Nature Moncton Nature News: Dec 23 2017

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Edited By: Nelson Poirier nelson@nb.sympatico.ca

Transcript by: Catherine Clements

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

**The MISTLE THRUSH [Grive draine] is definitely still in Miramichi on Saturday, but moving about more. It showed up at Peter Gadd’s yard at 8:20 A.M. but didn’t stay long. On Friday it stayed for a few hours at one point, then came and went.

Peter comments it has now had admirers from 17 U.S. states and 5 Canadian

provinces.

**Bob Childs was greeted on Saturday morning with a PILEATED WOODPECKER [Grand Pic] enjoying his suet feeder just outside his Riverview yard window. We’ve already had a few examples of Pileated Woodpeckers coming to very urban feeders – always a treat visitor.

**Janet Kempster and Brian Stone did a run of the coastal area on Friday, and also made a very productive visit to see a group – yes, a group – of RUSTY BLACKBIRDS

[Quiscale rouilleux] at the Falconer Road near the intersection with MacDougall

Road, at a home where there were feeders. The Falconer Road connects Notre-Dame and MacDougall Settlement. It happened to be poor light when they saw them, but the photos clearly show the difference between the winter males and females. They also got photos of several other items along the coast, including the now-famous GRASSHOPPER SPARROW [Bruant sauterelle] at Caissie Cape wharf, which acted elusively.

As always, Brian rarely misses SOLAR HALOS and SUNDOGS that many of us miss by not looking up.

nelson@nb.sympatico.ca

Nelson Poirier

Nature Moncton