Nature Moncton Nature News: June 28 2024

NATURE MONCTON NATURE NEWS

June 28, 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

**Rheal Vienneau reports the small bird that set up a nest and laid three eggs in his daughter’s flower pot recently was indeed a Dark-eyed Junco as suggested by Jim Wilson. The chicks hatched out on Wednesday.

** Fred and Susan Richards may be having some challenges birding on their Western tour. They are in St. Louis, Missouri and noticed that the local Cardinals often appear on the field nine at a time. Not very brightly plumaged for males!
The president is allowed to make puns even if you have to be a baseball fan to get this one!!

**On Wednesday Brian Stone visited the bog along Findlay Blvd in Riverview to check for the presence of bog orchids.

The bog appeared to be fresh and healthy and just damp enough and Brian found large numbers of four types of bog orchids scattered through the bog. Brian was surprised by so many orchids as he had not seen that many of them on other spring visits to the bog, and not all types were there together at the same time. Rose Pogonia Orchids were present in the hundreds, as were Grass Pink Orchids. Arethusa Orchids were in smaller numbers and somewhat harder to find and only present in a few specific areas. White-fringed Orchids were in moderate numbers and only just beginning to open their flowers.

Also in the bog, Brian was happy to find several tiny Bog Copper butterflies that were quite difficult to keep in sight long enough for a photo, being so small and fast. Many dozens of small white moths were all over the bog along with a few larger orange ones. Only a few dragonflies were seen and a Hudsonian Whiteface dragonfly and a Twelve-spotted Skimmer dragonfly were the only ones to land for a photo. Pitcher Plants were fresh and filled with water in their pitchers, getting ready for unlucky visitors to fall in.

**This Week’s Sky at a Glance, 2024 June 29 – July 6
Sagittarius is an old constellation of a centaur with a bow and arrow aiming toward Scorpius the Scorpion. If he tries to shoot Aquila the Eagle above, chances are the arrow will be deflected by a shield.

Scutum the Shield is a relatively new constellation, created by the Polish astronomer Johannes Hevelius in the late 17th century. It commemorates the Polish king John Sobieski III, who defended his country against the Turks. Originally named Scutum Sobiescianum (Sobieski’s Shield) it is generally just called the Shield. Seeing it can be difficult, for its main stars are dim and shielded within the Milky Way. One way to locate it is to find its most prominent deep sky object, the Wild Duck Cluster or M11.

Find the bright star Altair in the head of Aquila and then identify the wings and tail of the eagle. Binoculars will reveal a string of stars leading from the tail to M11 at the top of the shield. The rich Wild Duck Cluster looks good in binoculars and great in a scope, and an imaginative observer can see a V-shape or maybe two. Star cluster M26 is also in Scutum, a binocular width south of M11.

This Week in the Solar System
Saturday’s sunrise in Moncton is at 5:31 and sunset will occur at 9:14, giving 15 hours, 43 minutes of daylight (5:39 and 9:15 in Saint John). Next Saturday the Sun will rise at 5:35 and set at 9:12, giving 15 hours, 37 minutes of daylight (5:43 and 9:13 in Saint John). Earth is at aphelion, its farthest from the Sun, on July 5, but don’t expect a snowfall.

The Moon is near Mars on Monday morning, near Uranus Tuesday and Jupiter on Wednesday. The New Moon occurs Friday, and a slim crescent will be near Venus next Saturday after sunset. Saturn is at its first stationary point on Sunday, beginning four and a half months of retrograde motion against the stars of Aquarius. Mars is well-placed for early morning observing in the east, leading Jupiter by an hour. Mercury and brighter Venus can be picked out of evening twilight with binoculars, with Venus setting 30 minutes after sunset this weekend and Mercury about 40 minutes after that. I saw both on June 25.

On Sunday evening at 8 pm, celebrate Asteroid Day by tuning in to the Sunday Night Astronomy Show via the Facebook page or YouTube channel of Astronomy by the Bay. The Saint John Astronomy Club meets in the Rockwood Park Interpretation Centre on July 6 at 7 pm.

Questions? Contact Curt Nason at nasonc@nbnet.nb.ca.