Merlin.

It took the Merlin 25 minutes to consume the bird, then taking off with a small morsel in one set of talons, with the robins in pursuit.

The blooming period of the beautiful White-fringed Orchid is nearing its end but Louise Nichols was able to find one plant still sporting its fresh blooms in a dryer part of the bog on their Aulac property on Saturday. It was in a dryer part of the bog. Most of the plants were well past their prime but this one gave us a chance to get a second look before their season subsided of this pleasant bog inhabitant.

Aldo Dorio got photos of a LEAST SANDPIPER at Hay Island on Saturday. The white fringing on many feathers suggests it may be a young-of-the-year bird which should be starting to arrive now. Note the yellowish legs, slight droop at the bill tip, and warm brown tones in the plumage.

** Krista Doyle got a photo of a VICEROY [Vice-roi] butterfly in her Lewis Mountain yard on Saturday. Note the dark crossbar on the hind wing, not present on the similar MONARCH {Monarque] butterfly.

** Jane LeBlanc watched an AMERICAN CROW [Corneille d’Amérique foraging on the unripe berries of mountain ash on Saturday. They must have been a bit tart at this stage, but then again, a crow seems to forage on whatever fits its bill.

** Pat and I dropped by the Riverview Marsh on Saturday afternoon. The two MARBLED GODWITS [Barge marbrée] were still present, not close to shore but in the middle of the pond area, very actively feeding and staying not far apart. There was an abundance of other shorebirds present, with LEAST SANDPIPER [Bécasseau minuscule] and both yellowlegs [chevaliers] high on the list. We also visited Rue Nile in Cap-Pelé where we noted at least a dozen RUDDY TURNSTONES [Tournepierre à collier]. There was a mixture of very colourful adults and more drab young-of-the-year. They were very interested in lobster tidbits from the nearby processing plant.

Nelson Poirier, <nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com>,

Nature Moncton

AMERICAN CROW. AUG. 16, 2019. JANE LEBLANC

LEAST SANDPIPER. AUG 17, 2019. ALDO DORIO

MARBLED GODWIT. AUG 17, 2019. NELSON POIRIER

MARBLED GODWITS. AUG 17, 2019. NELSON POIRIER

MERLIN. AUGUST 9, 2019. BRIAN COYLE

RUDDY TURNSTONES. AUG 14, 2019. YVETTE RICHARD

RUDDY TURNSTONE (ADULTS). AUG 17, 2019. NELSON POIRIER

RUDDY TURNSTONE (YOUNG-OF-THE-YEAR AND ADULT). AUG 17, 2019. NELSON POIRIER

RUDDY TURNSTONE (YOUNG-OF-THE-YEAR). AUG 17, 2019. NELSON POIRIER

RUDDY TURNSTONE (YOUNG-OF-THE-YEAR ). AUG 17, 2019. NELSON POIRIER

WHITE-FRINGED ORCHID. AUG. 17, 2019. LOUISE NICHOLS

VICEROY BUTTERFLY. AUG 17, 2019. KRISTA DOYLE

Saturday, 17 August 2019

August 17 2019

NATURE MONCTON INFORMATION LINE, 17 August 2019 (Saturday)

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

To respond by email, 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: Catherine Clements

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

**Johnson’s Mills Shorebird Reserve and Interpretive Centre manager Kerry-Lee Morris-Cormier leaves an interesting commentary update on the shorebird activity at that site at the moment, and what may be to come. Kerry-Lee’s commentary is below.

“According to the calendar, it is peak season at Johnson’s Mills but shorebird numbers are more representative of the beginning of the season. Current estimates of Semipalmated Sandpipers are between 20,000-30,000. Interestingly, on July 31^st, the estimate was over 100,000. In early August, Peregrine Falcon and Sharp -shinned Hawk activity along with mild windy conditions are thought to have caused the shorebirds to spend most of the high tide period in flight or possibly in Nova Scotia. This week the birds are roosting again at high tide which is best seen from the interpretive centre. To date, researchers working at Johnson’s Mills have not encountered any juvenile Semipalmated Sandpipers so we expect more flocks of birds to arrive soon. Other sightings this week include: Black-bellied Plover, Semipalmated Plover, Least Sandpiper, White-rumped Sandpiper, Double-crested Cormorant, Common Eider, Black Scoter, Bald Eagle and Peregrine Falcon. High tide on Saturday is 2:15pm and 3:00pm on Sunday”

