The Canadian Field-Naturalist

"Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants" by Robin Wall Kimmerer, 2013 [book review]

Heather Cray — 2024-01-15

"Luschiim’s Plants: Traditional Indigenous Foods, Materials and Medicines" by Luschiim Arvid Charlie and Nancy J. Turner, 2021 [book review]

Robert Alvo — 2024-01-15

"Rare Vascular Plants of Alberta. Second Edition" edited by Gina Fryer, Jane Lancaster, Kimberly Ottenbreit, Christina Metke, Donna Cherniawsky, Amy Griffiths, Kristen Foreman, and Jenalee Mischkolz, 2022 [book review]

Lysandra Pyle — 2024-01-15

"A Clouded Leopard in the Middle of the Road: New Thinking about Roads, People, and Wildlife" by Darryl Jones, 2022 [book review]

Graham Forbes — 2024-01-15

"The Deadly Balance: Predators and People in a Crowded World" by Adam Hart, 2023 [book review]

Jonathan Way — 2024-01-15

"Endless Forms: the Secret World of Wasps" by Seirian Sumner, 2022 [book review]

Randy Lauff — 2024-01-15

"The Guests of Ants: How Myrmecophiles Interact with Their Hosts" by Bert Hölldobler and Christina L. Kwapich, 2022 [book review]

Robert Foster — 2024-01-15

"Gulls of North America" by Fred Shaffer III, 2022 [book review]

Robert Curry — 2024-01-15

"30 Animals that Made Us Smarter: Stories of the Natural World that Inspired Human Ingenuity" by Patrick Aryee, 2022 [book review]

Tianna Burke — 2024-01-15

"Friend Beloved, Marie Stopes, Gordon Hewitt, and an Ecology of Letters" edited by L.J. Cameron, 2021 [book review]

Daniel Brunton — 2024-01-15

Urban Lichens: A Field Guide for Northeastern North America

Heather Cray — 2024-01-15

"Voles, Not Moles: a Personal Journey Connecting with Nature" by Soren Bondrup-Nielsen, 2021 [book review]

Ron Brooks — 2024-01-15

New Titles

Jessica Sims — 2024-01-15

Full Issue PDF

Dwayne Lepitzki — 2024-01-15

Foreword to the Special Issue honouring Donald F. McAlpine: contributions to the natural history of the Canadian Maritimes

Stephen Clayden — 2024-01-15

Notes on the natural history of Donald F. McAlpine

Stephen Clayden — 2024-01-15

News and Comment

Amanda Martin — 2024-01-15

A substantial eastern disjunction of Douglas’ Knotweed (Polygonum douglasii Greene, Polygonaceae) in New Brunswick, Canada

Sean Blaney — 2024-01-15

We report an isolated population of the native annual Douglas’ Knotweed (Polygonum douglasii Greene) from a dry, south-facing outcrop of conglomerate and sandstone at Big Bluff, near Sussex Corner, New Brunswick, Canada, consisting of about 2500 plants in 2018 and 2022. This occurrence is disjunct by ~450 km from the eastern limit of the known range of Douglas’ Knotweed in southwestern Maine, USA. The nearest known occurrence in Canada is in southern Quebec, ~660 km from Big Bluff. Several lines of evidence indicate that the population in New Brunswick is native. New state records for Wisconsin and Alaska found in online data sources are also verified.

First records of Seaside Dragonlet (Erythrodiplax berenice) in New Brunswick, Canada: range expansion possibly mediated by climate warming

Dwayne Sabine — 2024-01-15

The first occurrences of Seaside Dragonlet (Erythrodiplax berenice (Drury, 1773); Odonata: Libellulidae) are reported for New Brunswick, Canada, from seven sites along the Bay of Fundy coast in the southern part of the province. The species joins a suite of several other Odonata species of southern affinity that have been newly documented for New Brunswick over the past 15 years, and its occurrence may represent range expansion resulting from warming climate.

Cover

Dwayne Lepitzki — 2024-01-15

Draft Minutes of the 144th Annual Business Meeting (ABM) of the Ottawa Field-Naturalists’ Club, 10 January 2023

Jakob Mueller — 2024-01-15

Annual OFNC Committee Reports for 2022

Eleanor Zurbrigg — 2024-01-15

The Ottawa Field-Naturalists’ Club Awards for 2022, presented April 2023

Eleanor Zurbrigg — 2024-01-15

Recent records of telamonioid species of Cortinarius (Agaricales: Cortinariaceae) in New Brunswick, Canada

David Malloch — 2024-01-15

Eight species of Cortinarius (webcaps) subgenus Telamonia and two other telamonioid Cortinarius species are reported from New Brunswick, Canada. Internal transcribed spacer sequences of these were used to build a phylogenetic tree confirming species identifications and relationships to relevant material, especially types and other Canadian collections. Descriptions and photographs of fresh material and microscopic features are provided. Habitat details, particularly potential mycorrhizal partners and dominant bryophytes, were recorded for each collection and compared with published records. Seven species, Cortinarius caninoides, Cortinarius cicindela, Cortinarius fulvescens, Cortinarius harvardensis, Cortinarius plumulosus, Cortinarius pseudobiformis, and Cortinarius valgus are new distribution records for New Brunswick, and C. plumulosus is apparently a first record for North America. Because these species have rarely been reported, they have yet to be given common names.

