Nature Moncton Nature News: December 21 2023

NATURE MONCTON NATURE NEWS

December 21, 2023

Nature Moncton members as well as any naturalist in New Brunswick or beyond are invited to share their photos and descriptions of recent nature sightings to build a fresh (almost) daily edition of Nature News

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 .

Proofreading courtesy of Louise Nichols at nicholsl@eastlink.ca

**While Jane LeBlanc in St. Martins was trying (unsuccessfully) to get a photo of her female Northern Cardinal, a Golden-crowned Kinglet appeared very briefly, nodding its head to show its yellow crown to indicate a female.

Jane managed a brief photo.

(Editor’s note: Jane’s Witch Hazel shrub is still showing its blooms in late December. Will it make it to January?)

**Louise Nichols surveyed the Dorchester sector for the Memramcook CBC with Jason Gallant on Tuesday. They usually have one or two good species each year, and Tuesday was no exception. They had a great day, tallying up 29 species including an Eastern Bluebird, Field Sparrow, Eastern Towhee, Yellow-rumped Warbler, and a Hooded Merganser. The day was heavily gray and most of the birds could not be photographed, but Louise did get documentary shots of the Eastern Towhee and the Yellow-rumped Warbler. She also includes two photos (Mallard Duck pair and Red-breasted Nuthatch) that she took on the much brighter Moncton CBC day on Saturday.

**Georges Brun was surprised to see a Great Blue Heron fly up Halls Creek Tuesday afternoon. He also saw a flock of Snow Buntings over in the Chartersville area (Dieppe Marsh).

The day after the Christmas Bird Count, Georges saw 2 Peregrine Falcons atop the Assumption Building.

**Brian Stone visited Mapleton Park in Moncton on Wednesday and had a brief encounter with a Brown Creeper that resulted in a flurry of photo snapping that resulted in just 2 reasonable pictures. Fast-moving Brown Creepers are challenging photo subjects, especially in dimly lit wooded areas. Brian also found many ripe-looking mushrooms on several trees along the trails.

(Editor’s note: Brian has found and photographed the well-known Oyster Mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus) which normally occurs on trees earlier in the season but the recent warm weather has caused it to make a last fling. Brian has also photographed the Late Fall Oyster (Panellus serotinus) which is often one of the latest good edible mushrooms to appear. It is not in the same family as the oyster mushroom but is named due to its similarity to it. It is considered an excellent edible.)

One tree had an extremely large, fresh-looking Pileated Woodpecker excavation at its base that demonstrates the strength and work ethic of this large bird.

Brian also found a mussel shell along one trail around the big pond there.

(Editor’s note: Brian photographed a mussel shell just as it should be, showing the outer and inner shell. Not having the shell in hand to know the thickness, the outer appearance and the inner hinge structure suggests the Eastern Floater Mussel. The habitat is correct for its presence. We have several varieties of mussels in New Brunswick that play an important part in the ecosystem but tend to go unnoticed as they are often underwater or just at underwater level.)