Nature Moncton Nature News: August 2 2017

NATURE MONCTON INFORMATION LINE, August 02, 2017 (Wednesday)

Please advise editor at nelson@nb.sympatico.ca if any errors are noted in wording or photo labeling.

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

Edited by: Nelson Poirier nelson@nb.sympatico.ca
Transcript by: Catherine Johnson johnson2@xplornet.com
Info Line # 506-384-6397 (384-NEWS)
To respond by e-mail, please address your message to the information line editor nelson@nb.sympatico.ca.

**Gordon Rattray got four nice dragonfly photos on July 29th. One is either a SAFFRON-WINGED MEADOWHAWK or AUTUMN MEADOWHAWK. If the legs could be seen to give the colour, brown would indicate autumn meadowhawk.

The CHERRY-FACED MEADOWHAWK is identified as such based on the well defined sawtooth pattern on the side of the abdomen and the fact that the face has some red colour on it. A RUBY MEADOWHAWK cannot be completely ruled out from the photo. Two photos of MEADOWHAWK are attached that cannot reliably be identified from photos. These comments courtesy of Gilles Belliveau who points out the MEADOWHAWK group can often be a challenge to identify from photos.

**Judy and Sterling Marsh report, thanks to Georges Brun's report, they were able to see their first MONARCH butterfly of the season at the milkweed patch behind the Shoppers Drug Mart location on Vaughn Harvey Blvd. near Via Rail.

**Aldo Dorio photographed more BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT HERONS at Pointe-a-Bouleau at Tracadie on Tuesday but now seeing some juvenile young-of-the-year birds.

**Georges Brun points out there are approximately 200 common milkweed plants between the railroad service road and the rail line near the walking trail entrance on Milner Rd in Moncton. He did not see monarch butterflies there in the 4 PM time window on Tuesday when he visited but had seen monarch butterflies on the patch across from Bore Park last week. He comments on the number of insects that visit the milkweed blooms, especially bees, and photographed a WOOD-NYMPH butterfly on one bloom.

*Brian Stone and I experienced a similar scenario on Tuesday visiting a small patch on the Gorge Rd at the Trans Canada highway overpass. There were many LADY BEETLE larvae and pupae there and SOUTHERN LADY BEETLE and ASIAN MULTI-COLOURED LADY BEETLE adults were present but not near as many as the larvae of pupae stages.

We also came across a spiders nest with many spiderlings but no adult near the nest.

Brian also came across a group of PINESAP plants in a forested area nearby earlier in the week. The plants are now maturing and the heads are becoming more erect and going to seed. The pinesap is not commonly found. It is a saprophytic plant on tree roots.

nelson@nb.sympatico.ca

Nelson Poirier

Nature Moncton