The lichen genus Rinodina (Physciaceae) in New Brunswick, Canada

Stephen Clayden — 2024-01-15

Fifteen species of the crustose lichen genus Rinodina are confirmed in New Brunswick, Canada. We report four corticolous species, Rinodina pachysperma, Rinodina populicola, Rinodina septentrionalis, and Rinodina tenuis, and the saxicolous Rinodina tephraspis in the province for the first time. A previous report of Rinodina granuligera is based on a specimen that we have re-identified as Rinodina cinereovirens. We note distinguishing characteristics, habitats, substrata, relative abundance, and biogeographic relationships of each species and provide an identification key and distribution maps. The most frequently occupied phorophytes (tree substrata) are Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum), Yellow Birch (Betula alleghaniensis), and Eastern White Cedar (Thuja occidentalis). Some species are closely associated with particular habitats, phorophytes, or both. For example, we found R. pachysperma only in floodplain forests dominated by Silver Maple (Acer saccharinum), and R. tenuis only on Eastern White Cedar in wet cedar-dominated stands. In contrast, we recorded Rinodina freyi on numerous phorophyte species in a relatively wide range of habitats. Other than Eastern White Cedar and Balsam Fir (Abies balsamea), conifers are rarely colonized by Rinodina species in New Brunswick. Most Rinodina species are probably not currently of conservation concern in the province. However, R. cinereovirens is known from only two collections, one dating from 1902. The other, from 2007, was on Black Ash (Fraxinus nigra) in a swamp forest next to an active peat-mining operation. The expected devastation of ash species by the invasive Emerald Ash-borer (Agrilus planipennis) is a further threat to this occurrence and to any lichens for which ash may be an important phorophyte.

Recent records of myxomycetes from New Brunswick, Canada

Virginia Zoll — 2024-01-15

Studies of the diversity of myxomycetes or plasmodial slime moulds (Amoebozoa) in New Brunswick are lagging behind those of many other groups of terrestrial organisms. Here, we summarize the myxomycetes of the province as documented by recently collected specimens held by the New Brunswick Museum (NBM). Between 2007 and 2019, 264 specimens were collected, representing 80 species in 29 genera. Most of these records result from targetted searching during NBM-led biodiversity surveys (the BiotaNB project) in provincial protected natural areas between 2014 and 2019 and a mycological foray on Campobello Island in 2016. Previously, only seven species had been reported for the province. Consistent with their worldwide distributions and abundance, Arcyria cinerea, Fuligo septica, Ceratiomyxa fruticulosa, and Lycogala epidendrum were the most collected species, whereas the globally rare species Paradiacheopsis microcarpa has been collected in New Brunswick six times. Forty-two species were found only once, and five of these (Comatricha mirabilis, Fuligo laevis, Hemitrichia chrysospora, Lepidoderma neoperforatum, Listerella paradoxa) are rare worldwide.

Litter-dwelling terrestrial molluscs of Nepisiguit Protected Natural Area and Mount Carleton Provincial Park, north-central New Brunswick

Robert Forsyth — 2024-01-15

No comprehensive study of the terrestrial gastropod fauna of northern New Brunswick has previously been undertaken. Most terrestrial gastropod molluscs are tiny and generally live unnoticed under debris, in leaf litter, and among other dead and living vegetation. Sifting and sorting collected samples of leaf litter are effective in sampling snails. In June–July 2015 and August 2016, 43 samples of forest leaf litter were collected in Nepisiguit Protected Natural Area and Mount Carleton Provincial Park. These samples yielded 22 species of terrestrial gastropods. Seven species are reported from New Brunswick for the first time.

Deutonymphs of Neottialges caparti Fain (Astigmata: Hypoderatidae) from North American Northern Gannet (Morus bassanus)

Heather Proctor — 2024-01-15

Deutonymphs of the mite family Hypoderatidae are subdermal parasites of vertebrates, primarily birds. Here we report the presence of deutonymphs of Neottialges caparti Fain (no common name) in the subcutis of Northern Gannet (Morus bassanus (L.)) from Atlantic Canadian waters. We observed mites in 39% of 90 birds whose skin samples were examined microscopically. Our observations represent both the first record of N. caparti in Northern Gannet from the western North Atlantic and the second report of N. caparti since its initial description in 1967 from two Northern Gannets in Belgium.

