NATURE MONCTON NATURE NEWS

Feb 18, 2022 (Friday)

To respond by e-mail, please address your message to the information line editor, nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com .

Please advise the editor at nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com if any errors are noted in wording or photo labelling.

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

Edited by: Nelson Poirier nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

**For those who missed or would like to hear again the presentation Jim Wilson gave to Nature Moncton on Tuesday night on Wild Turkeys, it was recorded and is available to view at the attached link:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/822opzcnouk2pi8/NB%20Turkeys%20with%20Jim%20Wilson.mp4?dl=0

**Attached is a photo of 3 newly minted Ducks Unlimited duck nest boxes available free of charge to any member who has a site in mind to place them. Now is the time to do that when ponds are frozen over (or soon will be refrozen). Three other boxes have been homed with the wood shaving lining the bottom waiting for patrons. It is hoped all 3 of these will have trail cameras hoping for patrons.

Kassandra Paillard at Ducks Unlimited comments last year they installed a camera in one of the nest boxes in front of the Fredericton DU office. April 16^th marked the first day of activity and went past May 30^th. She feels if a house is ready for early to mid April, one could be successful in having it taken. However, since our boxes are just installed this winter, you may only see some waterfowl scouting them out and then using them next year.

** Saint John Naturalists Club February Meeting: The Wonderful World of Wildlife Research

Event Information

Event Date	19 February, 2022 10:00 am
Event End Date	19-Feb-2022
Cancel Registration Before Date	19 February, 2022 10:00 am
Location	Online/En ligne

** It’s Friday and time to review what next week sky has in store for us courtesy of sky guru Curt Nason:

This Week’s Sky at a Glance, 2022 February 19 – February 26
Let’s pay attention to the minority this week. By this I mean the Minor constellations: Ursa, Canis and Leo, all of which are now visible in the evening. Ursa Minor, the Little Bear, hosts the Little Dipper asterism and it has what is arguably the most important and famous star of the night sky–Polaris, the North Star–at the tip of its tail. Although smaller and less bright than the nearby Great Bear, Ursa Minor is at the centre of action in our night sky. How many have heard or even believe that Polaris is the brightest star in the night sky? It actually ranks at number 48.

Canis Minor, the Little Dog, is noted for having the eighth brightest star, Procyon. An imaginary arrowhead formed by Orion’s head and shoulder stars points eastward to the Little Dog. We usually see it as just two stars so it is probably a wiener dog. Despite the brilliance of its luminary, the Little Dog is just the opening act for Canis Major and its leading star, Sirius, the brightest one of the night sky. In early winter Procyon rises first to announce the impending arrival of Sirius, hence the name which means “before the dog.”

Leo Minor the Little Lion experiences difficulty in being noticed, and with good reason. It is one of those inconspicuous constellations created by the 17th century astronomer Johannes Hevelius to fill gaps in the sky. We see it as a triangle between the back of Leo and the feet of Ursa Major. To give it some distinction and pride we can imagine the lion cub nipping at the heels of the Great Bear to keep it from attacking Leo.

This Week in the Solar System
Saturday’s sunrise in Moncton is at 7:15 am and sunset will occur at 5:51 pm, giving 10 hours, 36 minutes of daylight (7:19 am and 5:57 pm in Saint John). Next Saturday the Sun will rise at 7:03 am and set at 6:01 pm, giving 10 hours, 58 minutes of daylight (7:07 am and 6:07 pm in Saint John).

The Moon is at third quarter on Wednesday, and for a challenge telescope users can try to see the star Zubenelgenubi just above the Moon around 8:40 Tuesday morning. Jupiter sets a half hour after sunset this weekend, getting lost in twilight. Venus rises around 4:50 am, followed by Mars a half hour later to its lower right. Mercury and Saturn follow, each at half-hour intervals. There will be some interesting lunar-planetary groupings at the end of the month. Starting this weekend rural stargazers have a two-week opportunity to see the subtle glow of the zodiacal light in the west about 45-90 minutes after sunset.

On Sunday evening at 8 pm, tune in to the Sunday Night Astronomy Show via the Facebook page or YouTube channel of Astronomy by the Bay.

Questions? Contact Curt Nason at nasonc@nbnet.nb.ca.