Nature Moncton Nature News: March 12 2024

NATURE MONCTON NATURE NEWS

March 12, 2024

Nature Moncton members as well as any naturalist in New Brunswick or beyond are invited to share their photos and descriptions of recent nature sightings to build a fresh (almost) daily edition of Nature News

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Proofreading courtesy of Louise Nichols at nicholsl@eastlink.ca

**Lance Harris captured two striking photographs of a pair of Pileated Woodpeckers to clearly show the difference in genders. The red-crested crown is not as extensive in the female and the lack of a red mustache distinguishes the female.

Lance points out they are regular visitors twice a day to his Dieppe feeder yard where they enjoy two Sobeys bird pies covered with peanut butter, taking about a week at tops to destroy them. Lance also has three pairs of Downy Woodpeckers which love peanut butter as much as the Black-capped Chickadees.

**We commonly see Dark-eyed Juncos on the ground or low branches. Norbert Dupuis captured one in flight to nicely show the double white rectrices bordering the tail.

He also got photos of American Goldfinch that would appear to be beginning to molt to their brighter yellow breeding plumage A Black-capped Chickadee paused for a nice flight photo.

**Richard Blacquiere reports all three ponds at the Hampton sewage treatment facility are now completely ice-free. Several duck species can be found there now, including American Wigeon, Lesser Scaup, Common Goldeneye, and Bufflehead, along with the Mallards and Black Ducks that were winter residents. Richard was able to photograph a pair of Northern Shovelers which were the only ones close enough on Monday for reasonable photos.

(Editor’s note: this must indicate a very special point of the season as many species of waterfowl that did not migrate far will be filling these spring waterfowl magnets quickly.)

**On Monday, March 11 just as the sun peeked through clouds, Fred and Sue Richards saw another Woolly Bear caterpillar which curled into a circle when picked up.

(Editor’s note: this past season has produced an amazing number of Woolly Bear Caterpillars which are the larvae of the Isabella Tiger Moth that overwinters as the larval caterpillar.)

The Richards walked down to the Memramcook River just before the rain and snow fell to observe the very high tide making the twisty river look like a lake. There were approximately 20 ducks and a raft of a dozen Canada Geese on the water and a few seagulls flying above. On their walk back home they saw a Skunk scurry from one ditch across the access road to the other side with its tail slightly raised and disappear under an outbuilding. Sue comments “This was another wonderful day in Taylor Village.”

Nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Nelson Poirier

Nature Moncton