NATURE
MONCTON INFORMATION LINE, June 8, 2018 (Friday)
Please advise editor at nelson@nb.sympatico.ca if any errors are noted in wording or
photo labeling.
For more information on Nature Moncton, check into the website at www.naturemoncton.com
For more information on Nature Moncton, check into the website at www.naturemoncton.com
Transcript by: Louise Nichols nicholsl@eastlink.ca
To respond by e-mail, please address
your message to the information line editor nelson@nb.sympatico.ca.
** The Nature Moncton woodlot tour scheduled for
tonight, Friday evening, has been postponed due to forecasts of rain and wind. A new date has been arranged for next Wednesday
evening with the same venu andwill beposted as soon as confirmed.
** Louise Nichols paid a nature visit to the back
end of the Irishtown Nature Park on Thursday, a point in the park that many
miss by going in from Elmwood Drive.
There were all the usual warblers, easy to hear but now getting hard to
see with the fast-emerging leaves. There
were many RED-EYED VIREOS [Viréo aux yeux rouges]. A wettish section made an ideal habitat for PALM WARBLERS [Paruline à
couronne rousse], making their ringing vocalizations. That area also had ALDER FLYCATCHERS
[Moucherolle des aulnes]. But the nicest bird of Louise’s day was an OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER
[Moucherolle à côtés olive], a species in
decline which she initially heard and then saw on a distant tree, but it flew
off before she could get a photo. There
were many CANADIAN TIGER SWALLOWTAILS [Papillon tigré du Canada] in flight,
taking advantage of the warmth. Louise
saw two WHITE-TAILED
DEER [Cerf de Virginie] as she
approached the area. Note in the photo
how the pelage is changing from the dull winter brown to the near-chestnut
summer pelage. Louise saw an AMERICAN REDSTART
[Paruline flamboyante] warbler that
she felt to be a 1st-summer male as black markings were appearing on
its facial and throat area.
** Jean-Paul Leblanc reports that Stella had seen a
pair of BALTIMORE
ORIOLES [Oriole de Baltimore] in a
neighbour’s yard in Boutouche, so they are hoping a nest may be in the plans
soon. Jean-Paul also reports the NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRD
[Moqueur polyglotte] is still being
seen on Heritage St. in Bouctouche, and a resident said on Wednesday he was
hearing two Mockingbirds early that morning, so other possibilities there.
** CEDAR WAXWINGS [Jaseur d'Amérique] are well known
for the tendency to forage on apple blossoms.
Aldo Dorio noted a group doing just that on Thursday. He also noted a male BOBOLINK [Goglu des prés] foraging among
the blossoms. Possibly it was more
interested in the insects attracted to the blossoms.
** We have several species of ROBBER FLY [Mouches à
toison] in New Brunswick. Brian Stone
recently got a close-up photo of one.
They can be quite colourful as this one is. They take other insect prey by attacking
them, often in flight, and injecting a neurotoxin with their short stout
proboscis.
** Brian Stone visited Mapleton Park on Thursday to
take note of lots of seasonal changes in progress to include BEAVERPOND
BASKETTAIL [Épithèque canine] dragonfly, one of the early emerging dragonflies
and the most common of the basket tail group; a CLOUDED SULPHUR BUTTERFLY
[Coliade du trèfle]; CINNAMON FERN with its central sporophyte stalk emerging
separate from the fronds; a COMMON GRACKLE [Quiscale bronzé] enjoying a
plump prey; a male Mallard going into eclipse non-breeding plumage now; NODDING
TRILLIUMS [Trille penché] were abundant; a RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD [Carouge à
épaulettes] nest was noted in the tall grass in a wet area; and
the male catkins of the ASPEN TREE were dispersing their pollen grains on
clumps of wispy hair-like structures to almost look like it was snowing at
times.
** 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, June 9 - June 16
Globular clusters are among the oldest and largest objects associated with our galaxy, being about 12 billion years old and containing tens to hundreds of thousands of stars packed into a compact sphere. There are more than 150 globulars orbiting in the halo of the Milky Way galaxy, and many more are known to be orbiting larger galaxies like M31 in Andromeda. Many can be seen in binoculars as a fuzzy patch of light, perhaps resembling those little white patches you see below bird feeders. A good sized telescope is able to resolve some of their stars. The larger globulars seen from a dark location have been described as granules of sugar against black velvet.