Size records and demographics of an Eastern Painted Turtle (Chrysemys picta picta) urban population near the northern limit of the species’ range in eastern Canada

Constance Browne — 2024-01-15

Understanding variation in demographics and life history across species ranges and differing landcover types is valuable for conservation planning. We examined the population demographics of a small urban population of Eastern Painted Turtle (Chrysemys picta picta) in New Brunswick, Canada, near the northern limit of the species’ range. We captured turtles using hoop traps and by hand during four sampling periods. We estimated that our population included 17 females, nine males, and 29 juveniles in late summer 2015 using Jolly-Seber population size estimates. We captured several very large females at our study site; 5/17 females (29%) were larger than previous size records for the subspecies. Growth rates for juveniles were greater than most populations of Eastern Painted Turtles reported elsewhere. Growth rates at our site were significantly greater for smaller (younger) turtles and for females compared to males. Overwinter survivorship estimates were 100% from late summer 2014 to spring 2015. Active season (2015) survivorship was 100% for females, 89% for males, and 93% for juveniles. We speculate that the large body sizes found at our study site were achieved through high survivorship and larger growth rates compared to other areas reported previously. Our data supports previous findings that body size of Painted Turtles increases with latitude, and additionally, growth may have been enhanced by increased nutrient levels common in human-modified landscapes.

Exotic Red-eared Slider (Trachemys scripta elegans) observations and removal from New Brunswick, Canada

Constance Browne — 2024-01-15

Observations of exotic Red-eared Slider (Trachemys scripta elegans) turtles are rare in New Brunswick (NB), Canada, but we found multiple individuals residing in the recreational area of Rockwood Park, Saint John. We present evidence that suggests that Red-eared Sliders are able to overwinter in at least one water body in Rockwood Park. Seven Red-eared Sliders were removed from water bodies in NB from 2014 to 2016 and one in 2022. Currently, there are no known locations with Red-eared Sliders persisting in NB.

Preliminary estimate of a Gray Treefrog (Hyla versicolor) population at a protected site in New Brunswick using photo identification and community science

Shaylyn Wallace — 2024-01-15

We provide a preliminary population estimate (n = 120, 95% CI 65–722) of (male) Gray Treefrog (Hyla versicolor) at the Hyla Park Nature Preserve, New Brunswick, Canada’s first amphibian conservation site. As proof of concept, we also demonstrate the efficacy of a minimally invasive photographic identification method (PIM) that uses pattern recognition software for estimating the population of a visually cryptic amphibian that is subject to physiological colour change. Finally, we validate the use of PIM data collected by community participants and the opportunity it provides to engage and educate the local community about amphibian conservation.

Evidence of River Otter (Lontra canadensis) recolonization of Prince Edward Island, Canada

Garry Gregory — 2024-01-15

River Otter (Lontra canadensis) was extirpated from Prince Edward Island (PEI) in the early 1900s as a result of habitat loss and overexploitation. Although there were isolated and sporadic occurrences in PEI coastal and inland waters pre-1975, only anecdotal reports of tracks or sightings of the species had been documented in the 21st century, until an adult male otter was captured in a beaver trap in 2016. Since then, seven additional individuals have been collected opportunistically or as by-catch of beaver trapping, including an adult female and a kit (juvenile). Camera traps have also revealed what appears to be a family group in central PEI. A growing body of evidence strongly suggests a resident River Otter population on PEI. The island is separated from the mainland by the Northumberland Strait, which has a minimum width of 13 km of salt water. River Otters have naturally recolonized PEI by dispersing across the Northumberland Strait.

Population genetic structure of the provincially endangered mainland Eastern Moose (Alces americanus americanus) in Nova Scotia, Canada

Brittni Scott — 2024-01-15

Eastern Moose (Alces americanus americanus (Clinton, 1822)) on mainland Nova Scotia (MNS) are declining and experience limited immigration across the Isthmus of Chignecto from the larger population in neighbouring New Brunswick. Provincially Endangered, the recovery strategy for MNS Moose involves mitigating various threats that may lead to local extirpation. We examine genetic diversity of MNS Moose using microsatellite markers and mitochondrial (mtDNA) control region sequences. Genetic similarities with the Alces a. americana population in New Brunswick and the introduced Northwestern Moose (Alces americanus andersoni (= Alces alces andersoni) Peterson, 1952) population on Cape Breton Island are also analysed. Observed heterozygosity for microsatellites for MNS Moose was low and there was also evidence of limited gene flow between Nova Scotia and New Brunswick across the narrow Isthmus of Chignecto that connects these provinces. Consistent with relatively recent colonization of North America by Moose dispersing across the Bering Land Bridge <15 000 years ago, mtDNA haplotypes of MNS Moose were identical or extremely similar to haplotypes found across North America. However, mtDNA diversity was lower in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick than in more central regions of the species’ range. Active measures to maintain habitat that promote connectivity across the Isthmus of Chignecto would likely be valuable for Moose in terms of maintaining genetic variation in the region and reducing inbreeding.