Nature Moncton Nature
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**The mink,
although quite able, is seldom seen climbing trees; thus, Brian Coyle was
surprised to find a mink climbing a tree in a recent video capture from his
trail camera. He had noticed a northern flying squirrel in the same tree
recently, so he wondered if the mink had that in mind as prey.
Brian also captured a
photo of a bird walking by his trail camera that he was suspicious might be a sora, but a close scrutiny by Jim Wilson showed it was actually an immature purple gallinule, which is considered a rare visitor to New Brunswick.
**Jane LeBlanc went for a
bicycle ride near her home on Thursday and found a bird she had not seen in
that location before... a female hooded merganser.
**John Inman photographed
a yellow-rumped warbler in its muted fall plumage, and he got a very distant
photo of a male eastern bluebird in the backyard of his Harvey home.
(Editor’s note: the eastern bluebird tends to migrate
late in
the season and doesn’t travel far. It is not unusual
to see
them this time of year checking out birdhouses, presumably as
possibilities for next season’s nesting site.)
John also photographed a
very small species of ichneumon wasp.
**Brian Stone made a quick
trip to Wilson Marsh on Thursday afternoon and found it very quiet and mostly
empty of birds. There were hundreds of autumn meadowhawk dragonflies,
though, and many were in mating configurations. He saw several common looper
moths nectaring on tansy flowers and a couple of faded clouded sulfur
butterflies just flying around and perching as if tired. A group of American
wigeon ducks flew overhead, and several groups of Canada geese were still
flying around. Mountain ash berries were also plentiful and will be a good
resource for hungry birds as the fall season progresses.
(Editor's note: Note the hearty common tansy blooms are still displaying their wares for pollen seekers. The leaves are not doing so well!)
**This Week’s Sky at a
Glance, 2026 October 31 – November 7
Orion can be seen getting out of bed around 8 pm now, preparing for a night of
hunting. Being a giant and very old, it takes an hour and a half for his
hourglass shape to clear the horizon. He rises on his side and stands upright
when he is in the south. The celestial equator, an imaginary line in the sky
directly above our equator, runs very near Mintaka, the star at the right of
Orion’s Belt. Therefore, Mintaka rises due east. Notice how huge Orion appears
as he rises, bigger than he appears a few hours later in the southeast. This is
the same optical illusion that makes the Moon appear larger when it is rising
or setting. The twins Castor and Pollux of the constellation Gemini rise on
their side at the same time as Orion, just to his left.
If you are into genealogy, Orion, as a son of Poseidon, was a cousin to Pollux,
a son of Zeus. Castor had the same mother as Pollux but a mortal father, King
Tyndareus of Sparta. Even stranger, Perseus was the great-grandfather of his
half-brother Heracles (Hercules to the Romans); thanks to randy old Zeus.
Genealogy is more complicated when immortals are involved.
This Week in the Solar System
Saturday’s sunrise in Moncton is at 7:58 and sunset will occur at 6:06, giving
10 hours, 8 minutes of daylight (8:01 and 6:13 in Saint John). Next Saturday
the Sun will rise at 7:08 and set at 4:56, giving 9 hours, 48 minutes of
daylight (7:11 and 5:03 in Saint John). We return to Standard Time at 2 am
Sunday (tomorrow).
The Moon is at third quarter on Sunday, near Mars Monday and Regulus
Tuesday. Over the next few mornings it anchors a lengthening line leading up
through Regulus, Jupiter and Mars, and next Saturday the slim crescent makes a
binocular trio with Venus and Spica. Mercury is at inferior conjunction on
Wednesday and by the following week it will be replacing the Moon in the
morning conga line. Saturn is well-placed for evening telescope observing,
reaching its highest around 10 pm this week. The South Taurid meteor shower
peaks on Thursday, adding a few extra shootings stars that morning and Friday.
Tune in to the Sunday Night Astronomy Show at 8 pm on the Facebook page or
YouTube site of Astronomy by the Bay. The Saint John Astronomy Club meets in
the Rockwood Park Interpretation Centre on November 7 at 7 pm.
Questions? Contact Curt Nason at nasonc@nbnet.nb.ca.
Nelson Poirier
Nature Moncton
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