Summer is the season for observing globular clusters. M4 is just to the right of Antares in the constellation Scorpius and it is one of the closest to us at 7000 light years. M13 in the Keystone of Hercules is relatively close at 22,000 light years. One that would outshine M13 if it were higher in our sky is M22, just left of the lid of the Teapot in Sagittarius. Another easy target is M3, located halfway between Arcturus and Cor Caroli, the brightest star in the small constellation Canes Venatici below the handle of the Big Dipper. Two other standouts are M92 in Hercules and M5 in Serpens. From a dark sky, many dimmer globulars can be picked out in the region of Sagittarius and Ophiuchus.
The concentration of globular clusters in this region of sky is not by accident, and it played a role in another lesson of humility for humanity. Harvard’s Harlow Shapley studied globular clusters a century ago and noticed that most were located around Sagittarius. If they were evenly distributed around the core of our galaxy, as believed, then the centre of the galaxy must lie in that direction. Just as Copernicus and Galileo demoted Earth from the centre of the solar system, Shapley showed that the Sun was not at the centre of the Milky Way.
This Week in the Solar System
Saturday’s sunrise in Moncton is at 5:28 am and sunset will occur at 9:09 pm, giving 15 hours, 41 minutes of daylight (5:36 am and 9:10 pm in Saint John). Next Saturday the Sun will rise at 5:27 am and set at 9:12 pm, giving 15 hours, 45 minutes of daylight (5:33 am and 9:14 pm in Saint John).
The Moon is new on Wednesday and, if you can spot it around 10 am on June 16, look for Venus within a binocular field above it. If you are successful with that, try for Venus without the binoculars. Jupiter is at its best for observing around 11 pm, and with a telescope you might see its Red Spot around 10 pm on Wednesday and midnight on Friday. Saturn rises around 10 pm above the lid of the Sagittarius Teapot. Mars continues to brighten in the morning sky; it will be the main attraction for observers this summer.
The William Brydone Jack Astronomy Club meets in the UNB Forestry / Earth Sciences building in Fredericton on Tuesday at 7 pm. All are welcome. The first RASC NB star party of the year takes place at Kouchibouguac National Park on June 15-16.
Questions? Contact Curt Nason at nasonc@nbnet.nb.ca.
Globular clusters are among the oldest and largest objects associated with our galaxy, being about 12 billion years old and containing tens to hundreds of thousands of stars packed into a compact sphere. There are more than 150 globulars orbiting in the halo of the Milky Way galaxy, and many more are known to be orbiting larger galaxies like M31 in Andromeda. Many can be seen in binoculars as a fuzzy patch of light, perhaps resembling those little white patches you see below bird feeders. A good sized telescope is able to resolve some of their stars. The larger globulars seen from a dark location have been described as granules of sugar against black velvet.
Summer is the season for observing globular clusters. M4 is just to the right of Antares in the constellation Scorpius and it is one of the closest to us at 7000 light years. M13 in the Keystone of Hercules is relatively close at 22,000 light years. One that would outshine M13 if it were higher in our sky is M22, just left of the lid of the Teapot in Sagittarius. Another easy target is M3, located halfway between Arcturus and Cor Caroli, the brightest star in the small constellation Canes Venatici below the handle of the Big Dipper. Two other standouts are M92 in Hercules and M5 in Serpens. From a dark sky, many dimmer globulars can be picked out in the region of Sagittarius and Ophiuchus.
The concentration of globular clusters in this region of sky is not by accident, and it played a role in another lesson of humility for humanity. Harvard’s Harlow Shapley studied globular clusters a century ago and noticed that most were located around Sagittarius. If they were evenly distributed around the core of our galaxy, as believed, then the centre of the galaxy must lie in that direction. Just as Copernicus and Galileo demoted Earth from the centre of the solar system, Shapley showed that the Sun was not at the centre of the Milky Way.
