Nature Moncton Nature
News
Clicking
on the photos enlarges them for closer observation. Please note that clicking
on any photo enlarges it full screen and then clicking on the black area on
either side of the photo brings one right back to the main page.
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.
If you would like to share
observations/photos with Nature News, contact the editor, nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com
Please advise the editor
at nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com, as well as proofreader nicholsl@eastlink.ca, if any errors are noted in wording or photo
labelling.
Proofreading courtesy of
Louise Nichols at nicholsl@eastlink.ca
**Brian Coyle has had the
great pleasure to have fledgling merlins in his backyard for the third
year in a row. He took a video of the action on Friday, with the juvenile on
the left and a parent on the right. If you look closely, there is still one
downy white feather left on the head of the juvenile. It is quite amusing to
watch the juvenile's reaction to the parent attempting a stretch.
https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/f3k5okph3vq4mwtog68de/MERLINS.-JULY25-2026.-BRIAN-COYLE.MOV?rlkey=3mnlf5mvykbjc3p7g8xr7b9tq&st=n1huvcln&dl=0
**Lisa Morris does not often
see monarch butterflies on her milkweed patch so she was thrilled to see
a female laying eggs Friday morning.
Things are looking good
with a notable number of monarch butterfly reports recently.
**John Inman photographed
a few observations in his Harvey yard, including a female yellow warbler,
a young purple finch, a suspected potter-mason wasp, a white
plume moth, and Stumpy the 3-legged raccoon waiting for another
breakfast sandwich.
**Anita Cannon was
watering her garden Saturday evening, and she saw several, perhaps a half
dozen, clumps of suspected honeybees hanging out in her Oregano bed.
David Cannon photographed one clump, but the others were similar. It seems
unusual (to them) that the bees don't have a home to go back to at the end of
the day.
(Editor’s note: On checking
with beekeeper Glenn Nichols, he felt this appears to be a swarming group of
honeybees. They will take on more secure living quarters when a leader Queen
takes over. Maybe the Cannons have an extra hive/spare room for them!)
**David Lilly was
wandering around on Whitehead Island. He came across two plants of white
fireweed. White fireweed is rare in Canada.
David came across an
interesting write-up on the white fireweed that is quoted below:
“While standard fireweed (Chamerion
angustifolium) is abundant across Canada, the white-flowered form (Chamerion
angustifolium f. albiflorum) is uncommon to rare in the wild.
Key Details About White
Fireweed
·
Genetic
Mutation: White fireweed is a
naturally occurring albino variant (a recessive genetic mutation) that lacks
the pink/magenta anthocyanin pigments found in standard fireweed.
·
Wild
Occurrence: In nature across Canadian
provinces and territories, white fireweed typically appears as individual
stalks or small isolated patches among vast fields of pink fireweed. Because
fireweed spreads via underground rhizomes, a single white plant can form a small
localized clone colony, but wide distribution remains rare.
·
Seed Viability
& Competition: Studies and
botanical observations suggest that seeds produced by wild albino plants often
have lower viability or are less competitive than standard pink varieties,
keeping the wild population low.”
nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com
Nelson Poirier
Nature Moncton
Nature Moncton Nature
News
Clicking
on the photos enlarges them for closer observation. Please note that clicking
on any photo enlarges it full screen and then clicking on the black area on
either side of the photo brings one right back to the main page.
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.
If you would like to share
observations/photos with Nature News, contact the editor, nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com
Please advise the editor
at nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com, as well as proofreader nicholsl@eastlink.ca, if any errors are noted in wording or photo
labelling.
Proofreading courtesy of
Louise Nichols at nicholsl@eastlink.ca
**Brian Coyle has had the
great pleasure to have fledgling merlins in his backyard for the third
year in a row. He took a video of the action on Friday, with the juvenile on
the left and a parent on the right. If you look closely, there is still one
downy white feather left on the head of the juvenile. It is quite amusing to
watch the juvenile's reaction to the parent attempting a stretch.
https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/f3k5okph3vq4mwtog68de/MERLINS.-JULY25-2026.-BRIAN-COYLE.MOV?rlkey=3mnlf5mvykbjc3p7g8xr7b9tq&st=n1huvcln&dl=0
MERLIN. JULY 25, 2026. BRIAN COYLE
MERLIN. JULY 25, 2026. BRIAN COYLE
MERLIN. JULY 25, 2026. BRIAN COYLE
**Lisa Morris does not often
see monarch butterflies on her milkweed patch so she was thrilled to see
a female laying eggs Friday morning.
Things are looking good
with a notable number of monarch butterfly reports recently.
MONARCH BUTTERFLY (FEMALE) . JULY 25, 2026. LISA MORRIS
**John Inman photographed
a few observations in his Harvey yard, including a female yellow warbler,
a young purple finch, a suspected potter-mason wasp, a white
plume moth, and Stumpy the 3-legged raccoon waiting for another
breakfast sandwich.
