Editor & Proofreader

Editor: Nelson Poirier    Proofreader: Louise Nichols

Wednesday, 4 February 2026

February 4 2026

Nature Moncton Nature News

 

Clicking on the photos enlarges them for closer observation.

 

 

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

 

**Nature Moncton Movie Night is on tomorrow night, Thursday, with anyone anywhere able to join in, watch, and share thoughts on this special movie. All details below:

 

Feb. 5, 2026 at 7:00 PM, via Zoom

Film:  Migrations with Alain Clavette and Zachary Richard, a film by Roger Leblanc.

Birds and migration have always fascinated mankind. Zachary Richard, the Cajun singer songwriter, got interested in birds many years ago and started observing and recording birds in his own backyard. Later, wanting to learn more, he teamed up with experts on the subject, one of whom was New Brunswick birder Alain Clavette. It was their mutual interest in nature that brought them together, but it was also a coming together of two “Acadies,” the original one from the north and the more recent “Cajun” from the south. From the unending mud flats of the upper Bay of Fundy to the luxuriant bayous of Southwestern Louisiana and back to the bird “nursery” islands of Southeastern New Brunswick, the exceptional footage in this film helps foster an intimate meeting with the birds and their habitat expressed in Zachary Richard's music.  The film is in French with English subtitles

Roger Leblanc was a New Brunswick naturalist and film maker.  He was a long-time member of Nature Moncton and a board member of both Nature Moncton and Nature New Brunswick.  Before he passed away suddenly in 2023, he was always available to lead a workshop or outing.  He is very much missed.

Please use the link below to join us for this event:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81735384703?pwd=arDCR7Dvgl2bJp6lMGemJPDzMBYya3.1

 

 

**Georges Brun noted the first arrival for him of a male common merganser down at the bend of the Petitcodiac River.  

After a few months' hiatus, he finally saw a male ring-necked pheasant in the Riverview Marsh.  

peregrine falcon flew in on its roost with a prey just as Georges looked up at the south side logo of Assumption Place.  It looked like the bigger female.  A red fox was roaming along the river and the edge of the marsh. A bald eagle was trying its luck against a flock of gulls just across from the Moncton Press Club.

 

**John Inman shares a photo of a few of his white-tailed deer herd that had just cleaned up the seed and were on their way for a nap.

Also, the Shepody Bay ice comes in on the tide, and then it's left when the tide recedes.

 

 **Brian Stone was driving around the Riverview, Salisbury, and Second North River areas on Monday afternoon, hoping to find some bird life (or any other natural life) to photograph. He came across three different flocks of common redpolls, with the first two flocks being far off in the tops of tall trees, but they were nice to see anyway. Not so good for photography, though. But the third flock was a different story. At the corner of Taylor Rd. and Route 112, the old Fredericton Road, a flock of redpolls was foraging vigorously on seeds right beside the road. A few snow buntings were mixed in with the group, and they all flew up and down frequently in a mesmerizing aerial display. Brian made a short video of that activity which can be seen by clicking the link below:

 

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/v3e8cot8m6qwhqld8h64h/Common-Redpolls-and-Snow-Buntings-Feb.-02-2026-Brian-Stone.mp4?rlkey=teu9zssenp7uic6thasjfydyi&st=nrg5678w&dl=0

At a farm on the Scott Rd. Brian noticed a small group of European starlings populating a tall tree. They flew down to the ground to forage while he watched. He also includes a photo of a pair of bald eagles that Cathy Simon spotted near her home and alerted Brian in case he wanted a photo, which he did.

**Early Tuesday morning Brian Stone noticed a thin cloud layer around the Moon that was displaying a colourful lunar corona.

 

 

 

Nelsonpoirier435@gmail.com

Nelson Poirier

Nature Moncton



COMMON REDPOLLS. FEB. 02, 2026. BRIAN STONE 


COMMON REDPOLL. FEB. 02, 2026. BRIAN STONE 


COMMON REDPOLLS. FEB. 02, 2026. BRIAN STONE 


COMMON REDPOLLS. FEB. 02, 2026. BRIAN STONE 


COMMON REDPOLLS. FEB. 02, 2026. BRIAN STONE 


SNOW BUNTINGS. FEB. 02, 2026. BRIAN STONE 





PEREGRINE FALCON AND PREY. FEB. 2, 2026. GEORGES BRUN


EUROPEAN STARLINGS. FEB. 02, 2026. BRIAN STONE 


EUROPEAN STARLINGS. FEB. 02, 2026. BRIAN STONE 


COMMON MERGANSER. FEB. 2, 2026. GEORGES BRUN


COMMON MERGANSER. FEB. 2, 2026. GEORGES BRUN


BALD EAGLES. FEB. 02, 2026. BRIAN STONE


RING-NECKED PHEASANT. FEB. 2, 2026. GEORGES BRUN


WHITE-TAILED DEER. FEB 3, 2026. JOHN INMAN


LUNAR CORONA. FEB. 03, 2026. BRIAN STONE