Nature Moncton Nature News: May 30 2022

NATURE MONCTON NATURE NEWS

May 30, 2022 (Monday)

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Edited by: Nelson Poirier nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

**Jim Johnson in Scotch Settlement comments that bees are very attracted to a cultivar plant, Creeping Charlie on his lawn. A rough count was 14 at one time.

Take a look at the action at the attached link:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/9pxjsusnwog00rv/Bees%20and%20Creeping%20Charlie.mp4?dl=0

Nelson Poirier is also practicing the ‘no mow May’ to allow the bees to gather pollen from the hundreds of dandelions in full bloom. It seems to be working as the area is alive with busy bees.

**The Olive-sided Flycatcher is a flycatcher with numbers that seem to be decreasing. Aldo Dorio got a photo of an Olive-sided Flycatcher at Hay Island on Tuesday.

**Jane and Ed LeBlanc took an early morning bicycle ride on Sunday morning and found wildlife. In the bog there were a few Bullfrogs.

Many Gray Catbirds were seen and heard.

Later, Jane walked with her puppy and had some excitement when a baby Snowshoe Hare ran across the driveway in front of them. She is sure one arm is now much longer than the other!

Not a mile from home, near an overgrown area, Jane hit warblers, including Black and White, Black-throated Green, Yellow Warblers as well as Common Yellowthroat and American Redstart. There were also a female Blackpoll Warbler and a suspected 1st year female Magnolia Warbler.

Taking photos of warblers is hard enough but try having a rambunctious puppy on a leash as well!

Imagine Jane LeBlanc's surprise when she came home from a few hours away to discover a female Monarch Butterfly laying eggs on her Common Milkweed plants which are only 6-8 inches high!! This is the earliest ever...even before the swallowtails, which are normally here when the lilacs bloom. (Editors note: it certainly is unusual to be seeing Monarch Butterflies in May; however, there has been other reports from New Brunswick and Nova Scotia)

** On May 19 and 20, the Simon family visited the Wilson's (Bell Street) marsh and saw a lot of Canada Goose goslings! In addition, they saw a Baltimore Oriole and the elusive American Bittern at dusk. The bittern's call could be heard all the way back to the car parked in a nearby neighborhood.

** The Simon family hiked the Tantramar Wetlands trail for the first time on May 22. Numerous Tree Swallows were seen in flight and were using the bright blue nest boxes that surround the water. Luckily for Isabelle, someone left behind a few nets, and she successfully found several large snails and leeches in the water.

Cathy Simon faced the mosquitoes on the John Howard trail in the Irishtown Nature Park on May 23. The highlight of the hike included seeing a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker and a Bay-breasted Warbler. (Editors note: note the drill holes aside Cathy’s Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, typical of the work of the species.)

** A nice day was had by the 10 or so participants in Sunday's Nature Moncton outing to Baie Verte and the Port Elgin lagoon. The weather was perfect with sunshine and a light breeze in the morning. Lots of birds were found along the trail through the Baie Verte Nature Reserve with a total of over 41 species. Highlights of the day were a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher that was a lifer for some on the trip, many warbler species including a bright male Blackburnian Warbler with his female mate, and the Osprey who were tending their nest. The sunshine also brought out some dragonflies and damselflies and a few butterfly species including a first-of-the-year for many Canadian Tiger Swallowtail. A fleeting glimpse of a Monarch Butterfly got many excited, but the butterfly was on a mission and didn't stay around for photos. The group had lunch at the old church in Baie Verte where they were entertained by a female American Kestrel who kept circling the area around the church, raising the question of whether or not she may be checking out nesting sites. After lunch, the group travelled to the Port Elgin lagoon to find it fairly quiet in late May -- but still occupied by some Mallard Ducks, American Black Ducks with young, Ring-necked Ducks, a Greater Scaup, Wood ducks, Green-winged Teal and American Wigeon. Many thanks to Roger LeBlanc for sharing his knowledge of the birds seen throughout the day.

** Brian Stone sends some pictures from the Nature Moncton field trip to Baie Verte on Sunday. The weather was warm, mildly humid, partially cloudy, and just a bit buggy. Many birds, butterflies, dragonflies, and other items of interest were observed and photographed. The special "bird of the day" was a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher. Also photographed was one of many heard Alder Flycatchers, a Yellow-rumped Warbler, a Blackburnian Warbler, an American Kestrel, a Blue-headed Vireo and Red-eyed Vireo, a Chestnut-sided Warbler, one of several Cedar Waxwings eyeing some insects in a treetop, and a Red-tailed Hawk flying close over.

Brian photographed many more subjects but we will have to wait until tomorrow for the images to be processed and sent.

**Like many who have birdfeeders, Nelson Poirier has orange sections out to attract orioles and Gray Catbirds. Both species have yet to partake however a pair of Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers are finding the orange offerings much to their liking travelling between jam and peanut butter as well.

Nelson Poirier

Nature Moncton

nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com