**Roger LeBlanc leaves a very encouraging message on shorebirds at the nearby Riverview Marsh. He spent time there on Friday, and very much suggests that people pay a visit at the moment. On Wednesday, when Brian Stone and Roger found the MARBLED GODWITS [Barge marbrée] there, they were at a distance and there were few other shorebirds. Friday was a complete 360. There were hundreds of shorebirds and variety really changing. There were many more Yellowlegs [Chevalier], SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHERS [Bécassin roux], LEAST [Bécasseau minuscule] and SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPERS [Bécasseau semipalmé], at least one PECTORAL SANDPIPER [Bécasseau à poitrine cendrée], and the two Marbled Godwits were still there, but much closer and wandering about. Roger also saw a young of the year VIRGINIA RAIL [Râle de Virginie]. Roger suggests when visiting to simply stay in one spot for a while and let the shorebirds come to you. He comments all the activity was in the pool on the right side of the path going to the river, being quiet on the left side. All looking good for the August 24th Nature Moncton shorebird day event.

**Leon Gagnon shares more action from around his Wilson’s Point summer home on Miscou Island. He quite regularly sees an OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER [Moucherolle à côtés olive] which seemingly has a territory established there. One photo nicely shows the so-called “unbuttoned vest” in the breast area of this species that is very much down in numbers. I hope the abundant cone crop comments of a few days ago are for real. Leon saw a group of six WHITE-WINGED CROSSBILLS [Bec-croisé bifascié] enjoying the cone crop on Miscou on August 14th. Hopefully this is the advanced guard. Leon got photos of the adult reddish males and the yellowish females (or immature birds).

**Ruth Rogers was sent a photo of a caterpillar of the SILVER-SPOTTED SKIPPER [Hespérie à taches argentées] by a friend in the Ottawa area. I had thought we did not have that species in New Brunswick, but Jim Edsall advises it is thought they may be present in the Oak Bay area of New Brunswick, and Jim found one himself in the Moores Mills area in the 1980s. It may well be worth remembering what this species looks like.

**Jane LeBlanc shares a photo of a BLACK-AND-WHITE WARBLER [Paruline noir et blanc] that is enjoying foraging in her St. Martins yard. Jane also got a photo of a resident BULLFROG [Ouaouaron] in her yard pond. Note how the dorso-lateral line curves down around the tympanum to identify it as a Bullfrog. Jane also got a photo of the full moon as it appeared on Thursday night at Quaco lighthouse in St. Martins.

**As a side comment to the two MARBLED GODWITS [Barge marbrée] Roger LeBlanc and Brian Stone found at Riverview Marsh on Wednesday, there’s also a Marbled Godwit visiting Covehead, PEI.

**I’m attaching a photo of a mushroom growth on the base of a Spruce [Épinette] tree. It appears to be the imaginatively-named fungus SCRAMBLED EGG SLIME [Fleur de tan]. It surely gives a flash of colour to bland grey bark, and yes, it is indeed slimy to the touch!

nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Nelson Poirier,

Nature Moncton

BLACK AND WHITE WARBLER. AUG 16, 2019. JANE LeBLANC

BULLFROG. AUG. 15, 2019. JANE LEBLANC

FULL MOON. AUG. 15, 2019. JANE LEBLANC

OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER. AUG 15, 2019. LEON GAGNON

SCRAMBLED EGG SLIME MUSHROOM. AUG 16, 2019. NELSON POIRIER

SILVER-SPOTTED SKIPPER BUTTERFLY CATERPILLAR. AUG 14, 2019. ANNE FOCSANEANU

WHITE-WINGED CROSSBILL. AUG 16, 2019. LEON GAGNON

Friday, 16 August 2019

August 16 2019

NATURE MONCTON INFORMATION LINE, August 16, 2019 (Friday)

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

Please advise editor at nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com if any errors are noted in wording or photo labeling.

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

Edited by: Nelson Poirier nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Transcript by: Louise Nichols nicholsl@eastlink.ca

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

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

** Jack Perry reminds us of the normal late nesting behaviour of the AMERICAN GOLDFINCH [Chardonneret jaune]. We would be expected to see adults carrying food to nestlings at the moment. We have had no photos of adults carrying food as yet, but suspect there are lots out there doing so. We have a lot of American Goldfinch coming to sunflower chips at our own feeder, but not sure if they are carrying some away or foraging for themselves. They may prefer to feed their young wild seeds available at the moment.

