NATURE MONCTON INFORMATION LINE, 29 May 2021 (Saturday)
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Edited
by: Nelson Poirier nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com
Transcript
by: Catherine Clements
Info
Line #: 506-384-6397 (384-NEWS)
**Aldo
Dorio reports seeing the GARGANEY [Sarcelle d'été] on Thursday at the original
site. He did not see it at high tide between 7 and 8 o’clock on Friday morning.
It was suggested previously that the bird is more likely to be at its favourite
spot at low tide with the other ducks (Green-winged teal) when foraging is
easier for it, if it continues its presence at Hay Island.
**Nature
Moncton activities committee has a lot coming up in June. I am going to give an
early heads-up to an outing on rare and uncommon plants of the Prosser Mountain
area, as registrants are limited to 20, to give time to register. It is
attached below:
NATURE MONCTON FIELD TRIP
RARE AND UNCOMMON PLANTS OF THE PROSSER MOUNTAIN AREA
DATE: Saturday June 26th
TIME: 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM
MEETING SPOT: Corner of Rte 910 and Prosser Brook Road,
approximately 17 km south of the Lower Turtle Creek reservoir bridge.
GUIDE: Kelly
Honeyman (J. D. Irving)
Following all Covid protocols,
the group will gather at a few of J. D. Irving’s Unique Areas in the Prosser
Mountain area, looking for rare to uncommon orchids such as Long-bracted Orchid
as well as Hookers Orchid. In addition,
the group will look for a number of uncommon ferns including those of the
Botrypus family. An explanation of JDI
Woodlands Rare Plant Pre-Screening program as well as the Unique Areas Program
will also be discussed during the trip. NOTE:
This outing will involve walking on uneven ground as well as some slopes.
Snacks, juice and water will
be provided, but you may want to bring a lunch.
Limited trail width and social
distancing requirements require participants to register to a maximum of 20
people. Please register with Louise
Nichols at nicholsl@eastlink.ca.
Questions on the outing can be
fielded by Kelly Honeyman at Honeyman.kelly@jdirving.com.
Looking forward to seeing you
out in the woods!
Also in June is the virtual monthly meeting on
June 15th, with very experienced birder David Bell, who has a lot of
interesting information to share. Also, starting on June 22nd, President Fred
Richards is arranging to start a new project of an evening few-hour outing,
every Tuesday night, to local hotspots. Lots of information to come on that.
**Louise
Nichols visited the New Brunswick Trail where it runs off Immigrant Road near
Cape Tormentine on Friday morning. She followed it approximately three km in,
until it runs alongside a big pond called Jones Pond. The trail is usually
quite active with birds, and the pond and marshy area leading into it have some
interesting habitat. Many warbler [Paruline] species were present, in addition
to other songbirds. An apple tree in blossom was attractive to some CEDAR
WAXWINGS [Jaseur d'Amérique] and a NORTHERN PARULA [Paruline à collier].
She
saw several Flycatchers [Moucherolle] who were annoyingly quiet, so she could
not identify them for sure, but did hear a LEAST FLYCATCHER [Moucherolle
tchébec] vocalizing at one point (not the one that she photographed). At the
pond there were RED-WINGED BLACKBIRDS [Carouge à epaulettes], EASTERN KINGBIRDS
[Tyran tritri] (could not get a photo), and BELTED KINGFISHER [Martin-pêcheur
d'Amérique]. Louise included a few pictures of the pond.
Alongside
the trail across from the pond, she found a patch of COMMON MILKWEED [Herbe à
coton]. It will be interesting to go back and check that patch a little later
for MONARCH BUTTERFLIES [Monarque] and other species attracted to milkweed.
This
trail sounds like a very interesting place to pay a visit, like so many areas
in New Brunswick.
On CEDAR WAXWINGS [Jaseur d'Amérique], they
like to flock to blooming apple trees as they arrive in the spring at this time
and enjoy consuming the petals.
**Georges
Brun reports he is seeing several HOUSE FINCH [Roselin familier] in the area
near Chateau Moncton. One pair is nesting there for sure, and several have been
in the area for approximately 3 weeks.
During
the past few weeks, Georges has been seeing the female PEREGRINE FALCON [Faucon
pèlerin] in her nest atop the Assumption building. Sometimes it looks empty,
but when he magnifies the image on his computer, it appears that perhaps some
chicks are in the box. He is sending photographs that he took 1/2 mile from the
site, with refraction waves so the images are documentary, but he’s sure there
is something in the box, and the male is on the big “A” logo, so it’s not the
creature in the box.
