Nature Moncton Nature News: April 28 2023

April 28, 2023

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Edited by Nelson Poirier nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Proofreading courtesy of Louise Nichols at nicholsl@eastlink.ca

**There has been a move over the past several years not to capitalize the proper names of birds, animals, etc. in most writing except scientific journals.

This is not a welcome change for many of us who have been schooled to use capitalization for all proper names.

The blog editor and proofreader, Louise, made the decision to do a trial run of this now-accepted procedure for this blog to see if we can get used to it. The main subjects in each report and significant notations will continue to be bolded.

** Jane LeBlanc was driving in West Quaco near St. Martins and saw a larger white bird standing in the marsh. It was a great egret. When taking distant photos, she noticed several great blue herons standing behind it.

**Georges Brun enjoys photographing aircraft.

He got quite a surprise when he got home and was looking at the photo of a surveillance plane to spot a bald eagle in the background.

(Editor’s note: suspect the eagle may have been as surprised as Georges was!)

**Nelson Poirier recently completed spring housecleaning of 19 nest boxes in the Miramichi area. All had been occupied last season.

Sixteen were occupied with nests typical of tree swallows, one (and possibly two) were constructed with pine needles consistent with eastern bluebird construction, and one was occupied by American kestrel (for which that box was designed).

One box was occupied by a red squirrel, with a few photos attached. This particular box was occupied by a flying squirrel two years ago. It is interesting to note that the flying squirrel did not enlarge the hole opening size, whereas the red squirrel did. The wood square over the hole opening is obviously effective in reducing the use of the boxes by red squirrels. The flying squirrel, being slightly smaller than the red squirrel, did not find it necessary to enlarge the opening.

All the nest boxes had been treated with a pyrethrin/permethrin combo spray and diatomaceous earth powder. No bird fleas were found in the nesting material as had been found before using the treatment. It was also rewarding not to find any unhatched eggs, which had been the case the season before, in some boxes.

All these nest boxes were erected on utility poles and very open areas, and suspect that may be the reason why none were occupied by black-capped chickadees.

**As a head’s up to slot off Saturday, May 20, for a Nature Moncton Warbler field trip with write-up below:

NATURE MONCTON WARBLER HIKE

Date: May 20, 2023

Time: 9:00 AM

Place: Kiwanis parking lot on Mill St., Hillsborough

Guide: Gordon Rattray

In late spring each year we have the movement of many birds returning to their nesting regions, both local nesters and those that just pass through on their journey farther north. The warblers are one such group that either pass through or nest in our area. These little birds are very colorful and very vocal as they stop for a rest and feeding, and in late May we can often locate many of the warbler species in the Hillsborough area. On May 20, Nature Moncton will host a hike for members, and anyone interested in observing warblers. The warblers are most active as the morning warms and the insects take flight, so this makes 9:00 a good starting time. The hike will be on an abandoned rail line, flat but the rails are still in place, so a little bit of difficulty. The rail hike is only 200 meters up and then we will double back. Also in the same location are the prepared trails of the Hillsborough Water Park, a walk on a gravel surface of 2 km. For those wishing for a little more birding, we will do this trail after lunch.

As a bonus, those of you who take photos of warblers on this trip will be invited to share (if you’d like) your best shots at the June Nature Moncton membership meeting to be held on June 20^th at 7:00 PM.

So if you’d like to see some warblers and learn more about their appearance and songs, join us for this warbler walk in an area where warblers of many species should be active.

Bring snacks and lunch. All are welcome, Nature Moncton member or not.

**It’s Friday in our day to review what next week’s night sky may have in store for us courtesy of sky group Curt Nason.

This Week’s Sky at a Glance April 29-May 6

The constellation Hercules is up in the east after sunset, recognizable by the Keystone asterism that forms the legendary strongman’s body. He is usually pictured kneeling upside down in the sky, having a tête-à-tête with Ophiuchus the Serpent Bearer, with his foot placed triumphantly on the head of Draco the Dragon. The Keystone is situated two-thirds of the way from Arcturus to Vega.

Hercules (Heracles in Greek mythology) was the result of one of Zeus’s many affairs with a mortal woman. Consequently, Hera (wife of Zeus) did whatever she could to have Hercules killed. As a baby, Hercules strangled two snakes sent by her, and the Twelve Labours he performed were assigned by King Eurystheus, a representative of Hera.

Two globular clusters, M13 and M92, can be seen with binoculars in the constellation. M13, the finest globular cluster in the northern hemisphere, is along the right side of the Keystone, two-thirds of the way from bottom to top. A line from the bottom right star of the Keystone to the middle of the top side, extended not quite that same distance, will put you near M92.

This Week in the Solar System
Saturday’s sunrise in Moncton is at 6:09 am and sunset will occur at 8:24 pm, giving 14 hours, 15 minutes of daylight (6:16 am and 8:27 pm in Saint John). Next Saturday the Sun will rise at 5:58 am and set at 8:33 pm, giving 14 hours, 35 minutes of daylight (6:06 am and 8:36 pm in Saint John).

The Moon is in the waxing gibbous phase for most of the week, becoming full on Friday. Venus passes between the horn tips of Taurus the Bull early in the week, heading toward Gemini and setting her sights on Mars in that constellation. Saturn rises around 4:00 am this week, but Jupiter will need a couple of weeks before it can appear in morning twilight. Mercury is at inferior conjunction on Monday, moving toward a difficult morning apparition for observing in late May. Next weekend early risers might catch some meteors from the Eta Aquariids shower, emanating from a point near Saturn, although the full Moon and low radiant will lower your chances of seeing more than a few.

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.