Nature Moncton Nature News: July 12 2015

** Marguerite Winsor had one of Mother Nature’s special events unfold before her eyes on Saturday with a BLACK SWALLOWTAIL [Papillon du céleri] caterpillar. The transformation from caterpillar to chrysalis took place over an eye-opening three minutes, with camera recording the action. At 10:05 a.m., she noticed that it was moving away from the stick. She took the stick out of the bottle, so Bill could take a photo, and then it started to happen. The top of its head started to change to a plain green and slowly moving down. In no time it was finished and it dropped its skin to the floor. Five sequential photos of what happened are attached to show this amazing phenomenon.

** Jean-Paul and Stella LeBlanc were in Peggy's Cove, Nova Scotia, recently and photographed a striking trio of PITCHER-PLANTS [Petits cochons]. These insectivorous plants are common in New Brunswick as well, in bog habitat.

** Aldo Dorio got yet another SHORT-TAILED SWALLOWTAIL [Papillon queue courte] at Hay Island on Saturday. This butterfly is only found on certain shoreline areas along the Gulf of St. Lawrence and is similar to the more common and widespread BLACK SWALLOWTAIL [Papillon du céleri], a separate species. Aldo also got a photo of a WILLET [Chevalier semipalmé] chick at Hay Island Park on Saturday. While the parents can be very vocal in a huge area around their chicks, those at popular Hay Island may be more used to people present.

** Several Nature Moncton members took in Saturday's New Brunswick Botany Club field trip, led by by Sean Blaney, to a copper-rich bog near Sackville and to Allen’s Island at Cape Jourimain. With so many eyes on the watch, lots of Mother Nature’s community got a closer look, lots of botany specific to a bog, as well as shoreline island not many people get to visit.The orchids CALOPOGON, a.k.a. GRASS PINK [Calopogon tubéreux] and also ROSE POGONIA [Pogonie langue-de-serpent] were both in full bloom, for an awesome show. WHITE BOG ORCHID [Platanthère dilaté] was just coming on, some in full bloom. A long list of plants were observed, some quite uncommon in New Brunswick.

Many other pleasant distractions included a cooperative HERMIT THRUSH [Grive solitaire] carrying food, a SAY’S CICADA [Cigale de Say] stridulating, one BOG COPPER [Cuivré des tourbières] butterfly, an unexpected day chorus of a SWAINSON'S THRUSH [Grive à dos olive]. Also, the VIRGINIA CTENUCHA [Cténuche de Virginie] moth was flying, as well as a few dozen shorebirds noted on a sand spit near Cape Jourimain. There were GREATER YELLOWLEGS [Grand Chevalier] for sure, and other smaller shorebirds, which have not been identified from photos as yet. Over the day, several OSPREY [Balbuzard pêcheur] nests were noted to have still quite small chicks in them. We could see heads up while driving by, but when we stopped on the road, not even getting out of the vehicles, parents seemed to say “heads down” to the kids.

It was a great day in the field, bog and forest, with a great botanist.

nelson@nb.sympatico.ca
Nelson Poirier
Nature Moncton