Nature Moncton Nature News: April 8, 2019

NATURE MONCTON INFORMATION LINE, APRIL 8, 2019 (Monday)

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

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

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

** It is definitely time to think butterflies, especially those that overwinter as adults, such as the comma group, tortoise-shells and Mourning Cloak. Louise Nichols spotted one and possibly more MOURNING CLOAK [Morio] butterflies at their Etter Ridge property on Sunday. She also saw a small reddish-orange moth in flight. This was very likely THE INFANT (Archiearis infans), a small moth with colourful orange-red markings on the hind-wing, that are easily seen in flight. They fly this time of year, and tend to fly very fast and erratically. Their host plants are birch, alder and willow. Louise didn’t have her camera, so I am attaching a photo of a Mourning Cloak that Louise took in 2014 and a photo of an Infant moth that Lois McGibbon got in April of 2010 to show what to look for.

** Krista Doyle has had several WHITE-TAILED DEER [Cerf de Virginie] around her home on Lewis Mountain this past week. They appear lean, suggesting that the winter was hard for them. Surprisingly, many of the White-tailed Deer photos that came in over the past few weeks looked quite good, but no doubt that varies with snow levels in the particular areas where the deer spent the winter.

** Brian Stone has seen more female MALLARDS [Canard colvert] and Mallard-like ducks in the Shubie Park area of Dartmouth that are obviously hybrids to the point that it is difficult to say what genetic make-up they may have. No doubt, BLACK DUCK [Canard noir] genes are there but I suspect that they are diluted to the point where the plumage is almost rogue. He did settle for a nice photo of a GOLDEN-CROWNED KINGLET [Roitelet à couronne dorée] and a WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH [Sittelle à potrine blanche].

nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Nelson Poirier,

Nature Moncton