Nature Moncton Nature News: Nov 19 2018

NATURE MONCTON INFORMATION LINE, Nov. 19, 2018 (Monday)

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Edited by: Nelson Poirier nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Transcript by: David Christie maryspt@mac.com

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

** The Nature Moncton November meeting will take place this Tuesday, at 7 p.m, at the Mapleton Rotary Lodge. It will be a busy night. Folks who ordered sunflower seed are asked to arrive by 6:30 p.m. or before, to pick up their orders from farmer Mike Dickinson, who will be there with a truck load.

The Nature Moncton annual meeting will take place between 7:00 and 7:30 p.m. with some changing of the guard, a yearly requirement.

The main presentation of the evening will start just after 7:30, with Elaine Aucoin, the Director of Environmental Planning and Management for the City of Moncton, who will give a presentation on the city’s pioneering project to develop wetlands being a naturalized approach to manage storm water runoff by incorporating wetlands. Some of these projects partner with Ducks Unlimited. The City has now received national awards for these efforts. This is all taking place in our midst and Elaine will bring folks up to speed on what is happening on several fronts that we may not be aware of. Don’t miss this, as it is important to us all.

** Carmella Melanson shares a stunning series of photos of what she termed a magic crabapple tree bursting with fruit-connoisseur birds, to the left of the Bayfield-Cape Tormentine Fire Department, next to the old ferry road. There were approximately 40 PINE GROSBEAKS [Durbec des sapins], 14 BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS [Jaseur boréal], 1 CEDAR WAXWING [Jaseur d'Amérique], 10 AMERICAN ROBINS [Merle d'Amérique], and 1 NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRD [Moqueur polyglotte]. What an awesome display! Also,a FOX SPARROW [Bruant fauve] was under the tree, probably checking out the seeds.

** It is so great to hear all the reports of EVENING GROSBEAKS [Gros-bec errant] arriving in feeder yards that have not had visits from them in many years. Gordon Rattray had the first ones in his Weldon yard, and comments that he has not had them in decades.

John Foster experienced the same thing with a flock of 12 arriving to feast on sunflower chips. This is one of the first in-town feeder yards I have heard about with them visiting. John’s Frampton Lane home does back onto Mapleton Park but is still an urban subdivision. John comments that one very determined BLUE JAY [Geai bleu] was not amused by their visit.

** Mac Wilmot’s female RED-BELLIED WOODPECKER [Pic à ventre roux] is now a daily reliable. Mac says that she seems to have a very specific taste, turning her beak up at peanut butter blends, and preferring partially melted-down suet he buys at Rinzler's and thickens it with oatmeal.

Mac comments on an incident he experienced on Picadilly Mountain, where a group of COMMON RAVENS [Grand Corbeau] started a remarkable chorus of croaks, gurgles, flutes and clear marimba sounds. He has never experienced such a complexity and size of repertoire of a group of ravens. He wondered if they were good judges of a potential gut pile on the last day of deer-hunting season.

** Jules Cormier’s normally very active feeder yard in Memramcook is very lively. Jules reported tallying 24 species last week. Every expected regular was tallied, but of note was one BROWN CREEPER [Grimpereau brun], 4 FOX SPARROWS [Bruant fauve], 1 WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH [Sittelle à poitrine blanche], 12-15 EVENING GROSBEAKS [Gros-bec errant], and 20 PINE SISKINS [Tarin des pins].

Jules also reports that his sister, Suzanne LeBlanc, on Chapelle Street in Dieppe, has 2 PINE WARBLERS [Paruline des pins] visiting her feeder yard as regular patrons at the moment. Suzanne’s yard has traditionally been a very popular one for Pine Warblers in the winter.

** Jamie Burris comments that he is overly blessed with ROCK PIGEONS [Pigeon biset] this winter, but it has a silver lining, when there was a sudden burst of all the feeder yard patrons when a large COOPER’S HAWK [Épervier de Cooper] flew by, not more than ten feet from the window. Jamie was able to capture some nice photos of Cooper’s Hawk in his area last year. He sends a pigeon line-up photo and suspects it may get him a Cooper’s Hawk photo again this year.

** Dave Christie reports Sunday was his first day for PINE SISKINS [Tarin des pins] to visit his Mary’s Point feeders, with 9 arriving. They were most interested in Niger seed. He had seen them around before but not at feeders. He also spotted a group of approximately 50 SHOREBIRDS [] on the shore from his home through a scope but they were so far out that he was not able to identify them. None had been visible 4 hours earlier when he had visited the beach at high tide.

** Clarence Cormier had a pleasant new arrival to his Grand-Digue feeder yard on Sunday, the appearance of a NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRD [Moqueur polyglotte]. It joined his 22 EVENING GROSBEAKS [Gros-bec errant], 3 FOX SPARROWS [Bruant fauve], a movement of 100+ BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS [Jaseur boréal] moving about, working the berry crop, in flocks of 10 to 50, as well as 12 PINE GROSBEAKS [Durbec des pins], all in female plumage. Clarence is noting that some of the Pine Grosbeaks are foraging in a Tamarack tree, presumably eating the highly nutritious buds.

** Julie Pellerin reports some of the goodies at her Cap-Brulé feeder yard, a FOX SPARROW [Bruant fauve], a WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH [Sittelle à poitrine blanche] that has been regular for a month, WHITE-THROATED SPARROWS [Bruant à gorge blanche], and she is still seeing a NORTHERN HARRIER [Busard Saint-Martin] hunting the marsh back of her home.

** Brian Stone is perched in Perth, Ontario, for the next few weeks, and some photos will be coming from there of things that we could expect to see here. It’s definitely time to look at tracks in the snow. Brian got some of a nice fresh FOX [renard] trail; the stride(the length between from the front edge of one track to the front edge of the next), was 13 inches. The average fox stride is from 12 to 18 inches. Note the cone in the centre of the foot print, consistent with wild canine, as is the direct stepping of two paws in each depression.

Brian also got a good photo of a WESTERN CONIFER SEED-BUG [], a species that is becoming much more common in the Maritimes and can be seen in houses this time of year.

** Aldo Dorio photographed a lingering GREATER YELLOWLEGS [Grand Chevalier] near the Néguac wharf on Sunday. He also photographed a MOURNING DOVE [Tourterelle triste] that shows pin-feathers on the crown of the head. This could be a young-of-the-year bird in its final moult to adult plumage. Once the pinfeathers are seen they will quickly develop into full feathers.

** Pat and I made a pass on the Tantramar Marsh on Sunday afternoon, entering via the Coles Island Road, en route from Halifax. The roads were very passable with the truck. We saw two ROUGH-LEGGED HAWKS [Buse pattue] along the Coles Island Road, but none on the High Marsh Road. A surprising number of adult BALD EAGLES [Pygargue à tête blanche] and RING-NECKED PHEASANTS [Faisan de Colchide] were very plentiful.

We came across a strange-looking duck wandering the Etter Ridge Road, where Rhi Edwards was also wondering what it was. It appeared to be wing-clipped of domestic origin, and I assumed it to be a Muscovy Duck. It appreciated handouts to the point that it tried to jump into the truck beside Sadie. Ron Arsenault reviewed the photo to confirm it as a MUSCOVY DUCK [Canard musqué], which are not descendants of the Mallard Duck. The little amount of red mottling and lack of knob suggest either a female or young bird. Ron points out that Muscovies do not naturally hybridize with other domestic duck breeds, but can be induced to do so, producing sterile hybrids.

nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Nelson Poirier

Nature Moncton