This Week in the Solar System
Saturday’s sunrise in Moncton is at 5:28 am and sunset will occur at 9:09 pm, giving 15 hours, 41 minutes of daylight (5:36 am and 9:10 pm in Saint John). Next Saturday the Sun will rise at 5:27 am and set at 9:12 pm, giving 15 hours, 45 minutes of daylight (5:33 am and 9:14 pm in Saint John).
The Moon is new on Wednesday and, if you can spot it around 10 am on June 16, look for Venus within a binocular field above it. If you are successful with that, try for Venus without the binoculars. Jupiter is at its best for observing around 11 pm, and with a telescope you might see its Red Spot around 10 pm on Wednesday and midnight on Friday. Saturn rises around 10 pm above the lid of the Sagittarius Teapot. Mars continues to brighten in the morning sky; it will be the main attraction for observers this summer.
The William Brydone Jack Astronomy Club meets in the UNB Forestry / Earth Sciences building in Fredericton on Tuesday at 7 pm. All are welcome. The first RASC NB star party of the year takes place at Kouchibouguac National Park on June 15-16.
Questions? Contact Curt Nason at nasonc@nbnet.nb.ca.
Nelson Poirier,
Nature Moncton
NATURE
MONCTON INFORMATION LINE, June 8, 2018 (Friday)
To view the photos mentioned in this
edition go to http://nminfoline.blogspot.ca
Please advise editor at nelson@nb.sympatico.ca if any errors are noted in wording or
photo labeling.
For more information on Nature Moncton, check into the website at www.naturemoncton.com
For more information on Nature Moncton, check into the website at www.naturemoncton.com
Edited by: Nelson Poirier nelson@nb.sympatico.ca
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 nelson@nb.sympatico.ca.
** The Nature Moncton woodlot tour scheduled for
tonight, Friday evening, has been postponed due to forecasts of rain and wind. A new date has been arranged for next Wednesday
evening with the same venue and will be posted as soon as confirmed.
** Louise Nichols paid a nature visit to the back
end of the Irishtown Nature Park on Thursday, a point in the park that many
miss by going in from Elmwood Drive.
There were all the usual warblers, easy to hear but now getting hard to
see with the fast-emerging leaves. There
were many RED-EYED VIREOS [Viréo aux yeux rouges]. A wettish section made an ideal habitat for PALM WARBLERS [Paruline à
couronne rousse], making their ringing vocalizations. That area also had ALDER FLYCATCHERS
[Moucherolle des aulnes]. But the nicest bird of Louise’s day was an OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER
[Moucherolle à côtés olive], a species in
decline which she initially heard and then saw on a distant tree, but it flew
off before she could get a photo. There
were many CANADIAN TIGER SWALLOWTAILS [Papillon tigré du Canada] in flight,
taking advantage of the warmth. Louise
saw two WHITE-TAILED
DEER [Cerf de Virginie] as she
approached the area. Note in the photo
how the pelage is changing from the dull winter brown to the near-chestnut
summer pelage. Louise saw an AMERICAN REDSTART
[Paruline flamboyante] warbler that
she felt to be a 1st-summer male as black markings were appearing on
its facial and throat area.
** Jean-Paul Leblanc reports that Stella had seen a
pair of BALTIMORE
ORIOLES [Oriole de Baltimore] in a
neighbour’s yard in Boutouche, so they are hoping a nest may be in the plans
soon. Jean-Paul also reports the NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRD
[Moqueur polyglotte] is still being
seen on Heritage St. in Bouctouche, and a resident said on Wednesday he was
hearing two Mockingbirds early that morning, so other possibilities there.
** CEDAR WAXWINGS [Jaseur d'Amérique] are well known
for the tendency to forage on apple blossoms.
Aldo Dorio noted a group doing just that on Thursday. He also noted a male BOBOLINK [Goglu des prés] foraging among
the blossoms. Possibly it was more
interested in the insects attracted to the blossoms.
** We have several species of ROBBER FLY [Mouches à
toison] in New Brunswick. Brian Stone
recently got a close-up photo of one.
