Nature Moncton Nature News: Feb 12 2023

NATURE MONCTON NATURE NEWS

Feb 12, 2023

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Edited by Nelson Poirier nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Proofreading courtesy of Louise Nichols at nicholsl@eastlink.ca

**On Saturday evening at about 9:00 pm, Brian Stone once again headed up to the Indian Mountain Rd. to see if he could freeze his fingers off trying for one last photo of the Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) as it passed close to the planet Mars. Friday night would have been better, but the clouds and snow cancelled that possibility, and it was unusual luck that the sky cleared for the second-best night. Of course, in the winter clear means cold and Brian managed to remember to bring his electronic hand warmers this time to help keep the digits thawed. The comet's brightness is fading fast, and Brian figures this will be the last time he tries for a photo as it is already past the ability of his equipment to record it properly. Hopefully, a brighter visitor will come along sometime soon.

**Pat Gibbs was able to capture some rather rapid activity of 2 raptors squabbling over the same prey, which appears to be a darkly plumaged Rock Pigeon.

Gilles Belliveau provides several points that may suggest these birds be Cooper’s Hawks over Sharp-shinned Hawks.

Gilles points out the hawk is "considerably larger than the Rock Pigeon prey (Sharp-shinned would be slightly smaller for a male and slightly larger for a female if I remember correctly).

Also, the bird does indeed have a very dark cap, and while it’s not the best angle, the dark cap does seem to stop at the nape where it appears to get paler (but that could just be the angle not showing the back of the nape properly).

It also has a rather large-looking bill with a Roman nose appearance formed by the smooth line from the top of the bill to the crown (Sharpie has a smaller bill that doesn’t typically merge into the crown, the same with the forehead being steeper).

The tail feathers also have rather broad white tips (which is not necessarily reliable on its own), and the length of the feathers also really appear to get progressively shorter (more so than what I would expect on a Sharpie when the tail is fanned out like that which will make the feathers further out from centre appear shorter.)"

(Editor’s note: thank you Gilles for the helpful points in differentiating these two species in compromising positions to help with identification!)

**A male Wood Duck is still being seen a few times on the Newcastle waterfront (which is freezing over), chumming with approximately two hundred Mallard ducks and a few Black Ducks. Deana and Peter Gadd dropped by Saturday to see check it out. People have been feeding them often with appropriate food.

Peter got a close-up zoomed-in photo, and the Wood Duck’s feet in one of the photos seems to show evidence of the possibility of the cold snap creating some damage.

**Sue Richards reports the Nature Moncton Bird Feeder Tour outing on Saturday, February 11, 2023, was a great success. At 8 am, there was a little snow falling and by 1 pm, the sun was shining bright. The first stop was in Stilesville at the Renton's, with many colourful birds enjoyed while having a pancake, beans, and sausage breakfast with muffins, sweets, beverages, and much socializing! There were stops at more feeder yards, the Burris' and the Berube's with cookies and hot chocolate, the Poussart's, then to Nelson's for French Onion Soup, beverages, and desserts while observing the various birds at the feeder stations in his yard.

There were a total of 29 people attending throughout the day, and 3 memberships were written and introduced. A very pleasant day.

Lots of photographs were taken as a memory of the day and participants also had a chance to see many new ideas for bird feeding. Many photographs are shared today for perusal, and expect more to come. Definitely, a day to add to the bank of pleasant memories!

Jamie Burris was able to see things from a slightly different perspective as he was housebound and able to photograph a woodpecker playing peekaboo with the group of birding photographers lined up outside his backyard.

Two non-breeding Chipping Sparrows cooperated for photographs nicely. Gordon Rattray points out that the Chipping Sparrow, unlike its close kin, the American Tree Sparrow, does not have a black spot on the breast (belly button) and is the only sparrow to have the black eye line extend right to the beak. Also of note is the winter Chipping Sparrow has a flesh-coloured lower mandible and dark on the upper mandible (culmen). A Grey Squirrel watched the birders at one station.

**Northern Cardinals are always eye candy to see in the Moncton area. Bob Childs was able to photograph a male Northern Cardinal as it fed at the feeder of Peggy Reid and Dennis Single in Riverview.

Nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Nelson Poirier

Nature Moncton