Nature Moncton Nature News: June 8 2016

**Pat Fox captured some photos of the PILEATED WOODPECKER family at their Upper Coverdale property near their house on Tuesday. The nestlings appear to be very well developed and it appears the 2 nestlings are 1 female, 1 male.

**It has been cool weather conditions but Judy Marsh did see her first FIREFLY activity in a field aside their Shediac Rd. home on Tuesday evening. They seemed to flash their signals between showers.

**Heather Silliker has noted a large flush of mushrooms on a yard dying snag tree at their Upper Coverdale home. They appear to be OYSTER mushrooms, which are a choice editable if correct on photo identification. Oyster mushrooms can appear anytime in summer season when there is sufficient moisture, which sure is the case at the moment.

**Aldo Dorio got a nice photo of a FOUR SPOTTED SKIMMER dragonfly on Tuesday to nicely show the field marks to have us ready to be familiar with this easy to identify species.

The cool weather recently seems to have made for less dragonfly action.

**Mike Britton captured a photo of an EASTERN PHOEBE in Mapleton Park on Tuesday. As with most FLYCATCHERS they seldom perch long enough for nice photos.

**Bob Blake comments that he planted a Horse Chestnut tree at 3 years of age at their Second North River home . It's now 16 yrs old and is blooming for the first time to note it take 16yrs to produce its first blooms and maybe chestnuts.

**Marguerite Winsor gave me 3 BLACK SWALLOWTAIL BUTTERFLY caterpillars last summer. They went into their chrysalis stage and were left in a large screen cage for the winter outside. They emerged the past 3 days and suspect I was lucky on genders as saw one depositing eggs on the parsley plant provided. They are feeding on table sugar solution on a paper towel. Am including a photo of an adult from last year so as not to disturb the parents or let them accidentally fly off before egg deposition.

nelson@nb.sympatico.ca
Nelson Poirier,

Nature Moncton