Nature Moncton Nature News: May 11 2016

**Sterling Marsh captured an awesome photo of a male RUFFED GROUSE displaying along the Amos Pt. road on Tuesday. It's a beautiful example of how this bird got its name. Sterling saw 4 ruffed grouse along the roads on Tuesday. This species must have had and easy winter for survival.

**Some may recall Rosaire Richard in Cocagne who had 5 or 6 NORTHERN FLICKERS at one time during the winter several years ago. It seemed unprecedented to have that many in one feeder yard in winter. Rosarie put up a nest box at that time with a possibility one may use it as a roost box. He did not see any using it as a roost but this year a pair of NORTHERN FLICKERS have moved into it and set up housekeeping.

Also Rosaire has had CARDINAL visit from time to time. On Tuesday a male NORTHERN CARDINAL appeared in his yard.

**A nice day for Doreen Rossiter in her Alma yard. She had a bright male BALTIMORE ORIOLE arrive to her yard on Tuesday. The first WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW arrived a few days ago and on Tuesday a 1/2 dozen more arrived. Doreen comments the colour in the yard from the birds at the moment is awesome with the brightly coloured BALTIMORE ORIOLES, JAYS, WHITE-CROWNED SPARROWS, PURPLE FINCH and AMERICAN GOLDFINCH.

**Jules Cormier reports on activity around his Memramcook feeder yard, which he says has been the most active spring for finches and sparrows in his yard he can recall. However the highlight of the day was a bright male BALTIMORE ORIOLE which he thinks may actually have come a few days earlier as he had heard. It wqs coming to apples that he had left out for ROBINS but quickly came to orange sections when Jules put them out in feeders near his deck. Jules also saw 2 GREATER YELLOWLEGS in the pond in the marsh next to his home. Jules has approximately 40 TREE SWALLOW nest boxes up in Belliveau Village. He comments there were around the boxes during the warm days a few weeks ago but very few are around them at the moment.

**On May 7 Dave Fulton in Elgin found a dead WEASEL on his steps that appeared to be preyed upon in the throat area, possibly by a hawk or owl. The tail of this weasel is very long and suggest it is the much less common long-tailed weasel. Dave Christie looked at Dave Fulton's photo and agrees.

**Last week Aldo Dorio submitted a photo of BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS taking plump red berries on the ground. Aldo checked closer on Tuesday to find they were cranberries left from last year.

**Marlene Hickman comments Costco has a good supply of black oil sunflower 18 kilogram bags for $19 and nijer seed in large bags at $15.

**A labelling error was made in yesterday's photo edition. The butterfly photos shown are actually CABBAGE WHITE BUTTERFLIES not MUSTARD WHITE as labeled. Note the dark spot which is present on CABBAGE WHITE. The specimen shows extensive yellow to more easily confuse it with a MUSTARD WHITE. Both these species appear early in the season. Thanks to Kathleen Spicer for picking up on that.

nelson@nb.sympatico.ca

Nelson Poirier,

Nature Moncton