Nature Moncton Nature News: April 4 2015

**John Foster had a NORTHERN SHRIKE [Pie-grièche grise] checking out

their urban yard on Friday. It perched on a treetop, appearing to have

the numerous PINE SISKIN [Tarin des pins] patrons on its mind.

**Anne Marsch had a visit from two CEDAR WAXWINGS [Jaseur d'Amérique]

on Friday, travelling with ten BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS [Jaseur boréal]. She

was able to capture a photo of the two species together. I would

assume these may be overwintering Cedar Waxwings, as the Cedar Waxwing

is normally a late spring arrival. They were coming to grapes frozen

last fall for the occasion.

**The arriving Robins [Merle d'Amérique] obviously noted the Bohemian

Waxwing flock at apples at Linda Banks' Riverview yard. A significant

number of Robins arrived on Friday to join the Easter buffet for her.

**I have had two AMERICAN ROBINS [Merle d'Amérique] join the 100 +

Bohemian Waxwings that have gleaned 18 pounds of apples in my yard. No

Cedar Waxwings among them, and not for lack of searching. The Redpoll

[Sizerin] attendance for me has declined dramatically to a handful, as

well as fewer Pine Siskins. Sparrows [Bruant] are abundant, but no new

ones as of Friday.

**Another feeder yard being invaded by Bohemian Waxwings: Don and Ruby

Sherwood have seen up to 48 in their Moncton yard the past few days,

coming to cut-up apples.

**Dale Gaskin reports Friday was the first day he saw groups of Robins

moving about in the Hillsborough area, having found some earlier but

not seen them in groups at the bare ground patches and roadside sites.

**Julie Pellerin reports lots of spring action at her Cap Brûlé feeder

yard. Sparrows [Bruant] are the most abundant, with nine SONG SPARROWS

[Bruant chanteur], two FOX SPARROWS [Bruant fauve] and arrival of

DARK-EYED JUNCOS [Junco ardoisé] to join the regular bird selection

that has been attending, including a RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH [Sittelle à

poitrine rousse]. She did spot her first GREAT BLUE HERON [Grand

Héron] at Pointe-du-Chêne on Friday, and AMERICAN WIGEON [Canard

d'Amérique] have arrived to the Cap Brûlé lagoon. Julie comments that

there are no open ponds on the marsh and little activity there other

than BALD EAGLES [Pygargue à tête blanche].

**This week's Sky at a Glance is attached below, with hopefully clear

evenings as the week proceeds with the brilliant full moon.

This Week’s Sky at a Glance, April 3 – 11

Venus and the Pleiades are drawing closer together day by day in the western twilight.

After dark, the Big Dipper high in the northeast is tipping over now as if to dump water into the dim Little Dipper's bowl, which is swinging up far below it.

As dawn brightens on Wednesday morning the 8th, look south for Saturn glowing near the waning gibbous Moon.

April always finds Orion leaning over at dusk low in the southwest, with his three-star belt almost horizontal. The belt points left toward bright Sirius, and to the right toward Aldebaran and, farther on, Venus and the Pleiades.

Sirius still shines brightly in the southwest right at nightfall, though it's no match for Venus in the west. Sirius is the Dog Star, the brightest of Canis Major.

On Saturday, April 11, the Pleiades are at their closest to Venus this evening, about 2½° to its right as twilight fades in the west.

On Sunday, April 12, the Moon will go into its Last Quarter Phase meaning it will rise at midnight and set at noon.

On Saturday, April 4, the sun rose at 6:52 a.m. and will set at 7:51 p.m. to give 12 hours 59 minutes of daylight hours. On Saturday, April 11, the sun will rise at 6:39 a.m. and will set at 8:01 p.m. giving 13 hours 22 minutes of daylight. (These values are for Moncton, New Brunswick).

This Week's Planet Roundup

Mercury is hidden in the glare of the Sun.

Venus (magnitude –4.0) blazes in the west during and after twilight — the "Evening Star." Not until a good hour and a half after complete darkness does Venus set in the west-northwest. Look for the Pleiades above it, closer every day. The little cluster passes to Venus's right on the 10th and 11th.

Mars (magnitude +1.4, less than 1% as bright as Venus) is gradually sinking farther down and away to Venus's lower right in twilight. Mars has been hanging on in the western twilight ever since last summer, but now it's finally on the way out.

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.

Nelson Poirier

Nature Moncton

nelson@nb.sympatico.ca