Nature Moncton Nature News: August 20 2023

NATURE MONCTON NATURE NEWS

August 20, 2023

To respond by e-mail, please address your message to the information line editor, nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com .

Please advise both the editor at nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com and the proofreader nicholsl@eastlink.ca if any errors are noted in wording or photo labelling.

For more information on Nature Moncton, check the website at www.naturemoncton.com .

Edited by Nelson Poirier nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Proofreading courtesy of Louise Nichols at nicholsl@eastlink.ca

**Barbara Smith captured a photo of a White Admiral Butterfly beautifully showing a hind wing view while it was settling down on the arm of her yellow Adirondack chair. Barbara’s husband said it seemed to be sipping the dew at first and then flew off only to return a few minutes later for a sunbathing session.

(Editor’s note: the yellow band on the lower half should be white, but the camera is picking up the yellow reflection from the chair.)

**Anita and David Cannon have several Paper Wasp nests in their pool cabana. Most of these are usually attended by one to four wasps, but suddenly they have wasps everywhere, not just on the nests but inside all the cabana - it appears like all the cells are hatching.

(Editor’s note: paper wasps are vespid wasps. They gather fibers from deadwood and plant stems, which they mix with saliva and used to construct nests made of grey or brown paper-like material that are suspended umbrella-like.

They are not as aggressive as their vespid kin and normally will ignore humans and pets unless the nest is physically disturbed.)

**Gordon Rattray shares a few photos taken in August that are of interest.

•The Hemlock Woolly Adelgid is an insect that is very threatening to the future of the Hemlock tree. It has moved up the eastern seaboard and is present in areas of southwestern Nova Scotia, and it is expected to be only a matter of time before it reaches New Brunswick if it has not already. Gordon's photo shows the white woolly mass at the base of Hemlock needles to indicate the presence of this insect. This insect has a stage that is active in the winter, which accelerates insect numbers.

•The seed capsules of the shrub Witch Hazel that were formed last year are now ready to burst and shoot seeds for a surprising distance. Gordon’s photo shows some seed capsules ready to ‘explode’.

•The Pitcher Plant is a carnivorous bog plant. Gordon’s photo shows one in bloom.

•The Fragrant Waterlily is a beautiful plant that is now in full bloom. It inhabits quiet, still backwaters.

-The Royal Fern can be found in wet areas, often along streams and around lakes. It sends up separate sporophytes that mature this time of year, as Gordon's photo shows.

**Mussels are very common residents of the bottom sediments of our New Brunswick water bodies, but we seldom talk about them as we just don’t see them in their underwater world.

A muskrat may be an herbivore, but it does have a taste for mussels and brings them to shore in groups called middens which they will feast on as they start to open partially. We then get to see mussel shells with a chance to identify the several different species we have.

Brian Stone and Nelson Poirier came upon such an open shell on the Oromocto River and felt it was a floater species but were surprised at how large it was. A consult with Dwayne Sabine provided the explanation.

Dwayne commented, “It's an Eastern Floater Mussel, (Pyganodon cataracta). It is a common species that can become quite large in fertile, rich water bodies. Its thin, light shell allows it to inhabit mud or even organic ooze substrates.”

Nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Nelson Poirier

Nature Moncton