They can be quite colourful as this one is. They take other insect prey by attacking
them, often in flight, and injecting a neurotoxin with their short stout
proboscis.
** Brian Stone visited Mapleton Park on Thursday to
take note of lots of seasonal changes in progress to include BEAVERPOND
BASKETTAIL [Épithèque canine] dragonfly, one of the early emerging dragonflies
and the most common of the basket tail group; a CLOUDED SULPHUR BUTTERFLY
[Coliade du trèfle]; CINNAMON FERN with its central sporophyte stock emerging
separate from the fronds; a COMMON GRACKLE [Quiscale bronzé] enjoying a
plump prey; a male Mallard going into eclipse non-breeding plumage now; NODDING
TRILLIUMS [Trille penché] were abundant; a RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD [Carouge à
épaulettes] nest was noted in the tall grass in a wet area; and
the male catkins of the ASPEN TREE were dispersing their pollen grains on
clumps of wispy hair-like structures to almost look like it was snowing at
times.
** 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, June 9 - June 16
Globular clusters are among the oldest and largest objects associated with our galaxy, being about 12 billion years old and containing tens to hundreds of thousands of stars packed into a compact sphere. There are more than 150 globulars orbiting in the halo of the Milky Way galaxy, and many more are known to be orbiting larger galaxies like M31 in Andromeda. Many can be seen in binoculars as a fuzzy patch of light, perhaps resembling those little white patches you see below bird feeders. A good sized telescope is able to resolve some of their stars. The larger globulars seen from a dark location have been described as granules of sugar against black velvet.
Summer is the season for observing globular clusters. M4 is just to the right of Antares in the constellation Scorpius and it is one of the closest to us at 7000 light years. M13 in the Keystone of Hercules is relatively close at 22,000 light years. One that would outshine M13 if it were higher in our sky is M22, just left of the lid of the Teapot in Sagittarius. Another easy target is M3, located halfway between Arcturus and Cor Caroli, the brightest star in the small constellation Canes Venatici below the handle of the Big Dipper. Two other standouts are M92 in Hercules and M5 in Serpens. From a dark sky, many dimmer globulars can be picked out in the region of Sagittarius and Ophiuchus.
The concentration of globular clusters in this region of sky is not by accident, and it played a role in another lesson of humility for humanity. Harvard’s Harlow Shapley studied globular clusters a century ago and noticed that most were located around Sagittarius. If they were evenly distributed around the core of our galaxy, as believed, then the centre of the galaxy must lie in that direction. Just as Copernicus and Galileo demoted Earth from the centre of the solar system, Shapley showed that the Sun was not at the centre of the Milky Way.
This Week in the Solar System
Saturday’s sunrise in Moncton is at 5:28 am and sunset will occur at 9:09 pm, giving 15 hours, 41 minutes of daylight (5:36 am and 9:10 pm in Saint John). Next Saturday the Sun will rise at 5:27 am and set at 9:12 pm, giving 15 hours, 45 minutes of daylight (5:33 am and 9:14 pm in Saint John).
The Moon is new on Wednesday and, if you can spot it around 10 am on June 16, look for Venus within a binocular field above it. If you are successful with that, try for Venus without the binoculars. Jupiter is at its best for observing around 11 pm, and with a telescope you might see its Red Spot around 10 pm on Wednesday and midnight on Friday. Saturn rises around 10 pm above the lid of the Sagittarius Teapot. Mars continues to brighten in the morning sky; it will be the main attraction for observers this summer.
The William Brydone Jack Astronomy Club meets in the UNB Forestry / Earth Sciences building in Fredericton on Tuesday at 7 pm. All are welcome. The first RASC NB star party of the year takes place at Kouchibouguac National Park on June 15-16.
Questions? Contact Curt Nason at nasonc@nbnet.nb.ca.
Globular clusters are among the oldest and largest objects associated with our galaxy, being about 12 billion years old and containing tens to hundreds of thousands of stars packed into a compact sphere. There are more than 150 globulars orbiting in the halo of the Milky Way galaxy, and many more are known to be orbiting larger galaxies like M31 in Andromeda. Many can be seen in binoculars as a fuzzy patch of light, perhaps resembling those little white patches you see below bird feeders. A good sized telescope is able to resolve some of their stars. The larger globulars seen from a dark location have been described as granules of sugar against black velvet.
