Nature Moncton Nature News: May 11 2020

NATURE MONCTON INFORMATION LINE, May 11, 2020 (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)

** Deanna and Peter Gadd, in spite of very miserable weather on Saturday made an effort with Global Big Day, as did others. This included their first visit to Hay Island of the year. They saw a number of the usual birds of course, but were very fortunate on the way off the island to discover two male LAPLAND LONGSPURS on their way to the northern tundra. While they were foraging in the grassy edge of the road, moving non-stop, a difficult photographic situation with driving through such freezing temperatures. It’s not often that we get to get advantage of a chance to see Lapland Longspurs going into breeding plumage.

**Sybil Wentzell in Harvey had great yard warbler action on Sunday. A male Black-throated Blue warbler spent most of the day enjoying orange slices. He didn’t care much for the mango but a Downy Woodpecker did. Also a first-year female Northern Parula warbler dropped by and 5 Yellow-rumped Warblers foraged in the grass. Two female Northern Flickers seem to forage to close for the comfort of the other. They then fanned those striking tales at one another. Sybil comments she has seen this before suspecting warning signals or territorial aggression.

** On Sunday, Carmella Melanson visited the beach at Petit-Cap looking for shorebirds. She saw approximately two dozen GREATER YELLOWLEGS (Grand Chevalier), 2 WILLETS (Chevalier semipalmé) and a few LEAST SANDPIPERS (Bécasseau minuscule). She also found two CASPIAN TERNS (Sterne caspienne) and two HORNED LARKS (Alouette hausse-col). Also on the beach were six GREAT BLUE HERONS (Grand Héron), HERRING GULLS (Goéland argenté), GREAT BLACK-BACKED GULL (Goéland marin), RING-BILLED GULLS (Goéland à bec cerclé) and two ICELAND GULLS (Goéland arctique). After she left, Manon Cormier texted that she had seen BONAPARTE’S GULLS (Mouette de Bonaparte) there so Carmella went back and saw 3 Bonaparte’s Gulls, two of which were in beautiful breeding plumage. At home, her feeders are fairly busy, but nothing out of the ordinary is visiting at the moment. On May 2^nd, she had two RED CROSSBILLS (Bec-croisé des sapins) stop by but they were gone the next day.

**Ycette Richard photographed a young-of-the-year Porcupine eating along road in Caissie Cape on Sunday and 2 male Hooded Mergansers were trolling for food in a flooded field in the same area.

**In follow-up to yesterday’s lichen comments, John Massey shares a photo of a seashore boulder covered with Elegant Starburst Lichen and/or Maritime Starburst Lichen to create a very colourful boulder. The photo was taken in 2013, so this rock is probably even more colourful today.

** The COMMON FIELD HORSETAIL [Prêle des champs] is a very early emerging plant that used to be a very common. At the moment it is sending up its fertile shoots, which Sally Jackson in Saint John shares some photos. This fertile shoot will disappear and be replaced by its sterile stems of thin branching long light green leaves.

** Halifax Seed is selling peanuts to plant and grow in the Maritimes for this year. They have a long growing season. Jane LeBlanc started three in a pot in her house. The seeds were sown on April 24 and the photo shows them as of May 10.

** Gordon Rattray welcomed newcomers to his Weldon yard on Sunday, being YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS [Paruline à croupion jaune] and his first RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD [Colibri à gorge rubis] arrival, a male. Gordon also photographed one of his four PINE WARBLERS [Paruline des pins] beside a Yellow-rumped Warbler for comparison. Gordon tallied 21yard species over the day.

** I’ve watched with envy the many photos of Yellow-rumped Warblers folks are sharing from their yards. Sunday was my turn. After a snowstorm at our Little Southwest Miramichi camp, birds arrived to the feeders in hordes. Most numerous were the Yellow-rumped Warblers, to suggest at least 30. They chose sunflower hearts, peanut butter, unsalted shelled peanuts but were especially attracted to the remnants of a Dollarama suet block. At least one PINE WARBLER joined them, with the same tastes. I had a bird-pie up, which woodpeckers, COMMON GRACKLES [Quiscale bronzé], several blackbirds, BLACK-CAPPED CHICKADEES [Mésange à tête noire], and RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH [Sittelle à poitrine rousse] relish it but I did not see any warblers on it. BROWN-HEADED COWBIRDS [Vacher à tête brune] arrived (all male), as well as RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD [Carouge à épaulettes] females along with one NORTHERN FLICKER [Pic flamboyant]. The hummingbird feeder took a hit until it was warmed up. The sprouted daffodils were not impressed with their white blanket.

nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com
Nelson Poirier,
Nature Moncton