PLUME MOTH. JULY 25, 2026. JOHN INMAN
POTTER MASON WASP (SUSPECTED). JULY 25, 2026. JOHN INMAN
YELLOW WARBLER (FEMALE). JULY 25, 2026. JOHN INMAN
PURPLE FINCH (FLEDGLING). JULY 25, 2026. JOHN INMAN
RACCOON (STUMPY). JULY 25, 2026. JOHN INMAN
**Anita Cannon was
watering her garden Saturday evening, and she saw several, perhaps a half
dozen, clumps of suspected honeybees hanging out in her Oregano bed.
David Cannon photographed one clump, but the others were similar. It seems
unusual (to them) that the bees don't have a home to go back to at the end of
the day.
(Editor’s note: On checking
with beekeeper Glenn Nichols, he felt this appears to be a swarming group of
honeybees. They will take on more secure living quarters when a leader Queen
takes over. Maybe the Cannons have an extra hive/spare room for them!)
HONEYBEES IN OREGANO. JULY 25, 2026. DAVID CANNON
**David Lilly was
wandering around on Whitehead Island. He came across two plants of white
fireweed. White fireweed is rare in Canada.
FIREWEED ( RARE WHITE MORPH). JULY 25, 2026. DAVID LILLY
David came across an
interesting write-up on the white fireweed that is quoted below:
“While standard fireweed (Chamerion
angustifolium) is abundant across Canada, the white-flowered form (Chamerion
angustifolium f. albiflorum) is uncommon to rare in the wild.
Key Details About White
Fireweed
·
Genetic
Mutation: White fireweed is a
naturally occurring albino variant (a recessive genetic mutation) that lacks
the pink/magenta anthocyanin pigments found in standard fireweed.
·
Wild
Occurrence: In nature across Canadian
provinces and territories, white fireweed typically appears as individual
stalks or small isolated patches among vast fields of pink fireweed. Because
fireweed spreads via underground rhizomes, a single white plant can form a small
localized clone colony, but wide distribution remains rare.
·
Seed Viability
& Competition: Studies and
botanical observations suggest that seeds produced by wild albino plants often
have lower viability or are less competitive than standard pink varieties,
keeping the wild population low.”
Nature Moncton Nature
News
Clicking
on the photos enlarges them for closer observation. Please note that clicking
on any photo enlarges it full screen and then clicking on the black area on
either side of the photo brings one right back to the main page.
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.
If you would like to share
observations/photos with Nature News, contact the editor, nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com
Please advise the editor
at nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com, as well as proofreader nicholsl@eastlink.ca, if any errors are noted in wording or photo
labelling.
Proofreading courtesy of
Louise Nichols at nicholsl@eastlink.ca
**Brian Coyle has had the
great pleasure to have fledgling merlins in his backyard for the third
year in a row. He took a video of the action on Friday, with the juvenile on
the left and a parent on the right. If you look closely, there is still one
downy white feather left on the head of the juvenile. It is quite amusing to
watch the juvenile's reaction to the parent attempting a stretch.
https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/f3k5okph3vq4mwtog68de/MERLINS.-JULY25-2026.-BRIAN-COYLE.MOV?rlkey=3mnlf5mvykbjc3p7g8xr7b9tq&st=n1huvcln&dl=0
**Lisa Morris does not often
see monarch butterflies on her milkweed patch so she was thrilled to see
a female laying eggs Friday morning.
Things are looking good
with a notable number of monarch butterfly reports recently.
**John Inman photographed
a few observations in his Harvey yard, including a female yellow warbler,
a young purple finch, a suspected potter-mason wasp, a white
plume moth, and Stumpy the 3-legged raccoon waiting for another
breakfast sandwich.
**Anita Cannon was
watering her garden Saturday evening, and she saw several, perhaps a half
dozen, clumps of suspected honeybees hanging out in her Oregano bed.
David Cannon photographed one clump, but the others were similar. It seems
unusual (to them) that the bees don't have a home to go back to at the end of
the day.
(Editor’s note: On checking
with beekeeper Glenn Nichols, he felt this appears to be a swarming group of
honeybees. They will take on more secure living quarters when a leader Queen
takes over. Maybe the Cannons have an extra hive/spare room for them!)
**David Lilly was
wandering around on Whitehead Island. He came across two plants of white
fireweed. White fireweed is rare in Canada.
David came across an
interesting write-up on the white fireweed that is quoted below:
“While standard fireweed (Chamerion
angustifolium) is abundant across Canada, the white-flowered form (Chamerion
angustifolium f. albiflorum) is uncommon to rare in the wild.
Key Details About White
Fireweed
·
Genetic
Mutation: White fireweed is a
naturally occurring albino variant (a recessive genetic mutation) that lacks
the pink/magenta anthocyanin pigments found in standard fireweed.
·
Wild
Occurrence: In nature across Canadian
provinces and territories, white fireweed typically appears as individual
stalks or small isolated patches among vast fields of pink fireweed. Because
fireweed spreads via underground rhizomes, a single white plant can form a small
localized clone colony, but wide distribution remains rare.
·
Seed Viability
& Competition: Studies and
botanical observations suggest that seeds produced by wild albino plants often
have lower viability or are less competitive than standard pink varieties,
keeping the wild population low.”
nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com
Nelson Poirier
Nature Moncton
nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com
Nelson Poirier
Nature Moncton
