NATURE MONCTON INFORMATION LINE, February
26, 2021 (Friday)
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Edited by: Nelson Poirier nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com
Transcript by: Louise Nichols nicholsl@eastlink.ca
Info Line # 506-384-6397 (384-NEWS)
** Jane Wood reports she is still
having a pair of NORTHERN CARDINAL [Cardinal rouge] patronizing her Riverview yard at least 4 times a
week, feeding mostly on the ground. A
pair of RED-BREASTED
NUTHATCHES [Sittelle à poitrine rousse] are regular and one WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH [Sittelle
à poitrine blanche] occasionally. She has not seen or heard the Riverview CAROLINA WRENS [Troglodyte
de Caroline] of last
winter recently.
Jane had another
interesting visitor the past few days.
The first photos that were through a window made us consider a SONG SPARROW [Bruant
chanteur] at first,
but some later photos were convincing of a SAVANNAH SPARROW [Bruant des prés]
and are attached. We do not often get Savannah Sparrows to bird
feeder yards. Gilles Belliveau helped us
confirm it as Savannah Sparrow over Song Sparrow and will quote Gilles below to
learn from his comments. Quoting Gilles:
“I am fairly
sure it’s actually a Savannah Sparrow. It seems to lack the richer brown tones
that a Song Sparrow would have and is more of black and gray on top with just a
bit of a light brown contrasting patch on the primaries. There is a slight
pinkish tone to the bill, there seems to be a pale yellow tone in the
supraloral (more noticeable in one image), the lateral throat stripe seems
rather thin. The streaking on the flanks seems blacker in tone. The tail seems
a bit short for a Song and seems thin and has a slight notch. The mention of a
central spot is not unexpected as the Savannah Sparrow will sometimes have a
concentration of streaks in the center of the chest which can also sometimes
almost appear like a spot in the center of the chest.”
** Jim Carroll has a lot of DARK-EYED JUNCOS [Junco
ardoisé] coming to
his Quispamsis yard, and has been able to pick out some special ones. A Dark-eyed Junco (cismontanus)
Oregon/Slate-coloured showed up at his feeders with a tribe of other juncos. It has been confirmed by eBird and is only
the 2nd reported in the Maritimes by eBird. The other was in Nova Scotia in 2018. Jim thanks Paul Mansz and David Bell for
assisting in the identification. David
Bell comments “Not quite a pure Oregon due to the dirty flanks (instead of
clean rufous), extensive brown on the head, and sort of an odd bib shape.” Jim also got his bird beside a bright PINE WARBLER [Paruline des
pins] as a
value-added bonus.
**Georges Brun noted the travelling duck troupe on the
Petitcodiac River bank out from Chateau Moncton. On Sunday, a subadult BALD
EAGLE flew in to check out the menu. Georges assumes it to be a subadult
4 year old bird due to the near complete yellow bill.
The Red Fox was successful in its capture of a
rodent. Quite big! Not sure what species it could be. It was
more concerned about its victim than the male Ring-Necked Pheasant walking
about.
A Short-Eared Owl was also hunting the marsh.
With the weather getting warmer with some hard pack bank ice is already
breaking downriver east of the bend of the Petitcodiac River.
** Cynthia MacKenzie adds to the conversation regarding the Japanese pheasant.
She has also seen one in the Lutes Mountain (Zack Rd. area) in the last few months.
She is keeping an eye out to get a good picture to share as it is full size/healthy
looking, and very dark in colour and comments “absolutely beautiful!”
After viewing the reports, Cynthia read about the Japanese hybrids but was not
certain they were here in NB but now more convinced that is exactly what she saw.
There are likely a few individuals in the area.
** The duck troupe certainly is making
itself at home, moving in groups around the city to spots of their liking. Susan Richards photographed 100+ in the yard
of the new strip mall on Champlain St. on Thursday morning. They tend to run over 95% MALLARDS [Canard colvert] with a few AMERICAN BLACK DUCKS
[Canard noir], but it’s
always worth perusing the group to see what surprises may be tagging along.
