NATURE MONCTON NATURE NEWS
March 26, 2024
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
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The live feed to the Peregrine Falcon
nest box camera can be accessed at https://www.zoodemagnetichillzoo.ca/nest-cam
**There was a significant
announcement made public on Monday about the future of the New Brunswick Museum
in St. John. It is nothing short of exhilarating information that is in the
attached CBC announcement:
193.7K Followers
New Brunswick Museum design
unveiled, $108M in funding secured
• 5h • 2 min read
The design of the revitalized New Brunswick
Museum has been unveiled, and nearly $108 million in government funding for its
construction secured.
The
former museum building in Saint John's north end will be updated and
expanded to house research, exhibition, and community spaces under one
roof, while its historical facade will be maintained, officials announced
Monday at the Douglas Avenue site.
The province will invest $58
million, after the Higgs government previously cancelled $50 million
pledged by the former Liberal government for
a new home for the museum. The federal government will provide $49.9
million. The museum will contribute the remaining $23.7 million
through an upcoming capital campaign.
Tammy
Scott-Wallace, minister of tourism, heritage and culture, described the
announcement as "a long time coming," noting 44 iterations have
been put to paper over the past 50 years.
"And
here we are today making it real," she said. "I guess the 45th time
is the charm.'
Premier
Blaine Higgs said it "takes a while to get it right."
**Brian Coyle captured a trail camera video that
appears to be a Beaver territorial dispute. You have to wait until
almost the end of the video to see any action, but if you have the sound up, you can
hear the tail slap on the water, and then a flurry of water splashing as one
individual makes its escape with the other one just coming into view at the end
of the video. It is astonishing just how fast the usually cumbersome Beaver can
travel. Take a look at the action at the video link below:
**Georges Brun photographed a Ring-Billed
Gull at the mouth of Halls Creek in Moncton on Sunday morning. It had a silver band
on the right leg and a blue plastic band on the left leg. The latter has
"RT2" white letters and a number. Georges was not able to see
the identification number on the silver metal ring.
Richard Blaquiere was able to track down where the
bird was originally banded from the Universite du Québec à Montreal
Département
des sciences biologiques.
2024-03-25
It was banded on 2020-06-25 as a Juvenile bird in Île
Deslauriers, PQ
This marking program is conducted jointly by
researchers from UQAM, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the
Massachusetts DCR as part of a study on movements and population dynamics of Ring-billed
Gulls in eastern North America.
(Editor’s note: the report indicates this is a
four-year-old bird and it appears from the report this is the first time an
observation was documented and reported.)
**Karen and Jamie Burris had two Killdeer singing
in the field behind them on Sunday. The American Robins are still eating
the Sumac berries in their Riverview yard and a flock of Common Grackles
made their first appearance this year.
(Editor's note: the Staghorn Sumac retains its berries all winter and is welcome forage for American Robins returning to join us in the spring.)
On Monday, Karen
and Jamie saw a flock of Evening Grosbeaks, 20 or so. It appeared as though they
were heading South Southeast toward Pembrook Lane in Riverview.
**Christine Lever reports that a pair of Mourning
Doves have built a nest in her neighbour's gutter. They did the same thing last
year and the year before. The first year the crows got the chicks and destroyed
the nest so Christine was privy to a bloodbath. Last year, they finished the
nest and Ms Dove was on the nest when there was a heavy downpour that washed
away the nest.
(Editor’s comment: The nest of the Mourning Dove is
very fragile and put together without too much thought. They seem to overcome
their lack of nest engineering with the fact that they can nest multiple times
in one season.)
Christine comments “Perhaps this plucky pair are
inveterate gamblers hoping for their 'third time lucky' attempt to pay off this
time. She is not sure she wants this to happen because then they'll think they've
broken the losing streak. They'll build there again and break my heart again.”
Phil comments, “This is one of my favorite photos because the male is showing
his amazing colors. With hummingbirds, it’s all about the availability and the
angle of light, and how the bird decides to show his feathers. It can go from
black – no color at all – to an explosion of yellow-orange-red-purple.”
**Pat Gibbs is noting bulbs emerging that got snowed on and wondering if we will get
any flowers this spring or if they will be killed by the "bud, then
freeze" cycles we have been having. Pat wonders if most people are asking
the same this year.
(Editor’s note: we have all seen these hearty
cultivars surrounded by snow and they seem to do fine, but what about the shock of
severely cold nights? They may well be able to handle that as well.)
Pat also shares a photo of a male Ring-necked
Pheasant in flight commenting, “It isn't often one can catch them in flight
so this was pure luck.”
**Every year, Nature NB recognizes someone in our community who has
made a noteworthy contribution to their club or to our organization as a whole.
Beginning with this year's AGM which will take place during our annual Festival
of Nature in June, the Naturalist of the Year Award will now be called the
Roger Leblanc Memorial Naturalist of the Year Award.
Read more about Roger's legacy and
how you can nominate someone who has made an impact: https://www.naturenb.ca/2024/03/21/nature-nb-renames-annual-award-in-memory-of-roger-leblanc/
Nelson Poirier
Nature Moncton
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