NATURE MONCTON’S INFORMATION LINE, April 11, 2015 (Saturday)
To view the photos mentioned in this edition go to
http://nminfoline.blogspot.ca/
Edited by: Nelson Poirier nelson@nb.sympatico.ca
Transcribed by: Catherine Clements
<dearlittlebirds@gmail.com>
Info Line #: 384-NEWS (6397)
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information
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For more information on Nature Moncton [Moncton Naturalists'
Club
since 1962], visit the web site at http://naturemoncton.org/
or
contact our president John Foster at 384-7212. For
membership
inquiries, contact Shirley Hunt shirleyhunt2012@gmail.com.
**Dave Miller had a first yard visit from a YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER
[Pic maculé] on Friday at 8:45 a.m., one of New Brunswick's
Woodpeckers [Pic] that migrate south for the winter months. Great to
hear this special Woodpecker is rejoining us for the season.
**Anne Marsch had a fallout of PURPLE FINCH [Roselin pourpré] arrive
to her Lower Coverdale feeder yard when at least 17 arrived on
Friday.
They were all in female or immature male plumage. Note the individual
to the far right in Anne's picture. The immature male does not take
on
its full adult colour until its second fall of life, so that could be
a male thinking about the process early. However, I understand some
females can take on some reddish blushes occasionally as well.
**Marla Rossiter got a photo of 14 TURKEY VULTURES [Urubu à tête
rouge] last Saturday, perched on the Charlie McLean fence line on the
eastern bluff overlooking Chapman Creek and the marsh, which is just
past Broadleaf Farms when heading to Alma. Chapman Creek is actually
the border between Hopewell Hill and Riverside-Albert. On Thursday
evening she drove by the area and they were all circling overhead.
**An interesting Turkey Vulture scenario for Louise Nichols on
Friday:
she was walking her dog on the street in front of her home in
Sackville's outskirts, being careful to avoid a smelly dead Skunk
[Mouffette] on the road when she spotted two Turkey Vultures looking
over the booty. She passed the area later to note the Skunk had been
picked over but not completely devoured. The Vultures were glad to
cooperate for a photo and get the prize left for them as well.
**Dave Christie also spotted 13 Turkey Vultures flying in an easterly
direction on the Shepody Highlands at Hopewell Hill on Friday later
in
the day; this may be the same group Marla Rossiter spoke of. Dave
also
came across a trio of BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS [Jaseur boréal] moving around
Riverside-Albert on Friday. At one point he saw at least one of them
appearing to sip sap from winter-injured areas of a tree. He comments
they are known to do that. He later saw three taking fallen winter
apples that were appearing in weathering snow under an apple tree.
**The number of Bohemian Waxwings in our urban yard continues to
drop,
however, 20-25 are still coming, but not spending as long at the
fruit. On Saturday morning they contentedly dove into an overripe
banana among the apples as their breakfast treat of choice. I
expected
them to be gone by now but they're still hanging in. The two fruit
trays only have to be replenished once a day now.
**Susan Linkletter reminds us it is that time of year when
WHITE-TAILED DEER [Chevreuil] are starting to appear more, looking
for
any bare ground patches, and with deep soft snow still in many areas,
Deer are on roadways seeking out hard surfaces to travel. Take care
when driving, keeping an eye out for them.
**Brian Stone had a pair of HOUSE FINCH [Roselin familier] attending
his feeder. His photo of the male from the back and front shows how
the reddish is mostly on the front in some males and can be very
widely distributed in other males. The male plumage varies a lot in the
House Finch, some even showing orange tones.
The females tend to be a single issue.
Brian shares more photos from our Thursday Albert co.
visit.
You may want to set your television to see or save the land and sea program on CBC-TV at noon on Sunday , April 12. It is called ‘Cry in the Night’ and deals with the cougar in the Maritimes. Don MacAlpine is interviewed in a segment of it. The attached URL says more. Thanks to Alonzo Leger for this alert.
This week's ‘Sky a Glance’ is added to this with
transcription. I would like to thank New Brunswick astronomy guru Curt Nason for
being so kind to review this report each week for accuracy before goes out. This
report is modified to view the sky from New Brunswick from three websites one of
which is the Saint John astronomy club of which Curt is a very active
member.
This Week’s Sky
at a Glance, April 10 – 18
Venus and the Pleiades are at their
closest together. The stars appear to slide down to the lower right from day to
day, while Venus hangs almost in place.
You can you still catch faint Mars
departing near the horizon this week. Look early and use
binoculars.
During and after late twilight, look for
the Pleiades to the upper right of bright Venus in the west about two
finger-widths at arm's length.
Upper left of Venus is 1st-magnitude
Aldebaran, an orange-yellow in colour.
The Moon will go into its Last-quarter
Phase on Sunday, April 12 just after midnight meaning it will rise at midnight
and set at noon.
By Monday, April 13, Venus stands smack
on the line from the Pleiades to Aldebaran, less than a third of the way from
the former to the latter.
After dark as spring advances, the Big
Dipper high in the northeast is tipping over as if to dump water into the dim
Little Dipper's bowl, which is swinging up far below
it.
Bright Arcturus is climbing high in the
east these evenings, and equally bright Capella is descending high in the
northwest. They stand at exactly the same height above your horizon at some
moment between about 10:00 and 11:30 p.m.
As twilight fades into night, look high
in the west for Pollux and Castor lined up almost horizontally. They're well to
the lower right of bright Jupiter. Pollux and Castor (the heads of the
now-almost-upright Gemini twins) form the top of the enormous Arch of Spring.
The two ends of the Arch are Procyon to their lower left and brighter Capella
farther to their lower right.
On Saturday, April 18, the Moon will go
into its New Phase meaning we will not see it at all during the night. Expect
higher high tides and lower low tides.
On Saturday, April 11, the sun rose at 6:39 a.m. and
will set at 8:01 p.m. giving 13 hours 22 minutes of daylight. On Saturday, April 18, the sun will rise at
6:26 a.m. and will set at 8:10 p.m. to give 13 hours 43 minutes of daylight
hours. (These values are for Moncton, New Brunswick).
This Week's Planet
Roundup
Mercury
is hidden deep in the glow of sunset.
Venus
(magnitude –4.1) blazes in the west during and after twilight — the "Evening
Star." It doesn't set in the west-northwest until nearly two hours after dark.
The Pleiades pass to its right on April 10th and 11th. Aldebaran is to Venus's
left around April 16th.
Mars
(magnitude +1.4, less than 1% as bright as Venus) is sinking away into the
sunset. It's 22° to the lower right of Venus on April 10th and 25° from it by
the 17th. Binoculars will help.
Jupiter
(magnitude –2.3) shines high in the south at dusk. It's the brightest point of
light high on that side of the sky.
Saturn
(magnitude +0.2) rises around midnight and is highest in the south in
early-morning hours.
Below or lower left of Saturn (by 9°) is
orange Antares, not quite as bright.
Nelson Poirier
Nature Moncton
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WHITE-TAILED DEER.APRIL 11, 2015.SUSAN LINKLETTER
