Nature Moncton Nature News: May 10 2024

NATURE MONCTON NATURE NEWS

May 10, 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 of Nature News

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Proofreading courtesy of Louise Nichols at nicholsl@eastlink.ca

The live feed to the Peregrine Falcon nest box camera can be accessed at https://www.zoodemagnetichillzoo.ca/nest-cam

** On Wednesday morning Deana and Peter Gadd were treated to a busy time at their feeders. They had 21 species over about 2 hours including two White-crowned Sparrows, Pine Siskins, Evening Grosbeaks (first time in quite a while), Chipping Sparrows, Brown-headed Cowbirds, Northern Cardinals, Red-winged Blackbirds and Yellow-rumped Warblers.

But the guest of honour was a male Indigo Bunting. Unfortunately, it fed and drank for only about 15 minutes and decided it could do better elsewhere. Quite a treat though!

**Louise Nichols, Elaine Gallant, and Wendy Sullivan took a trip to Highland Park in Salisbury on Wednesday to see what spring birds were back in the area. There was not a lot of waterfowl, but they did see Northern Shovelers, Green-winged Teal, Blue-winged Teal, and Mallard ducks (one female with about 12 ducklings in tow). They saw and heard an American Coot, too distant for good photos. There were also several Pied-billed Grebes present and vocalizing. Many Red-winged Blackbirds were busy in the marsh and calling. Savannah, Song, and Swamp Sparrows were seen and heard, as was a Belted Kingfisher. Yellow-rumped Warblers were present, but no other warbler species were seen. Several Eastern Phoebes could be heard singing. The nice bird prize of the day was a Warbling Vireo back in the trees alongside the water impoundment, an area they like to frequent each year.

(Editor's note: Take close note of Louise's photo of the Warbling Vireo as we don't often get to see this sometimes secretive and not as common vireo.

Also, take note of the female Red-winged Blackbird as it sometimes heads right for nesting territory on spring arrival and is not with the hoards of males that stop by feeders. The female plumage is very different from the male.)

**Barbara Smith went for a walk on Wednesday in Riverview and saw what looked like the most realistic garden statue she had ever seen. It was of a Red Fox, lying prone and still on a slope, facing her. But as soon as she stopped to look closer, it got up and bounded away, and she realized it wasn't a statue at all but the biggest Red Fox she had ever seen. Barb walked a bit closer to where this magnificent creature had disappeared and though she didn't see it again, Barb spotted a Red Fox kit by the side of a garden shed. Then she saw two more. She was too far away to get decent phone photos and was trespassing on the edge of someone's property as it was -- but she managed to make a short video of one of the kits which one can see at the link below:

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/pzxowqrk2b419qxyfh4wx/Fox-Kit-Barbara-Smith.mp4?rlkey=jmcodl92cd788uxtldneee1f8&st=rzu3mstu&dl=0

**Elaine Gallant got a photograph of a male Brown-headed Cowbird that shows nicely how this species that is with us for the season got its name. The female plumage is very different being quite drab and conservative. No doubt good camo to drop her eggs into another bird's nest.

Elaine also sends a photo of a female Red-bellied Woodpecker that they had at their feeders off and on all winter but has not been seen since April 26. We all hope she may have found a suitor and will consider setting up housekeeping in New Brunswick.

Elaine’s third contribution of the day is a female Baltimore Oriole that arrived in her yard today. The main interest of orioles when they first arrive in spring is often orange or grapefruit sections at birdfeeders. This individual that arrived at Elaine’s started feeding immediately on bird pie. There have been reports in other years of orioles feeding on bird pies. They happen to come in an orange mesh bag but have no fruit component.

**Jane LeBlanc spent a dampish morning at "the rez" in Saint John with the Saint John Naturalists Club. She missed a lot of photos, but some birds seen or heard were Black and White Warbler, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Northern Parula Warbler, Black-throated Green Warbler, Black-throated Blue Warbler, Blue-headed Vireo, Northern Cardinal, Song Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow, American Wigeon, Broad-winged Hawk, Sharp-shinned Hawk, and several others. Expert birders helped greatly with IDs. About 14 souls braved the less-than-ideal conditions.

**John Inman comments Blue Jays have started their spring migration the past few days with 80 plus in their yard, and late in the evening on Thursday, two White-crowned Sparrows arrived. John also comments that Shannon Inman passed the Lars Larsen marsh this morning for a look and she just called to let him know 60 plus Great-blue Herons and well over 200 Tree Swallows with a few Barn Swallows in the mix were patronizing that site.

**It’s our day for sky guru Curt Nason to give us an overview of what we might expect to see in next week’s night sky:

This Week’s Sky at a Glance, 2024 May 11 – May 18
The most important constellation of the northern hemisphere for the past millennium has been Ursa Minor, the Little Bear, which is also known as the Little Dipper although it more resembles a ladle. It is important because the fairly bright star at the end the bear’s tail or the dipper’s handle is Polaris, the North Star. Mariners would determine their latitude by measuring how many degrees of arc Polaris was above the ocean.

Around 10 pm this week the Big Dipper hangs upside-down high in the northern sky. The two stars at the end of the bowl were known as The Pointers because they point (downward in this position) toward Polaris. Two slightly dimmer stars to the right, which are known as the Guardians of the Pole, form the bottom of the Little Dipper, and four much dimmer stars fill out the rest of the bowl and handle. As night progresses you can watch the stars of both dippers circle Polaris counter-clockwise. Years ago the Little Dipper was used as a clock at night, which required knowing its orientation after sunset at different times of the year.

Polaris was commonly thought to be the brightest star in the night sky but it barely makes the top 50. Also, it hasn’t always been the North Star. Earth wobbles like a top every 25,800 years, so celestial north changes over that period. Thuban, a star in Draco between the bowl of the Little Dipper and the handle of the Big Dipper, was the North Star 5000 years ago when the pyramids were being built. Vega will have the honour in 12,000 years, but it won’t be as close to celestial north as Polaris is now.

This Week in the Solar System
Saturday’s sunrise in Moncton is at 5:51 and sunset will occur at 8:40, giving 14 hours, 51 minutes of daylight (5:58 and 8:43 in Saint John). Next Saturday the Sun will rise at 5:42 and set at 8:49, giving 15 hours, 7 minutes of daylight (5:50 and 8:51 in Saint John).

The Moon is near Pollux in Gemini on Sunday and it is at first quarter on Wednesday. Saturn rises more than two hours before sunrise this weekend, while Mars beats the Sun by an hour and a half. Mercury rises 45 minutes before sunrise all week and continues to brighten, making this a good week to spot it with binoculars during a difficult apparition. Jupiter and Venus are too close to the Sun to observe. Astronomy week begins on Monday with Uranus in solar conjunction, and International Astronomy Day is next Saturday with Jupiter in conjunction. Both are unrelated coincidences.

The Fredericton Astronomy Club meets in the UNB Forestry-Geology building on Tuesday at 7 pm. 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.