Nature Moncton Nature
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**On Wednesday, just
before noon, Yolande LeBlanc noticed a red-bellied woodpecker on one of the
nearly empty feeders. The resident hairy woodpeckers did not appreciate its
presence. They were protesting loudly and almost chasing him away. It didn't
take Yolande long to refill the feeders, but she didn't see it again. The darn blue
jays appreciated Yolande refueling and helped put the run to the
red-bellied woodpecker!
(Editor’s note: from
reports, it rather sounds like a red-bellied woodpecker is making the feeder
yard rounds in Memramcook, looking for one that will accept new patrons without
being harassed.)
**Lisa Morris checked some
of her nest boxes for summer patronage. Two of them showed the
very typical mossy makeup of a black-capped chickadee nest, which Lisa
photographed.
A few others were
suspected to be used by red squirrels, as the opening had been enlarged by
chewing. The normal-sized red squirrel cannot fit into the 1 ½ inch openings on
the Nature Moncton boxes without chewing to enlarge them. Flying squirrels can
use them without enlarging the openings.
**A message from Gart
Bishop
Everyone knows sedges have
edges - right? And just how many sedges are there -- 25? Are sedges broken
down into different genera? Is there one genus that is appreciably
bigger?
Hmm... If these questions or similar ones keep you awake at night (and even
if you don't have such questions) come and find out the answers at Botany
Blast, which takes place Wednesday Nov 19, 11 am - 3 pm in the Baily
Building at UNB Fredericton campus, Room 13 ... which is the home to the
largest vascular plant herbarium in New Brunswick. Come join us and learn that
some sedges are easy to identify. It is easier than trying to learn those confusing fall warblers or sandpipers ... and sedges never fly away! Contact
Robyn Shortt at: plants@unb.ca if you are
interested in attending. There is no charge, and you get to play with microscopes!
Answers:
Many sedges have triangular stems, with sharp edges, but some sedges have round
stems.
There are 171 different sedges contained in 15 different genera within the
sedge family called Cyperaceae
The largest genus by far is Carex with 132 species. Because it is
so big (the largest genus in our flora), it is broken down into some 40
different sections. On the 19th, we will talk about just one section of
Carex called "Phacocystis," which contains many of our common wetland
sedges. The word Phacocystis is derived from the Ancient Greek
words: Phako(s), meaning "lentil" or
"lens-shaped," and Cystis, meaning "bladder" or
"pouch." This name likely refers to the distinct lens-shaped
(biconvex) achenes (fruits) characteristic of species within this
section of Carex.
Nelson Poirier
Nature Moncton
