Nature Moncton Nature News: May 17 2020

NATURE MONCTON INFORMATION LINE, May 17, 2020 (Sunday)

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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)

** Nice to see the WHITE-CROWNED SPARROWS [Bruant à couronne blanche] starting to move through, stopping in feeder yards for fuel for their migration north of us to breed in the summer. Yvette Richard got a nice photo of one that dropped by her Cocagne yard on Saturday.

** For the past three days Ray Gauvin has had CEDAR WAXWINGS [Jaseur d’Amérique feeding on] the opening blooms of Red Maple making a striking photo of spring colour. A zoomed-in photo sure does show how they get the name “waxwing.” Earlier in the spring, they fed on holly berries in his yard. They were mingling with a lot of other expected bird species on Saturday and were not nearly as skittish as during the winter.

** Jean Renton reports that they still are getting YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS [Paruline a croupion jaune] in their Canaan Forks yard. There was no sign of any in our camp yard on Saturday, after the very surprising number of the previous 3 days.

Jean also got her first RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD [Colibri à gorge rubis] visit, and PURPLE FINCH [Roselin pourpré] are moving in nicely.

** Checking to see if Trout Lily [Érythrone d’Amérique] had come into bloom, Dave Christie got a shock while walking through a birch stand at Mary’s Point on Thursday. A RUFFED GROUSE [Gélinotte huppée] burst into flight little more than a foot away him. Well camouflaged, it was incubating 10 eggs. Dave moved on so the grouse could get back on her nest. That day, he found only 6 open Trout Lily flowers, but since then has seen several more.

CANADA GEESE [Bernache du Canada] are beginning to take their young on the water. On May 13, Dave watched a pair of adults escorting 4 young on the Larsen Marsh pond and 2 days later a pair with 5 young were on a private pond closer to the Shepody River.

Barb Jennings visited Wilson’s Marsh in Moncton on May 14 and was able to photograph a family of Canada geese in discussion whose turn it was to babysit. On May 15 she visited the Salisbury Pond off McDonald Street and was able to see 2 SORA. This secretive rail can be very difficult to photograph but Barb did get an excellent photo of one. This is a popular nesting site for Red- winged Blackbirds and Barb was able to get a photo of one male in flight displaying its bright epaulets.

Aldo Dorio photographed a Red Fox on Sunday morning at Hay Island. It appears like it may be a female that has/is attending a spring litter as it appears a bit lean and pelage seems to be ruffled; however was a cooperative photographic subject.

nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Nelson Poirier,

Nature Moncton