NATURE
MONCTON INFORMATION LINE, September 14,
2020 (Monday)
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Edited by: Nelson Poirier nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com
Transcript by: david.cannon@rogers.com
Info Line # 506-384-6397 (384-NEWS)
** After Clifford Twist’s report of the SANDHILL CRANES [Grue du Canada] in the
Tantramar area, Louise Nichols paid a visit and spotted them as well. They did
not linger. She stayed in her car but they flew off, possibly to another nearby
field. Louise took a walk on Lake Road after, to get some great photos of BLACK-AND-WHITE [Paruline noir et blanc], NORTHERN PARULA [Paruline à collier], BLACKPOLL [Paruline rayée],
CHESTNUT-SIDED [Paruline à
flancs marron] and PALM [Paruline à couronne rousse] WARBLERS,
as well as a BLUE-HEADED VIREO
[Viréo à tête bleue]. Note the huge change in the fall version of the
Blackpoll Warbler. The fall non-breeding plumage of our wood warblers do become
muted versions of their spring finery but the Blackpoll and Bay-breasted
Warblers tend to take the molt more seriously!
** Jane LeBlanc got a striking photo of a BLUE-HEADED VIREO [Viréo à tête bleue] on Sunday,
nicely showing the large, stout vireo bill, white spectacles of the Blue-Headed
Vireo, and the white wing bars that the RED-EYED [Viréo aux yeux rouges], PHILADELPHIA [Viréo de Philadelphie] and
WARBLING [Viréo mélodieux]
VIREOS do
not have. Jane still had a lingering RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD [Colibri à gorge rubis] on Sunday
in her St. Martin’s yard.
** Ruth
Rogers sent the attached photos of a caterpillar. It was approximately 7.5
cm. long with a false eye feature at the rear, which had fallen from a
Saint John River Grape tree onto her deck. Unfortunately, the photos pixelated
badly and many experts were unwilling to comment, but one felt the apparent association
with grapes, the size, and false eye suggest it may be the caterpillar of the ABBOTT’S
SPHINX MOTH. The guides say Abbott's Sphinx Moth is not present in New
Brunswick, but it is not far away, so something to watch for in the future!
** Brian Stone was in the Cap Pele area birding on
Sunday to find it fairly quiet but was surprised to see a quite worn but very
intact BLACK SWALLOWTAIL BUTTERFLY [Papillon du céleri] flying and
nectaring.
** There
are lots of galls on plants that usually are made by an insect of some type,
and if cut open, a larva will usually easily be seen. They come in every size shape
that one could imagine. Aldo Dorio sends a photo of a large round gall on a
Rose bush. Some birds do seek out the larvae housed in the galls.
** The BROCADE
TOADFLAX MOTH CATERPILLER [Calophasia lunula] that I gathered on Wednesday and
put into a dish with its food plant BUTTER AND EGGS [Linoria vulgaris], on
which it fed heavily, went into its cocoon stage for the winter on Sunday. It ended
up to be a compact 1 cm long package. It may not be much to look at, but when
you stop to think about what has happened and the changes that will occur
inside that cocoon, to have an adult moth fly out next spring is incredible.
Nelson Poirier,
Nature Moncton
