Nature Moncton Nature News: April 1 2018

NATURE MONCTON INFORMATION LINE, Apr. 1, 2018 (Sunday)

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

Transcript by: David Christie maryspt@mac.com

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

** Ron Steeves spent 4 hours at Cape Enrage on Saturday to monitor spring bird migration there. Ron comments that the wind was ferocious but that didn’t seem to be a factor for eider movement. He tallied 4700 COMMON EIDER [Eider à duvet] but did not see a King Eider [Eider à tête grise] among them. He had a count of 925 SCOTERS, and BLACK [Macreuse à bec jaune] was the colour of the day, as he spotted only a few SURF SCOTERS [Macreuse à front blanc] among them. Other seabirds that he saw in very low numbers were WHITE-WINGED SCOTER [Macreuse brune], LONG-TAILED DUCK [Harelde kakawi], BRANT [Bernache cravant] and RED-THROATED LOON [Plongeon catmarin].

When Ron first arrived, there were 8 BALD EAGLES [Pygargue à tête blanche], 4 adults and 4 juveniles, circling the New Horton Church all at once, but that was all the raptors he saw there during a 3-hour watch. Ron anticipates that the next few days will have big seabird numbers passing Cape Enrage. Any watchers should be well prepared for wind and cold.

** An unexpected MERLIN [Faucon émerillon] scenario in Titusville for Alan Shea. Two Merlins were locked together with their talons and struck a window at his home. By the time he got his camera out, one Merlin had recovered and flown off. The second was still stunned enough for Alan to get four photos that show the field-marks of this raptor in a way that we don’t often get to see them. The second bird flew off, seemingly recovered, a few minutes later.

** Dale Gaskin drove through the Weldon area early Sunday morning and encountered AMERICAN ROBINS [Merle d'Amérique] everywhere, noting hundreds of them. The major movement has already arrived and they are looking for every “morsel” of bare ground they can find. Dale comments that he is not seeing them around his home in Dawson Settlement, as snow cover is obviously taking them to more snow-free areas near the Petitcodiac River.

** Audrey Goguen was pleased to have a RING-NECKED PHEASANT [Faisan de Colchide] visit her mid-city backyard on Sunday, obviously a pheasant “with street-smarts."

** Brian Stone visited the Rockwood Park duck pond in Saint John and got excellent photos of the male REDHEAD [Fuligule à tête rouge] duck that has been visiting that small pond, for great viewing opportunities. RING-NECKED DUCK [Fuligule à collier] and AMERICAN WIGEON [Canard d'Amérique] were also there, keeping the Redhead company.

The Hampton lagoons were alive with ducks and lots of photo opportunities. He observed BUFFLEHEADS [Petit Garrot], NORTHERN SHOVELERS [Canard souchet], GREATER [Fuligule milouinan] and LESSER SCAUP [Petit Fuligule], MALLARD [Canard colvert] ducks, and a Mallard hybrid. TURKEY VULTURES [Urubu à tête rouge] and BALD EAGLES [Pygargue à tête blanche] were also there. RING-BILLED GULLS were there and still showing a bit of winter-plumage head-streaking. There was also a first-cycle ICELAND GULL.

Brian also got a photo of a lunar halo, taken at 2:30 a.m., Sunday morning.

nelson@nb.sympatico.cA

Nelson Poirier,

Nature Moncton