Summer is the season for observing globular clusters. M4 is just to the right of Antares in the constellation Scorpius and it is one of the closest to us at 7000 light years. M13 in the Keystone of Hercules is relatively close at 22,000 light years. One that would outshine M13 if it were higher in our sky is M22, just left of the lid of the Teapot in Sagittarius. Another easy target is M3, located halfway between Arcturus and Cor Caroli, the brightest star in the small constellation Canes Venatici below the handle of the Big Dipper. Two other standouts are M92 in Hercules and M5 in Serpens. From a dark sky, many dimmer globulars can be picked out in the region of Sagittarius and Ophiuchus.
The concentration of globular clusters in this region of sky is not by accident, and it played a role in another lesson of humility for humanity. Harvard’s Harlow Shapley studied globular clusters a century ago and noticed that most were located around Sagittarius. If they were evenly distributed around the core of our galaxy, as believed, then the centre of the galaxy must lie in that direction. Just as Copernicus and Galileo demoted Earth from the centre of the solar system, Shapley showed that the Sun was not at the centre of the Milky Way.
This Week in the Solar System
Saturday’s sunrise in Moncton is at 5:28 am and sunset will occur at 9:09 pm, giving 15 hours, 41 minutes of daylight (5:36 am and 9:10 pm in Saint John). Next Saturday the Sun will rise at 5:27 am and set at 9:12 pm, giving 15 hours, 45 minutes of daylight (5:33 am and 9:14 pm in Saint John).
The Moon is new on Wednesday and, if you can spot it around 10 am on June 16, look for Venus within a binocular field above it. If you are successful with that, try for Venus without the binoculars. Jupiter is at its best for observing around 11 pm, and with a telescope you might see its Red Spot around 10 pm on Wednesday and midnight on Friday. Saturn rises around 10 pm above the lid of the Sagittarius Teapot. Mars continues to brighten in the morning sky; it will be the main attraction for observers this summer.
The William Brydone Jack Astronomy Club meets in the UNB Forestry / Earth Sciences building in Fredericton on Tuesday at 7 pm. All are welcome. The first RASC NB star party of the year takes place at Kouchibouguac National Park on June 15-16.
Questions? Contact Curt Nason at nasonc@nbnet.nb.ca.
Nelson Poirier,
Nature Moncton
AMERICAN REDSTART 1ST SUMMER MALE. LOUISE NICHOLS. JUNE 7, 2018
ASPEN TREE MALE SEEDS. JUNE 07, 2018. BRIAN STONE
BEAVERPOND BASKETTAIL DRAGONFLY. JUNE 07, 2018. BRIAN STONE
BOBOLINK (MALE). JUNE 7, 2018. ALDO DORIO
CANADIAN TIGER SWALLOWTAIL. LOUISE NICHOLS. JUNE 7, 2018
CEDAR WAXWING. JUNE 7, 2018. ALDO DORIO
CHIPMUNK. JUNE 07, 2018. BRIAN STONE
CINNAMON FERN. JUNE 07, 2018. BRIAN STONE
CLOUDED SULPHUR BUTTERFLY . JUNE 07, 2018. BRIAN STONE
COMMON GRACKLE WITH PREY. JUNE 07, 2018. BRIAN STONE
Globulars 2018
MALLARD DUCK (MALE GOING INTO ECLIPSE PLUMAGE). JUNE 07, 2018. BRIAN STONE
NODDING TRILLIUM. JUNE 07, 2018. BRIAN STONE
NODDING TRILLIUM. JUNE 07, 2018. BRIAN STONE
PALM WARBLER WITH CATCH. LOUISE NICHOLS. JUNE 7, 2018
RED-EYED VIREO. LOUISE NICHOLS. JUNE 7, 2018
RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD NEST. JUNE 07, 2018._ BRIAN STONE
ROBBER FLY. JUNE 06, 2018. BRIAN STONE
WHITE-TAILED DEER. LOUISE NICHOLS. JUNE 7, 2018
