Nature Moncton Nature News: May 4 2016

**Anne Marsch had a very special visitor to her Lower Coverdale yard on Tuesday when a BROWN THRASHER arrived in the morning and stayed all day. Anne got documentary photos through the window.

**Rhi Edwards and Bruce Coates have both been away the past weeks so they had only shared BLACK THROATED SPARROW excitement via email. They just got back home so headed over to the Beaubassin Research Station to look for the sparrow. They were not able to locate it however were treated to a bonus of seeing 6 immature BALD EAGLES fishing gaspereau in the Missaquash River. They fished, flew about and landed to eat for over an hour. GULLS harassed them and were successful in getting a few eagles to drop their prey. Eventually the eagles landed on hummocks and posts in around the ponds around the station. They comment it was an amazing site to watch. The event was difficult to photograph but a photo shows some eagles moving about the river.

A photograph of a NORTHERN SHOVELER pair is also added that was in one of the ponds.

**Jake Lewis in Saint John got some nice photos of a partial albino AMERICAN ROBIN on Monday. The bird was found at to the UNBSJ campus roaming along aside the Hans Kohl Commons library building along with other robins. Partial albinos are always special as each one is a unique one time edition.

**Mac Wilmont shared a photo of a marsh marigold plant just starting into bloom in a wet area in his Lower Coverdale yard. Marsh marigold is a very beautiful spring flower and plant that can sometimes be in surprising numbers in the right habitat of continually wet areas.

Mac also had a YELLOW WARBLER in his yard on Tuesday, it was brief but long enough to be sure of it's identification.

**Dave Christie reports a wave of YELLOW RUMPED WARBLERS appeared on Monday being attracted to trees on the south edge of the Lars Larsen Marsh, seeing them darting about for insects and vocalizing. He estimated the group at approximately 40 along with one PALM warbler.

Dave also noted the wild strawberry plants are starting to come into bloom on Monday.

On Tuesday and Wednesday morning he noted a lone EVENING GROSBEAK female vocalizing from trees around the feeder yard of his Mary's Pt. home but yet to see it come down to feed.

**The number of WHITE THROATED sparrows to feeder yards continues to be very notable. Bob Blake reports they had 25+ in their Second North River yard on Tuesday, along with many PURPLE finches, SONG sparrows and CHIPPING sparrows.

**Jean Renton in Stilesville is yet another with high numbers of white throated sparrows, counting 28 on Tuesday in her yard. Jean comments it's just like winter with all the birds around the feeders with PINE SISKINS, which she had not seen all winter having just arrived. Jean is noting a high number of BLACK CAPPED CHICKADEES coming to peanut butter appearing like they are not getting seriously territorial as yet.

At their Canaan Forks camp on the weekend they noted 4 WHITE-TAILED DEER in a field, one looking very patchy and rough. White-tailed deer do shed their winter coat at this time of year but Jean comments this one seemed to have bare skin patches, so possibly similar challenges.

**Brian Stone made a brief visit to the Crawley Farm Rd. BALD EAGLES nest. This is surely a very public nest with the occupants very accustomed to and oblivious to people. A very urban nest.

While driving along route 15 Brian noted a CROW or RAVEN dive bombing the nest.

**A photo got distributed yesterday of a HOUSE FINCH that was actually a PURPLE FINCH. With 2 misidentifications getting by in a week suspect will have to take the spring trout fishing a bit less serious.

nelson@nb.sympatico.ca

Nelson Poirier,

Nature Moncton