Nature Moncton Nature News: March 10 2023

NATURE MONCTON NATURE NEWS

March 10, 2023

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Edited by Nelson Poirier nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

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**Shannon Inman captured 2 action photographs of male Common Mergansers in striking spring breeding plumage in the Shepody River as they captured two prey items that we have not yet identified. One prey item suggests an amphibian, while the other appears to be a fish. Identity suggestions are welcomed!

Shannon also photographed a blend of lichens on a branch. Kendra Driscoll suggests the bright yellow lichen is probably the Maritime Sunburst Lichen, while the prominent yellow-green lichen is the Green Shield Lichen (Flavoparmelia) with a bit of mineral grey Parmelia appearing to the side.

**John Inman photographed a small Sharp-shinned Hawk hunting the little birds in the rose hedge and doing quite well with it. A dozen or so Canada Geese went down the river by his Harvey home Thursday morning. John is expecting more Canada Geese if the north winds lessen. John is also noting that the Ravens are busy selecting nest materials.

(Editor’s note: we are moving into that time of year with lots of warming weather predicted, meaning that early migrants such as Canada Geese, American Robins, and the blackbird group will soon have advanced scouts arriving).

**A nice update on general bird feeder activity from Gordon Rattray, who had a visit on Thursday from a Pine Siskin, which is the first one since the middle of January this year. It was alone and late in the day. This week has seen a large flock of American Goldfinches dropping in at Gordon’s feeders; this winter has usually only produced a small flock. This week of March, Gordon has been visited by several Red-breasted Nuthatches, all winter visitors, as are the many Black-capped Chickadees. A couple of Blue Jays have visited, the first in several months. The White-breasted Nuthatch and the Brown Creeper continue to visit almost daily, as do Hairy Woodpeckers and Downy Woodpeckers. A few American Tree Sparrows are still feeding, as are the three Dark-eyed Juncos. The daily visits of a White-throated Sparrow have stopped.

**Jane LeBlanc in St. Martins had a small flock of Pine Siskins in her yard today after intermittent snow flurries.

(Editor‘s note: it would seem a bit unusual how this species has made brief stops in various feeders this winter. It would appear to suggest this species is in low numbers this winter).

**Lynda LeClerc shares some of the usual and unusual activity as she visits California at the moment.

She is unsure if the hummingbird photo is an Allen’s or Rufous Hummingbird because of the shade of orange on this one. Usually, Anna’s Hummingbirds are at the feeder. They are expecting an atmospheric river with flood, and wind watches that many of us have been hearing about.

Lynda also sends a picture of Scrub Jays in the vineyard of the area where they are staying just outside of Santa Rosa, Ca. In the past month, they have had snow, hail, and lots of rain, with temperatures hovering between 0 to 10 C°. Needless to say, these are below-average temperatures for this area at this time of year. They get very excited when they have a sunny day.

**Brian Stone sends a few more photos from Upham and Hampton lagoon. In Upham, at his sister's feeder yard, the frequent group of 4 American Crows was searching for any bird feed fallen to the ground beneath the feeders. When Brian zoomed in close, the crows appeared quite intimidating as they walked around the yard.

At the Hampton lagoon there were a few gulls present, including a 1st winter Iceland Gull, 3 male Common Goldeneye Ducks, and 2 Turkey Vultures at the far end of the pond. The other ducks Brian reported yesterday were also still present.

**Friday has arrived in time to take our weekly preview of what next week’s night sky may have for us to enjoy, all courtesy of sky guru Curt Nason.

This Week’s Sky at a Glance, 2023 March 11 – March 18
As darkness settles in this Friday evening, go out and raise a glass to the southwest and toast the constellation Orion, the mighty sky-hunter who on this day signs his name as O’Ryan. And if you had dusted off an Irish Rovers record during the day, perhaps you will be hunting the sky for some animals in their signature tune written by Shel Silverstein, “The Unicorn.”

You will have no luck finding green alligators, chimpanzees, rats and elephants. There is no humpy-back camel, either, but there is the large and faint Camelopardalis in the seemingly blank sky high in the northwest between Polaris and bright Capella. The name means camel-leopard or giraffe. Cygnus the Swan is waving part of one wing above the northern horizon, hoping to be picked for a long-necked goose. If you check Cygnus out in the morning there is a faint constellation below its head called Vulpecula the Fox. Nineteenth-century star maps depicted the fox with a goose in its mouth, and the constellation was labelled as Vulpecula and Anser. Cats? Well, there is Leo the Lion in the east, tiny Leo Minor between it and Ursa Major, and elusive Lynx above Ursa Major.

This Week in the Solar System
Saturday’s sunrise in Moncton is at 6:39 am and sunset will occur at 6:19 pm, giving 11 hours, 40 minutes of daylight (6:44 am and 6:24 pm in Saint John). Next Saturday the Sun will rise at 7:26 am and set at 7:28 pm, giving 12 hours, 2 minutes of daylight (7:31 am and 7:33 pm in Saint John). Timepieces jump ahead one hour at 2 am Sunday to begin daylight time. Note that 12 hours of daylight occurs on March 17-18 rather than on the equinox. Sunrise and sunset times are based on the top of the Sun rather than the middle, so that adds about two minutes of light to the day. Also, the refraction of sunlight through the atmosphere can make the Sun appear to be sitting on the horizon, when rising and setting, when it is actually just below it, adding about four minutes. Therefore, 12 hours of daylight occurs two to three days before the spring equinox and after the autumn equinox.

The Moon is near the bright orange star Antares in Scorpius on Tuesday morning and it reaches third quarter phase that evening. Venus dominates the early evening sky as Jupiter begins sinking into twilight, with Venus setting an hour later than Jupiter on Sunday and stretching that by half an hour over the week. Mars passes between the horn tips of Taurus this weekend, making an equilateral triangle with similarly coloured Betelgeuse and Aldebaran late in the week. Mercury is at superior conjunction on Friday, while Saturn is lost in morning twilight. Rural observers might see the zodiacal light in the western sky 60 to 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.