Nature Moncton Nature News: September 26 2026

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.

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Proofreading courtesy of Louise Nichols at nicholsl@eastlink.ca

**Yvette Richard has been enjoying the northern gannet activity off Cocagne Island area and was able to capture excellent photos of one as it lifted off from the water. Being a truly pelagic bird unable to take off from land (with the exception of cliff nesting sites), it does its walk on the water to get airborne. A very eye-catching show. The gannet looks like the now-retired Concorde jets for those of us who remember this aircraft.

NORTHERN GANNET STARE. SEPT 24, 2026. YVETTE RICHARD

NORTHERN GANNET. SEPT 24, 2026. YVETTE RICHARD

**Shannon Inman photographed a fresh male monarch butterfly on Friday. Time is getting late for a successful migration to Mexico, but Mother Nature will decide that.

Shannon also photographed what may be hedgehog mushrooms, but this species usually has a more regular cap.

MONARCH BUTTERFLY (MALE). SEPT 24, 2026. SHANNON INMAN

MUSHROOMS (POSSIBLE HEDGEHOG). SEPT 24, 2026. SHANNON INMAN

**It’s that time of year when some species of ants develop wings and swarm in dark clouds, which can be very attractive to some gull species, especially ring-billed gulls.

Mac Wilmot is at Victoria, PEI, and comments on the abundance of flying ants. Day after day the gulls are wheeling overhead. They fly almost as well as swallows.

**After having a short break from outings, Brian and Annette Stone had a short walk at Wilson Marsh on Friday, and Brian took the opportunity to get back in the photo groove and took a few photos to share.

In a tree far off on the marsh, Brian saw a merlin falcon resting in the branches and got a few documentary photos to work on. A ton of processing brought out enough identifying features to make the photos worth sharing. Lots of Canada geese took flight and headed off to parts unknown, and some gulls circled overhead, possibly feeding on flying insects. An immature-looking great blue heron, one of several present, was photographed calmly waiting for something interesting to swim by. In the smaller world a band-winged meadowhawk got photographed while some cabbage white and clouded sulphur butterflies kept flitting about faster than the camera could focus. A couple of yellow hawkweed flowers were hosting foraging ants, and Brian wondered what they were foraging for.

RING-BILLED GULL (2nd WINTER). SEPT. 25, 2026. BRIAN STONE

MERLIN. SEPT. 25, 2026. BRIAN STONE

GREAT BLUE HERON (JUVENILE). SEPT. 25, 2026. BRIAN STONE

CANADA GEESE. SEPT. 25, 2026. BRIAN STONE

BAND-WINGED MEADOWHAWK. SEPT. 25, 2026. BRIAN STONE

ANTS ON HAWKWEED. SEPT. 25, 2026. BRIAN STONE

**During Peter and Deana Gadd’s recent visit to Vancouver, they spent some time at Beaver Lake in Stanley Park. This is a freshwater lake but was quite dry, with only a small area with enough water for ducks. Although Stanley Park asks visitors not to feed the animals, a gentleman came to the wet area and placed some seed on the path. What had been 2 or 3 wood ducks became 17 as they scurried over to get their share. They were not timid or shy, as our Maritime wood ducks seem to be. Wood ducks have regained their breeding regalia, and they were very lovely to see. As Deana and Peter traveled the path around the lake, they didn't see many birds, although the Merlin app suggested many were present. They came to a small wooden bridge where, again, against the rules, someone had generously laid out a serving of seeds along the rails! Having a feast were black-capped chickadees, a red -breasted nuthatch, Steller’s jays, a dark-eyed junco (Oregon variety), and a chestnut-backed chickadee (a lifer!).

They were also pleased to see a Douglas squirrel (a squirrel native to the west coast) and an eastern grey squirrel (black morph). The diners vanished suddenly when a red-tailed hawk landed very nearby. It seemed to have lost the surprise advantage and left just as quickly.

Also on the trail, they came across a spotted towhee, quite a common bird on the West Coast, great blue herons, and a pine siskin. They heard a pileated woodpecker, and Deana was able to see an Anna’s hummingbird and was in the right place to hear and glimpse a Pacific wren, also a “lifer”. A species suggested by the app Merlin, was a Hammond’s flycatcher, unfortunately not confirmed by sight or sound.

(Editor’s note: the spotted towhee and the eastern towhee were previously considered a single species known as the rufus-sided towhee, as some of us may remember.)