Nature Moncton Nature News: June 19 2017

NATURE MONCTON INFORMATION LINE, June 19, 2017 (Monday)

To respond by e-mail, please address your message to the information line editor nelson@nb.sympatico.ca Please advise if any errors are noted in wording or photo labeling.

For more information on Nature Moncton, check the website at www.naturemoncton.com

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

Transcript by: David Christie maryspt@mac.com

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

** Carmella Melanson had a RED CROSSBILL [Bec-croisé des sapins] arrive at her Grand-Barachois feeder for black oil sunflower seed on Sunday. It allowed her to get a photo; we don’t often have an opportunity to see this species so closely.

** It was nice to hear Dave Christie’s report following Carmella’s. Dave has been seeing a few RED CROSSBILLS [Bec-croisé des sapins] in the Mary's Point area since the last week of May, but on Sunday, there was a flock of 60 of them. They were uncooperative to see, so he was relying on calls to identify them and getting brief observations of a few to confirm that they were Red Crossbills and not White-winged Crossbills. Dave was not sure what they were foraging on, as last year’s cones would be spent by now. However, the spruces did produce a heavy concentration of pollen this spring, as many may have noted.

Dave also came across the remains of two BLACK SCOTERS [Macreuse noire] on Mary's Point beach and suspected BALD EAGLE [Pygargue à tête blanche] predation. He regularly sees a flock of 40 to 50 scoters from the beach at high tide.

** Brian Stone and I had a bog-sleuthing day on Sunday, starting at the bog in the midst of Riverview, located between Lawson Avenue and Findlay Boulevard. It has many plants specific to bogs, including BOG-ROSEMARY [Andromède glauque], BOG LAUREL [Kalmia à feuilles d'Andromède], LABRADOR-TEA [Thé du Labrador], THREE-LEAVED SOLOMON’S-SEAL [Smilacine trifolée], PITCHER-PLANT [Petits cochons], PINK LADYSLIPPER [Sabot de la vierge], BOGBEAN [Herbe à canards], BLUE FLAG [Clajeux] and the colourful orchid ARETHUSA [Aréthuse bulbeuse], which is one of the early group of orchids to appear. I suspect that different orchids will appear at that location over the next few weeks. YELLOW IRIS [I. pseudacorus] gave a real show of colour in a surprisingly large patch; this iris is a garden escapee. There was a surprising amount of fresh WHITE-TAILED DEER [Cerf de Virginie] scat. A few dragonflies [libellules] were noted, which will need further identification.

We checked the BLUE JAY [Geai bleu] nest at Phyllis MacMillan’s Riverview home. An adult was quietly on the nest, incubating.

The next bog visited was one 4.6 km in the Bay du Vin Road, almost across from the St. Margarets church, in response to a suggestion of Jim Saunders of the Miramichi Naturalists’ Club. This bog has many of the same plants as the Riverview bog, however, there is an edge of stunted BLACK SPRUCE [Épinette noire] that was hosting JUTTA ARCTIC [Nordique des tourbières] butterflies, which were very elusive to photograph but we did manage to net one. This bog also hosts a number of PALM WARBLERS [Paruline à couronne rousse].

** Tomorrow night, Tuesday night, June 20, is the last Nature Moncton meeting of the season. We’ll have a presentation of a collection of some of the many photos contributed to Information Line over the past year and will touch on every aspect of mother nature’s world, with appropriate comments from the presenter, Nelson Poirier, and audience participation. It should be a nice chance to re-acquaint ourselves with many of the things that we will be seeing over the upcoming seasons.

Nature Moncton June meeting
June 20 at 7:00 PM
Mapleton Park Rotary Lodge (across from Cabela’s)
Variety show of Mother Nature in New Brunswick
Presenter: Nelson Poirier

The Nature Moncton Information Line and BlogSpot have been the beneficiary of many great photos of birds, mammals, butterflies, dragonflies, insects, mushrooms, and more over the past year.
Nature Moncton will end its meeting season June 20 with a variety show of a collection of these photographs with short commentary on each by Nelson Poirier.
It will be a great kickoff to the spring-summer season to refresh our memories of what to watch for in beautiful New Brunswick in forest, field, stream, and sky.

nelson@nb.sympatico.ca

Nelson Poirier,

Nature Moncton