[ValleyNature] nature notes (long), Mar. 21-26/10

[James W. Wolford]

MAR. 21, 2010 - Sunny again but much cooler than yesterday.  In our  
yard I saw my first AM. ROBIN of this Spring.  Then in late afternoon  
Pat & I saw a flock of about 20+ robins near White Rock.

Lots of blooming coltsfoot flower-heads on bank along Skyway Drive in  
Wolfville.

At my feeders the m,f pair of cardinals were present briefly; but I  
haven't been hearing the singing male, so their nesting territory  
must be some distance away.  Singing males have been heard along  
Acadia Street and southeast of Jean Timpa's house on Gaspereau Ave.  
lately.

MAR. 22, 2010 - In my Wolfville neighborhood I saw 2 separate crows  
(but prob. a mated pair?) carrying sticks.

The Habitant River in Canning, upstream from the Aboiteau, had 30++  
Canada geese.

In a pond along Canard Rd. in lower Canard was a m,f pair of hooded  
mergansers.

Van Nostrand's Pond at Starr's Point still has 4 ring-necked ducks (a  
m,f pair + 2 males).

Near the intersection of Starr's Point Rd. & Magee Rd., east of Port  
Williams, an adult red-tailed hawk was perched not far from the  
woodlot nest close to the farmhouse, but apparently no hawk was on  
the nest.

I checked the raven nest along Belcher St., west of Port Williams 2.7  
km. from Hwy. 358 (reported earlier by Richard Stern), and with a  
scope I could see the adult raven on/in the nest.

Later today I was walking past the Acadia Arena in Wolfville and  
looked again for the raven nest that I couldn't find a few days ago.   
Lo and Behold, guess what?!  Somehow either it was present all along,  
or it has been hurriedly rebuilt in exactly the same spot where it  
has produced big broods in 2008 and 2009!  I need to go back with a  
scope to check for occupancy now (I haven't been seeing or hearing  
the ravens there lately).  (See below for Bernard Forsythe's comments.)

I saw a single c. grackle in Greenwich, and then later saw a flock of  
12 along Main St. in Wolfville.

At the Tannery Pond above and upstream from Hennigar's Farm Market  
pond, willow "pussies" were conspicuous, and a small beaver dam at  
the pond's outlet has raised the water level a bit.

In Wolfville this morning, Carol Vander Kloet was entertained by 3 n.  
flickers on the ground behaving in Springtime fashion, i.e. with  
courtship and mating antics.

Along Wolfville's Cherry Lane I heard a mourning dove singing, and  
Mary Sue Goulding reports seeing both cardinals and red-winged  
blackbirds there today.

Along Balcom Ave. in Wolfville (northward extension of Westwood  
Ave.), silver maple has female flowers open.

MAR. 24, 2010 - Bernard Forsythe called to report that he had just  
discovered the first egg in the barred owl nest-box in his back yard  
on Wolfville Ridge, just south of Wolfville.  This is exciting for  
two reasons: first, the last year that young were produced from that  
nest-box was 2007; in 2008 there were eggs that didn't hatch, and in  
2009 there were no eggs at all.  The second reason is that, if the  
owls hatch their clutch as usually happens, then my/our April 25 NSBS/ 
BNS field trip may be able to go to BLF's yard right after we meet in  
Wolfville.  In the past we have seen the two parent owls there plus  
any hatched youngsters.

Bernard also reported three other things: he first heard spring  
peepers this Spring on March 17 (Wolfville Ridge); he has one or more  
displaying woodcocks every year, and the first date this year for  
hearing one was March 22 (Wolfville Ridge); and that raven nest just  
north of the Acadia Arena was just as I had observed (I'm not nuts),  
i.e. earlier this Spring he found the big pile of fallen sticks at  
the base of the nest-tree, and just recently they have rebuilt the  
nest very quickly in the same spot high in a planted Norway? pine --  
it looks just as large and well-built as in previous years.  Bernard  
also told me he saw a raven carrying a twig or branch to some spruces  
in his yard just a few days ago.

MAR 25, 2010 - Today I checked the raven nest mentioned above, and I  
could not see an adult on the nest, BUT one adult raven was  
conspicuously calling and flying about nearby and over the nest while  
I investigated it.

Today's Acadia Biology weekly Seminar was fabulous for me, and I owe  
everyone an apology for not advertising several days ago.  Somehow I  
missed the announcement, but on Thursday mornings I am programmed to  
go to the new Biology building for the 11:30 a.m. seminars.

The seminar was was on biodiversity of herbivorous insects and their  
parasitoids (predatory wasps) on two species of goldenrods, by Steve  
Heard, Head of Biology at University of New Brunswick.  His formal  
seminar title was: "The Evolution of Specialization in a Plant-Insect  
Community: Bugs, Goldenrods, and Earth's Amazing Biodiversity".

"Stella's Pond" along Cornwallis River on M. Dyke Rd. held 2 m,f prs  
of green-winged teals.

Canard Pond still held Andy Dean's m,f pr of n. shovelers.

Port Williams sewage ponds: only 2 m mallards and 2 male red-winged  
blackbirds showing off their gorgeous epaulets of red/yellow (I  
couldn't hear their songs but I'm sure they were singing).

MAR. 26, 2010 - Yesterday and today we had weather setbacks to  
contrast with the warm and dry weather earlier in March.  This  
morning was cold and windy (near zero C. with blowing snow and cold  
rain.  I'm very glad I'm not a mated adult female bald eagle who has  
to sit for hours and hours in an open nest to protect and incubate  
her eggs!

Near the Acadia Univ. campus I saw 2 Am. robins that were separate  
but not very far apart on a residential street -- no doubt recent  
arrivals in town, but from where?

Cheers from Jim in Wolfville

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