** It’s Friday and time to check in on
what next week’s sky will share with us, courtesy of sky-guru Curt Nason. The full moon at the moment makes the
evenings bright on the snow, but we still can see Mars, Orion, etc. in the
evenings, and Mercury and Jupiter for early risers.
This
Week’s Sky at a Glance, 2021 February 27 – 2021 March 6
Two of the largest constellations are seen in the southwest and southeast
around mid-evening. Eridanus the River flows from Rigel in Orion’s foot to the
lower right, and then makes a sharp curve to the left before disappearing below
the horizon. It doesn’t end there; it extends at least the same distance
southward to terminate at Achernar, the ninth brightest star in the sky.
Achernar, of course, means “the river’s end.” The star near Rigel is named
Cursa, which means “the footstool.” In terms of square degrees of sky,
Eridanus is the sixth largest constellation. It has been associated with many
earthly rivers but most often with the Po River in Italy, which the Greeks
called Eridanos.
Hydra the female Water Snake rises out of the southeast, with its head reaching
as high as Orion’s. A smaller constellation called Hydrus the male Water Snake
is near Achernar and is never seen from New Brunswick. Hydra is the largest of
the 88 constellations and one of the longest. If you consider the horizon as
the ocean surface, and if you have all night, you can picture Hydra leaping
completely out of the water and disappearing in a giant belly flop. Its
brightest star, Alphard the “solitary one,” just makes the top 50 in terms of
brightness. In mythology the Hydra was a multi-headed creature slain by
Hercules as his second labour.
This Week in the Solar System
Saturday’s sunrise in Moncton is at 7:01 am and sunset will occur at 6:03 pm,
giving 11 hours, 2 minutes of daylight (7:05 am and 6:09 pm in Saint
John). Next Saturday the Sun will rise at 6:48 am and set at 6:12 pm,
giving 11 hours, 24 minutes of daylight (6:52 am and 6:18 pm in Saint John).
The Moon is full this Saturday, the Snow Moon or Mi’kmaw Snow Blinding Moon,
and it is at third quarter next Friday. Mars makes a scenic, colour-contrasting
binocular view with the Pleaides all this week, making its closest pass on
Thursday. Mercury is in close conjunction with Jupiter on Friday morning, one
day before its greatest elongation from the Sun. Both rise an hour before
sunrise, and Saturn sits about seven degrees to their upper right. For the
first two weeks of March we have the opportunity to view the subtle wedge of
zodiacal light in the west about 45 minutes after sunset, tapering up toward
Mars and the Pleiades. A clear sky free of light pollution is required to view
this phenomenon of sunlight reflecting off asteroid and comet dust along the
ecliptic.
With astronomy meetings and outreach activities on hold, you can watch the
local Sunday Night Astronomy Show at 8 pm, and view archived shows, on YouTube
at: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAEHfOWyL-kNH7dBVHK8spg
Questions? Contact Curt Nason at nasonc@nbnet.nb.ca.
nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com
Nelson Poirier,
Nature Moncton
DARK-EYED JUNCO (CISMONTANUS). FEB. 20, 2021. JIM CARROLL
DARK-EYED JUNCO (CISMONTANUS) AND PINE WARBLER. FEB. 20, 2021. JIM CARROLL
SAVANNAH SPARROW. FEB. 24, 2021. JANE WOOD
SAVANNAH SPARROW. FEB. 24, 2021. JANE WOOD
SAVANNAH SPARROW. FEB. 24, 2021. JANE WOOD
DUCK TROUPE. FEB. 25, 2021. SUSAN RICHARDS
MALLARD DUCKS AND AMERICAN BLACK DUCKS. FEB. 25, 2021. GEORGES BRUN
BALD EAGLE (SUBADULT). FEB. 25, 2021. GEORGES BRUN
RED FOX AND PREY. FEB. 25, 2021. GEORGES BRUN
Hydra_Eridanus
