Nature Moncton Nature News: February 26 2024

NATURE MONCTON NATURE NEWS

February 26, 2025

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

**Jane and Ed LeBlanc in St. Martins took a Sunday afternoon drive to enjoy the sun, and not far from their house, they found a Canada Jay preening on top of a tree. Jane got a documentary photo. She also sends a photo of two of her many feeder Blue Jays.

**Yves Poussart comments as others that the Saturday Nature Moncton Birdfeeder Tour turned out to be indeed very interesting and enjoyable.

For most of the day, some light snow was covering every branch and providing a nice white environment. Overall, the several stops brought a nice diversity of species and good opportunities for observations and photos. Yves Poussart was happy to get his first photo of a Northern Cardinal in the Moncton vicinity and to discover the rare Dark-eyed Junco (Oregon species). Many thanks to all the members who offered access to their home to see the setting of the various birdfeeders and especially to Jean Renton for the always good breakfast. A great day very appreciated. Yves' photographic contributions are also appreciated!

**Gordon Rattray also joined members of Nature Moncton on the Feeder Tour on Saturday and visited several sites.
In Lower Coverdale Gordon was able to get photos of a Brown Creeper, with one showing the cryptic blending of the creeper with the tree bark. In the same yard, Gordon photographed a male and a female Hairy Woodpecker. Gordon also includes a picture taken the day after, Sunday, of a male Ring-necked Pheasant in his Weldon yard.

**On Sunday Brian Stone joined Nelson Poirier on a trip across Caledonia Mountain searching for seasonal bird life that can frequently be seen in the area. Hoped for crossbills and Canada Jays did not show up but the other jewel of the mountain, the Boreal Chickadee, was cooperative this time and posed for some good photos. Along with the Boreal, a dozen or more Black-capped Chickadees also came around for viewing, but their companion Red-breasted Nuthatches remained out of reach of the camera.

(Editor’s note: from Brian’s scenery photos of Caledonia Mountain, one can see winter is indeed there!)

While waiting for more specimens to appear, an unexpected one did -- a distant adult Red-tailed Hawk circled far overhead and occasionally hovered briefly while searching for its prey in cleared areas. On Brian's way to Nelson's, he stopped for a check on the resident Peregrine Falcons at the Moncton Assumption Building and caught them resting in their usual spot on the large A logo on the side of the building.

Nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Nelson Poirier

Nature Moncton