Nature Moncton Nature News: June 29 2019

NATURE MONCTON INFORMATION LINE, 29 June 2019 (Saturday)

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Edited by: Nelson Poirier nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Transcript by: Catherine Clements

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

Debbie Batog has had the trichinosis problem around her bird feeders in the past. She completely escaped it in 2018 to enjoy her patrons but it returned this year affecting some of her finch visitors so has cut down feeding to suet and hummingbird nectar. Debbie sends a photo from last year to show as she comments what she is so missing.

**Brian Stone shares some activity from his Moncton yard. GRAY CATBIRDS [Moqueur chat] are still coming to orange halves, which suggests a great idea to put out, especially in early spring, which many of us do to attract BALTIMORE ORIOLES [Oriole de Baltimore], which usually only stay for a few days. In this case, catbirds are making the oranges as a full-time summer menu venue. Brian also got a visit from a VICEROY BUTTERFLY [Vice-roi], and he photographed a RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD [Colibri à gorge rubis] and WOOLLY ALDER APHID [Puceron lanigère de l'aulne] colonies. His male RNG-NECKED PHEASANT continues to enjoy roaming the yard.

**I have been overwintering several cocoons and chrysalids in an aquarium. Two BLACK SWALLOWTAIL BUTTERFLIES [Papillon du céleri] have already emerged. A POLYPHEMUS MOTH [Polyphème d’Amérique] emerged this week. Photos are attached of the cocoon attached onto a leaf from the back side, and other views of the front of the cocoon showing its emergence opening. The adult’s wings are a bit tattered, as it emerged when I was away and a bit of wing damage happened, but it is nicely showing its ‘scary false eyes’ peeking from under its hindwing to frighten would be predators. A CECROPIA MOTH [Saturnie cécropia] cocoon, a HICKORY TUSSOCK MOTH [Halisidote du caryer] cocoon, and a GALLIUM SPHINX MOTH [Sphinx du gaillet] cocoon are still to emerge, if not parasitized. I think they were collected early enough to give the least chance of that happening.

Am attaching a photo of a damselfly that was flying in numbers on Friday afternoon. I was not able to identify it. Gilles Belliveau feels it is probably an immature male POWDERED DANCER DAMSELFLY that will take on its coppery/bronzy adult sheen. The male also has a light prunosity (powdery look) on the thorax to give it its name. The photos show the widely separated eyes on stalks and the tight upright wings of the perched damselfly. Dragonflies have their eyes touching except for the clubtail group and the spiketail’s eyes barely touch whereas all other dragonfly eyes are just separated by suture line. Dragonflies also tend to lay their wings flat out at rest.

nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Nelson Poirier,

Nature Moncton