** Aldo Dorio got photos of two different COMMON WOOD NYMPH BUTTERFLIES [Satyre des prés] at Hay Island on Thursday to nicely note the variation that occurs with the large eye spots on the upper hind wing. They are nectaring on Sea Lavender which is a very abundant plant on Hay Island. Aldo also got a photo of what appears to be a BLACK AND YELLOW MUD DAUBER. This non-aggressive wasp builds mud nests often under eaves where it lays an egg with some stashed insect prey for the larvae to feed on when it hatches, then to pupate for the winter.

** I have been noting a significant number of the day-flying moth, the GYPSY MOTH, in the last few days. They are very fast erratic flyers with only the males flying. They appear a beige colour when rapidly flying about. I’m attaching a photo of one from last year.

** I’m also seeing VICEROY BUTTERFLY [Vice roi] adults flying the past few days. They normally have a second brood in August. They can be easily confused with a MONARCH BUTTERFLY [Monarque] at first glance, but are more deep orange in colour, smaller than a Monarch, and their flight behaviour is more fluttery than the flap and glide flight behaviour of the Monarch butterfly.

** Pat and I tagged our first MONARCH BUTTERFLY [Monarque] adult of our own on Thursday and released it. There are several more chrysalids waiting to emerge, other caterpillars in the process of preparing their chrysalis and a few still chowing down on Common Milkweed in their large screened-in cage. It has been a rewarding experience, but I made lots of mistakes and learned from them. Thursday’s release was a male. One photo shows the dark pheromone spots and another photo shows the tag in place and ready to boogie.

** I’m also including a few photos of a HOUSE FINCH [Roselin familier] at our sunflower chip feeder. It often takes second looks to tell the female House Finch and female PURPLE FINCH [Roselin pourpré] apart. The House Finch has no white supercilium and the tail is more squared off at the apex compared to the clearly notched tail of the Purple Finch. There seems to be a bit of rouge colour in this bird that I don’t feel is photographic aberration, so I rather suspect this may be a young-of-the-year male that will molt to the male plumage by late fall.

** This week’s Sky-at-a-Glance is added to this edition, courtesy of sky guru Curt Nason.

This Week’s Sky at a Glance, 2019 August 17– August 24
The constellation Cepheus the King is quite large but it can be difficult to pick out. Around 9:30 pm, look northward for a group of five moderately bright stars in the shape of a house on its side and situated above the W-shape of Cassiopeia the Queen. The peak of the house is only about a fist-width to the right of Polaris, the North Star, and the constellation lies just below a line from Polaris to Deneb at the tail of Cygnus the Swan. A colourful star can be seen in binoculars or a scope just below the base of the house. Herschel’s Garnet Star, a red supergiant, is one of the most luminous stars known and is a thousand times wider than the Sun. If placed in the middle of our solar system it would stretch beyond the orbit of Jupiter.

Another famous star in Cepheus is Delta Cephei, which is situated near the bottom left of the house; it being the namesake of the Cepheid variable stars. Such giant stars pulsate with a regular period and subsequently dim and brighten consistently over that time. For example, Delta Cephei dims and brightens by a factor of two over about five days. Early in the 20th century, Harvard astronomer Henrietta Swan Leavitt discovered that the intrinsic brightness of a Cepheid variable was proportional to its period and worked out a formula for this relationship. Using the 100-inch telescope on Mount Wilson in the 1920s, Edwin Hubble detected Cepheid variables in what was then called the Andromeda Nebula. Knowing the intrinsic brightness of these stars based on their periods, and how stars dim with distance, he determined the distance to these stars and proved that the nebula was actually a galaxy outside of the Milky Way.

In mythology, Cepheus and Cassiopeia were the rulers of Ethiopia. Poseidon had made a ferocious sea monster to ravage the land as punishment for Cassiopeia’s boasts of their daughter Andromeda’s beauty. To get rid of the monster, they chained Andromeda to the rocks at the seashore as a sacrifice to the monster. She was rescued by Perseus, whose namesake constellation is seen below Cassiopeia.

