NATURE MONCTON NATURE NEWS
September 29, 2025
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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your message to the information line editor, nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com .
Please advise the editor at nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com
if any errors are noted in wording or photo labelling.
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Proofreading
courtesy of Louise Nichols at nicholsl@eastlink.ca
**Norbert
Dupuis in Memramcook surely experienced an eastern bluebird bonanza when
he had a dozen or more arrive at his yard bird bath on Sunday, suppertime. The
majority appear to be young-of-the-year birds still showing some slight white
spotting, but a few seem to have completely molted into adult plumage or are
indeed adult male individuals.
What
very pleasant photos!
**Brian
Coyle came across some Canada mayflower berries on Saturday. Brian
comments, “It seems that they are somewhat edible, but in moderation, as they
have a laxative property. I don't recall ever seeing them before.”
(Editor’s
note: Some folks refer to these berries as false lily-of-the-valley.)
**John
Inman had a common grackle drop by, but not many birds for photo ops, as sharp-shinned
hawks monitor the yard daily. An autumn meadowhawk dragonfly was
welcomed.
A
paper wasp and a yellowjacket wasp were fished out of the
hummingbird feeder.
**Pat
Gibbs photographed a crane fly she found crawling over one of the crocuses in her yard and asks a very interesting question: “Do crane flies seek nectar
and are they pollinators?”
We
have a number of crane fly species in New Brunswick, and the literature
suggests the answer depends upon the species. Some crane fly species do not
feed on their adult mating mission, while other species do seek out nectar on
flowers, which would make those species pollinators.
**Tar
spot is a very common condition seen on the leaves of Norway maple at this time
of year. It can also be seen on red maple and silver maple, but not commonly.
This
condition is caused by a fungus and is disfiguring but does no harm to the
tree, thus it is considered a cosmetic problem. Some literature suggests carefully
raking up the leaves under affected trees, but the editor suggests that
attempting to eliminate a fungal problem in this manner would be rather futile.
A
photo of the tar spot lesions on a Norway maple tree is included.
Nelson Poirier
Nature Moncton
