Nature Moncton Nature News: April 18 2017

NATURE MONCTON INFORMATION LINE - April 18, 2017 (Tuesday)

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Edited by: Nelson Poirier nelson@nb.sympatico.ca

Transcript by : Louise Richard richlou@nbnet.nb .ca

Info Line # 506-384-6397 (384-NEWS)

** It’s Nature Moncton Meeting night tonight at Mapleton Park Rotary Lodge across from Cabela’s at 7 pm. Details are repeated at the end of this message.

** Catherine Hamilton captured a photo of an adult BALD EAGLE [Pygargue à tête blanche] carrying a RACOON [Raton laveur] as prey appearing to handle it very easily. This would seem large prey for an eagle as the animal would have to be at least 1 year old at this point. It would probably suggest what could happen to many domestic cats if allowed to run at large. There is an enforced bylaw in Riverview and several area jurisdictions that cats are not allowed to run at large. There is one in the City of Moncton as well that is not enforced.

** Brian Coyle had a pair of EASTERN PHOEBES [Moucherolle phébi] around his Upper Mountain Rd yard for the past few days. This species is normally our earliest arriving flycatcher.

** Jean-Paul and Stella LeBlanc spotted a paIr of OSPREY [Balbuzard pêcheur] retooling their nest near Systemair in Bouctouche. That nest is near Route 11 before coming to Bouctouche. They also saw a NORTHERN SHOVELER [Canard souchet] and BUFFLEHEAD [Petit Garrot] at the Bouctouche lagoons.

** Bob Blake reports that they had a SNOWSHOE HARE [Lièvre d’Amérique] visit their Second North River yard on Monday to sample some fresh grass. It was 50% brown changing into summer pelage. It stayed in the yard for several hours. They also had approximately 50 DARK-EYED JUNCOS [Junco ardoisé] come in to ground feed. They have lots of PURPLE FINCH [Roselin pourpré] now and their first visit from a CHIPPING SPARROW [Bruant familier] happened on Saturday.

** Doreen Rossiter reports that she had a WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH [Sittelle à poitrine blanche] arrive to her Alma feeder yard on Monday, which is a new bird for her feeder yard, which says something as that yard that seems to get almost everything at one time or another.

** There seems to be more flocks of EVENING GROSBEAKS [Gros-bec errant] visiting feeders this past winter, most having been rural, but Carol Christopher who lives in the Douglastown area of Miramichi has had approximately 25 Evening Grosbeaks arrive to her feeder yard and being quite vocal about their find.

** It surely must have been the Dark-eyed Junco’s window of return in the past few days, especially to rural feeders. In addition to Bob Blake’s report of a Dark-eyed Junco onslaught, the same happened to our feeders put out at our Silliker’s camp for the first time in the season to have 50 plus DARK-EYED JUNCOS [Junco ardoisé] there the next day, mainly to white millet. Several SONG SPARROWS [Bruant chanteur] joined them, a few WHITE-THROATED SPARROWS [Bruant à gorge blanche], PURPLE FINCH [Roselin pourpré], and a few AMERICAN TREE SPARROWS [Bruant hudsonien]. Back in Moncton on Tuesday morning and no Dark-eyed Juncos at all but still lots of AMERICAN TREE SPARROWS [Bruant hudsonien] which must be filing flight plans north soon. One FOX SPARROW [Bruant fauve] was with them. It’s that one time of year that we can see both of these sparrow species together, but both will be heading to the north of us to spend the summer very soon.

** Tonight, Tuesday night, is Nature Moncton April meeting night at the Mapleton Park Rotary Lodge across from Cabela’s at 7 pm. The guest speaker this month is Bruce Dougan, Manager of the Magnetic Hill Zoo. Bruce has a lot to share on how zoos now function in the role of protection of and raising of endangered species which are disappearing in the wild and let the public see them in suitable habitat. Bruce is an excellent speaker — a presentation not to miss. A write-up of Bruce’s presentation is added below.

Nature Moncton April meeting
April 18, 2017 at 7:00 PM
Mapleton Park Rotary Lodge (across from Cabela’s)

Zoos Then and Now
Presenter: Bruce Dougan, manager of the Magnetic Hill Zoo

We are very fortunate to have one of Canada’s top rated zoos at our doorstep. The process of maintaining a zoo to meet the needs of such a diverse variety of animals has changed dramatically over the years. The days of taking animals from the wild and putting them on public display have made a near complete reversal. Today, the vast majority of animals on display are bred in captivity which is a whole science on its own. Today zoos have become “Noah’s Arks” in that they breed species of animals facing endangered status in the wild and then they reintroduce them to their wild habitat to bolster numbers.
Some of the Moncton City fathers were very wise in successfully luring Bruce Dougan from Marineland in Ontario to bring the Magnetic Hill Zoo to the status it has achieved today.
Bruce will share some of the methods modern-day zoos employ to let us all enjoy many exotic animals in an environment that meets their needs. He will also outline the huge changes that have taken place over the years to make zoos very significant in the world wildlife community.

Don’t miss this presentation!

nelson@nb.sympatico.ca

Nelson Poirier

Nature Moncton