**Jane
LeBlanc shares a photo of a RED-EYED VIREO [Viréo aux yeux rouges]. It has
every feature of a Red-eyed Vireo but the reddish eye in the photo. The lack of
reddish eye in the photo made us wonder. Gilles Belliveau again to the rescue,
pointing out that in photos, this may not be a reliable field clue, as even if
the photo quality is good (as Jane’s is), if the bird is facing you or in a
shadow you may not see the colour as red, but dark. The takeaway lesson: do not
depend on Red-eyed Vireo photos having a red eye, even if they really do.
Jane also shares photos of SENSITIVE FERN
[Onoclée délicate], INTERRUPTED FERN [Osmonde de Clayton], and CINNAMON FERN
[Osmonde canelle] that grows in her St Martin’s garden. Note the fertile fronds
in the central part of the Cinnamon Fern. They will turn a pleasant cinnamon
brown as it matures. Sensitive Fern gets its name from its sensitivity to
frost.
Maureen Girvan paid visit to Wilson Marsh on Friday.
She photographed a pair if CANADA GEESE with 20 goslings in tow! It would be assumed this consists of possibly 3 clutches that have been taken under the care of one set of parents for some
reason but only they know for sure. I suspect most of us have never seen a
family with so many goslings.
Maureen also photographed a pair of MALLARD DUCKS
still paired up, the expected male RED-WINGED BLACKBIRDS patrolling the
territory on nests, and a photo showing how green foliage is now enveloping the
site
**Ron
Arsenault comments on the recent post of a BARRED OWL [Chouette rayée] preying
on fish in the pet fishpond of Fred and Lynn Dube. Ron found a reference at the
site www.allaboutbirds.org in the Food section of Barred Owls, stating this is
something that Barred Owls will do. Obviously, they do it, but maybe we would
seldom see it, as it is usually done nocturnally. The section that Ron located is
quoted below from www.allaboutbirds.org.
“Barred Owls eat many kinds of small animals, including
squirrels, chipmunks, mice, voles, rabbits, birds (up to the size of grouse),
amphibians, reptiles, and invertebrates. They hunt by sitting and waiting on an
elevated perch, while scanning all around for prey with their sharp eyes and
ears. They may perch over water and drop down to catch fish, or even wade in
shallow water in pursuit of fish and crayfish. Though they do most of their
hunting right after sunset and during the night, sometimes they feed during the
day. Barred Owls may temporarily store their prey in a nest, in the crook of a
branch, or at the top of a snag. They swallow small prey whole and large prey
in pieces, eating the head first and then the body.”
Thank you Ron for sharing this.
**Brian
Stone has some great photos to share from Tuesday, May 25th. He has lots more
to come from other recent forays that will be coming soon. These pictures are
from two spots – Arthur Street lagoon in Memramcook and Sackville Waterfowl Park. At the
Sackville Waterfowl Park the wind was so strong that it was near impossible to
do any birding. He managed to find one secluded area with low wind speeds, and
the birds did come out to see him. YELLOW WARBLERS [Paruline jaune],
CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLERS [Paruline à flancs marron], a HAIRY WOODPECKER [Pic
chevelu], and an EASTERN PHOEBE [Moucherolle phébi] were content to forage and
interact near him. He saw RHODORA [Rhododendron du Canada] in bloom. At the Arthur
Street lagoon, the Swallows [Hirondelle] were in the hundreds. They were
alternating between skimming the lagoon for insects, taking grit from the
roadway, and fence-sitting for a break and a chance to interact with each
other. A selection of other ducks was there, including NORTHERN PINTAILS
[Canard pilet], GADWALLS [Canard chipeau], and MALLARD DUCKS [Canard colvert] with
ducklings.
While
he was watching the swallows skimming the lagoon, an immature BALD EAGLE
[Pygargue à tête blanche] swooped in and appeared to try to catch a waterfowl
prey. It was not successful though, and soon flew off over the marsh to search
elsewhere, with the ducks waving a wing goodbye!
On the YELLOW WARBLER [Paruline jaune] photo,
the obvious reddish breast stripes indicate a male Yellow Warbler, which shows nicely in
Brian’s photo.
Also on
the Eastern Phoebe, the lack of wing
bars and near-constant flicking of the tail do help to recognize this flycatcher,
as well as its vocalization that announces its name.
**The
Fundy Biosphere Reserve has been a huge project, now complete and working. The
New Brunswick Environmental Network Biodiversity Program Coordinator, Clara
Thaysen has arranged a great podcast on what it all encompasses with Dr. Jennifer Dingman, Fundy Biosphere Executive Director. If you’d like to view it,
check out the message from Clara, which says click HERE to view and watch
this very interesting segment as attached below:
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nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com
Nelson
Poirier,
Nature
Moncton