This Week in the Solar System
Saturday’s sunrise in Moncton is at 6:20 am and sunset will occur at 8:25 pm, giving 14 hours, 5 minutes of daylight (6:27 am and 8:28 pm in Saint John). Next Saturday the Sun will rise at 6:29 am and set at 8:12 pm, giving 13 hours, 43 minutes of daylight (6:35 am and 8:16 pm in Saint John).

The Moon is at third quarter on Friday, rising before midnight Thursday and setting at 2:25 the following afternoon. Jupiter is at its highest at sunset, followed by Saturn two hours later. Telescope users might see Jupiter’s Red Spot around 10 pm on Wednesday and 11:30 pm on Friday. Mercury rises about an hour before the Sun and is an easy binocular target in twilight. Venus and Mars are on vacation for a while.

There will be public observing at the ball field in St. George on Friday, August 23, with a cloud date of August 24. The annual RASC NB Fundy Stargaze will be held on August 30 and 31 at the Herring Cove campsite in Fundy National Park.

Questions? Contact Curt Nason at nasonc@nbnet.nb.ca.

nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Nelson Poirier,

Nature Moncton

BLACK AND YELLOW MUD DAUBER (SUSPECTED). AUG 15, 2019. ALDO DORIO

Cepheus_17

COMMON WOOD-NYMPH. AUG 15, 2019. ALDO DORIO

GYPSY MOTH.AUG 8, 2017.NELSON POIRIER

HOUSE FINCH(FEMALE OR YOUNG-OF-THE-YEAR MALE). AUG 15, 2019. NELSON POIRIER

MONARCH BUTTERFLY (MALE). AUG 15, 2019. NELSON POIRIER

MONARCH BUTTERFLY (TAGGED). AUG 15, 2019. NELSON POIRIER

VICEROY BUTTERFLY.AUG 28, 2017.NELSON POIRIER

Thursday, 15 August 2019

August 15 2019

NATURE MONCTON INFORMATION LINE, August 15, 2019 (Thursday)

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: bjpstone@gmail.com

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

** Roger Leblanc and Brian Stone located 2 MARBLED GODWITS [Barge marbrée] at the Riverview Marsh on Wednesday afternoon. They spotted them from the main pathway that crosses the marsh towards the river in the wet area that sweeps around towards Dieppe, not far past the large rocks that folks often stop to sit on. One Marbled Godwit in New Brunswick is a bonus, but 2 together is a value added bonus. Roger and Brian started their day at the first of Roger’s survey sites, Demoiselle Creek. There were thousands of SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPERS [Bécasseau semipalmé] there with a few SEMIPALMATED PLOVERS [Pluvier semipalmé] and BLACK-BELLIED PLOVERS [Pluvier argenté]. A PEREGRINE FALCON [Faucon pèlerin] made a few fly passes and did capture 1 Sandpiper. There was a very fresh BLACK SWALLOWTAIL BUTTERFLY [Papillon du celery] nectaring the wildflowers in that area.

Their second stop, at Roger’s second survey site Riverview Marsh, found a relative shortage of shorebirds but the 2 Marbled Godwits made up for that. One of the Marbled Godwits was good enough to spread its wings to show the pale underside to cement the identification and give a quick documentary photo. Brian also has a map of the observation site attached in today’s photos.

** Georges Brun visited Bis Marsh again on Wednesday and all 3 GREAT EGRETS [Grande Aigrette] were still present and preening on the northern side of the pond, then they flew to the middle of the western portion. Georges was able to capture 3 together in one photo.

** Aldo Dorio got a photo of 2 young of the year SPOTTED SANDPIPERS [Chevalier grivelé] at Hay Island on Wednesday. Note the clean, unspotted breast of the juvenile of this species. Aldo also photographed a COMMON WOOD-NYMPH BUTTERFLY [Satyre des prés] on Wednesday. One of the distinct eye spots on the upper hind wing is covered by the lower hind wing.

** I am noting a bumper crop in the tree top café of maturing cones this year. Note the Balsam Fir which chooses to send its cones upright, while the Spruce trees choose to let their cones droop. Also I am noting a bumper crop of Mountain Ash berries. It should be a great winter food supply for Crossbills, Pine Grosbeaks, and Bohemian Waxwings if they end up visiting us later in the fall. A BLACK-AND-WHITE WARBLER [Paruline noir et blanc] gave a few fast photos to show it probing under bark for insects and also show that its fall plumage changes little in comparison to some Warblers.

nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Nelson Poirier,

Nature Moncton