Nature Moncton Nature News: Sept 30 2018

NATURE MONCTON INFORMATION LINE, Sept. 30, 2018 (Sunday)
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Edited by: Nelson Poirier nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Transcribed by:johnson2@xplornet.com

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

**The Nature Moncton field trip to the dike lands in Sackville area on Saturday was nothing short of an incredible day with the guidance from Roger Leblanc. It was one of the most diverse field trips I recall being on with so much variety encountered. Visiting the dike locations to see the very old Acadian dikes and the new modern ones was awesome to see what they were actually doing and realizing the amazing feat the early Acadian settlers had done in the 1600s onward and hear the history behind the whole scenario we unfortunately never were taught in school history. The group was even shown remnants of the famous effort to build a ship railway across the isthmus. Shorebirds and raptors were a constant pleasant distraction.

A visit to the newly acquired 26 acre property of Louise and Glen Nichols was laced with forest trails that turned into a mushroom foray with an unexpected variety of fruiting mushrooms, as well as pleasant encounters with toads, frogs and red-backed salamanders.

A visit to the Amherst Wastewater Treatment facility did not produce the bird action hoped for but the Sackville Waterfowl Park surely did. The site hosted a performing AMERICAN COOT, WILSON'S SNIPE, PECTORAL SANDPIPERS, SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHERS, which got lots of scrutiny to eliminate the possibility of LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER, a DUNLIN and many YELLOWLEGS. Some SPRING PEEPERS in trees, sounding like a bird, attracted lots of attention over the day.

A very memorable day for naturalists. Many, many photos were taken and some will be added today and over the next days.

Mitch Doucet put 57 photos on an album that can be seen at the attached site.

https://www.flickr.com/gp/mitchphotography/33CB9v

They are not labelled. If anyone wishes an identity, save the photo and send it for identification to the editor.

Louise Nichols got photos of the very cooperative SWAMP SPARROWS at Beaubassin Research Station, many young-of-the-year RED-WINGED BLACKBIRDS in the cattails and photos of the group. In open field areas HORSE MUSHROOM photos are attached. These are choice edibles some participants took home and have already been enjoyed. This mushroom grows large, has pink gills when fresh and a black spore print.

There were several interesting SPIDERS encountered and nicely photographed, which will get more serious identifications and sent out later. A photo of the brim of Etter Ridge with its glacial erratic boulders placed there thousands of years ago as the ice receded that immediately drops into a bog demands a spring revisit. There were many lichens, spiders, toad, frog and mushroom photos that will be added to future less busy editions.

**David Cannon got a photo of a HICKORY TUSSOCK MOTH caterpillar. I have seen few of these in the Moncton area but have encountered large numbers from a Fredericton visit several years ago and there was a newspaper report of large numbers in Charlotte County several years ago. Their food plants are not a serious threat but some people are very sensitive to the hairs (setae) of this species causing an itchy rash. Dave also rescued a large SHADOW DARNER dragonfly from his pool. Several large and colourful darner dragonflies are very much still on the wing.

**It's getting closer to the time when bumble bees mostly underground nest members will pass on to bee heaven except for the queen, however they are still very busy gathering pollen for their use in performing their exceedingly important role of pollination for the abundant late blooming plants at the moment. Shawn Cormier got a close-up photo of a bee doing just that on Saturday. This activity was also very noticed by participants of Saturday's field trip.

**Richard Perron submits a photo of the SHARP-SCALY PHOLIOTA MUSHROOM. It is an interesting photo as the surface of some of the cluster show the colour of the cigar-brown spore print fallen from the mushroom over the top of them.

**Aldo Dorio contributes some photos from Hay Island that shows some of the shorebirds in transition. A BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER appears to be a bird in young-of-the-year plumage. DOWITCHERS need closer observation this time of year as the LONG-BILLED DOWITCHERS tend to move through after the Short-billed Dowitchers. They are not nearly as common visitors as the Short-billed Dowitcher group. Gilles Belliveau feels Aldo's photo is indeed a Short-billed Dowitcher as the markings on the tertiary feathers are more consistent with the Short-billed Dowitcher than the Long-billed Dowitcher. This particular feature is worthy of study in guides to help separate these two dowitchers. The GREEN-WINGED TEAL photo could be a female or young-of-the-year male not having developed into its plumage. The Semipalmated Plover would suggest an adult going into non-breeding basic plumage. The young-of-the-year birds should still have some pale edges to the feathers on top unless already warn off.

A photo of a young-of-the-year SPOTTED SANDPIPER is included from two different angles. The diversity of shorebirds continues as the adults move into basic plumage and the young-of-the-year are moving through at the same time.

nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Nelson Poirier,

Nature Moncton