Nature Moncton Nature
News
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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 email,
please address your message to the information line editor, nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com
Please advise the editor
at nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com, as well as proofreader nicholsl@eastlink.ca, if any errors are noted in wording or photo
labelling.
Proofreading courtesy of
Louise Nichols at nicholsl@eastlink.ca
**The Nature Moncton
February meeting will take place tomorrow night, Tuesday night, February 17. All details are at the end of this edition, upfront tomorrow. Look forward to a
very interesting presentation which is totally virtual this month with excellent audio and video. Anyone
anywhere will able to join in and easily pose queries or comments.
**Jane
LeBlanc had a pair of American robins return to her yard. Since the
mountain ash berries are gone, they tried for the suet. They would cling
precariously to the feeder, knock some to the ground, then go down and eat it.
(Editor’s
note: There seems to be a lot more chatter about robins the last few days. Is
it too early to think this might be the advance guard?)
Jane no
sooner got the camera card back in her camera when she noticed a red-tailed
hawk flying over her yard. She got a documentary photo through the dining
room window.
(Editor’s
note: Jane’s photo nicely shows the patagial bar on the inner forewing
(arrowed) that is a very significant field mark of the red-tailed hawk in
flight in mature and immature birds.)
**Brian
Stone walked along the Petitcodiac Riverfront Trail (Moncton side) on Sunday,
and although he enjoyed the cloudy, foggy, and slightly snowy exercise, his
only other reward there was a pair of fluffy snow buntings resting in a
short tree beside the path. They seemed unconcerned with being photographed for
posterity.
On Lower Mountain Road, he found more snow buntings and took photos of some of them perched on wires. Further along on Scott Road, he saw a few American tree sparrows also perched, but in low shrubs.
Downtown, on the Assumption building, one of
the local peregrine falcons was perched in its regular spot on the side
of the building where it can be seen most days.
**Nature
Moncton February Meeting
February 17,
2026, 7:00 PM
Speaker.
Greg Jongsma, PhD, Acting Curator of Zoology at NB Museum.
Acting Head
of Natural History at the NB Museum.
Title:
Hidden Biodiversity of New Brunswick: What We’re Still Discovering in Our Own
Backyard.
New
Brunswick is far richer in species than most of us realize. Through the New
Brunswick Museum’s BiotaNB program (Bioblitz), scientists, students, artists,
and naturalists have spent over a decade documenting life in Protected Natural
Areas across the province—revealing hundreds of species previously unknown from
New Brunswick.
Since 2009,
this group of specialists in their field has camped out for a week-long session
each year in a Protected Natural Area to document everything they find
(bioblitz). On the final day of the
campout, they hold an open house to display what they have discovered over the
week, with all participants present to provide explanations. It is an amazing
day for any NB naturalist to experience, and we can all appreciate the
discoveries.
This talk
explores how these discoveries are made, why they matter, and how we all play a
vital role in understanding and protecting biodiversity. Don’t miss this
important and informative insight into the surprising variety of species in our
province.
This
presentation is completely virtual for anyone, anywhere to join in at the
following link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82366927981?pwd=zzDazoGoQaFQm5m05SpH0pLiYeAJJ6.1
All are
welcome, Nature Moncton member or not.
Nelson Poirier
Nature Moncton
