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Edited by: Nelson Poirier nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com
Info Line # 506-384-6397 (384-NEWS)
** Jane Leblanc got a great photo of a SHREW
[Musaraigne] foraging under her St. Martins feeders on Tuesday. This small
mammal is very common in New Brunswick but we don’t often see them due to their
very nocturnal lifestyle. This mammal is actually classed as an insectivore but
they sure haven’t read that section of the guide. As the snow melts we will
often see the trails of shrews under bird feeders as they feed on birdseed.
** Fred and Susan Richards’s 5 EASTERN
BLUEBIRDS [Merlebleu de l'Est] continue to patronize their Taylor Village yard
to offer some feeder and feed experimentation possibilities. They offered some
freeze-dried meal worms that have not caught their attention as yet. On Tuesday,
all 5 were dining on peanut butter. Fred is trying a Bluebird feeding station,
with photo attached. There is an opening at each end so bluebird-sized birds
can enter. There is a Plexiglas front to see the food and food level. The idea
protects the food inside from the weather where delicious, freeze-dried meal
worms are waiting.
** David Christie comments on a flock
of approximately 75 AMERICAN ROBINS [Merle d'Amérique] that were feeding on
Mountain Ash berries on Mary’s Point Rd. The majority of them were loudly
chirping but at least a few were clearly vocalizing the song that we are used
to hearing at the beginning of April. Do they know something about the spring
arrival time that we don’t?
** Birds seem to be getting more
interest in feeders as the snow gets a bit heavier. Kevin Renton reports that
at the Renton’s Stilesville feeder yard, the DARK-EYED JUNCO [Junco ardoisé] patrons
went from 2 to 10 on Tuesday and the AMERICAN TREE SPARROWS [Bruant hudsonien]
jumped from a few to 4 along with the expected regulars.
** The CHIPPING SPARROW [Bruant familier]
is normally a summer bird, having migrated south, however the odd one overwinters.
One showed up at my own feeder yard on Tuesday. This individual seems to be
brighter than one would normally expect a Chipping Sparrow in winter plumage to
be, so this is assumedly an adult bird. Gilles Belliveau points out to look at
the very top of the upper mandible that is dark centrally where the colour of
the rest of the bill is pale, typical of winter non-breeding plumage. The bill
is all dark in summer breeding plumage. Also the Chipping Sparrow is the only
sparrow we see here that has the black eye line go right to the bill. It is
feeding on white millet and sunflower chips.
I have been bird feeding for many years
but have never had HOUSE FINCH [Roselin familier] patrons until I moved into
town … now they are daily patrons. This species is a very urban species. The
females seem to vary little in plumage, being quite bland, however the males
really do vary in their plumage. Some are much more reddish than others and
some even show orange. I am attaching pictures of 2 different males that were
at the feeders on Tuesday showing this variable plumage. These birds are in
adult plumage as they molt into adult plumage by their first fall of life.
Nelson Poirier,
Nature Moncton
SHREW. JAN.14,2020. JANE LEBLANC
CHIPPING SPARROW. JAN 14, 2020. NELSON POIRIER
EASTERN BLUEBIRDS. JAN 14, 2020.FRED RICHARDS
EASTERN BLUEBIRD FEEDER. JAN 14, 2020. FRED RICHARDS
HOUSE FINCH (MALE) JAN 14, 2020. NELSON POIRIER
HOUSE FINCH (MALE) JAN 14, 2020. NELSON POIRIER
