The Cleopatra Project: Poisonous and Venomous Animals in Virginia

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The cover image is a watercolor created by Trish Crowe specially for this publication.

To help Virginians avoid poisonings from encounters with wildlife, a reference guide to 32 poisonous and venomous animals that live in Virginia is now available as a free, downloadable book.

“The Cleopatra Project – Poisonous and Venomous Animals in Virginia” is filled with full-color photographs and written to be an easily read, valuable reference for parents, educators, healthcare providers and the general public.

The book is a collaboration between the Virginia Master Naturalists – a statewide corps of volunteers providing education, outreach, and service dedicated to the beneficial management of natural resources and natural areas within their communities – the Blue Ridge Poison Center at UVA Health and the UVA School of Medicine’s Division of Medical Toxicology.

Work on the book began in 2021 as a response to the hundreds of exposures to poisonous and venomous animals reported annually in Virginia. Encounters between these animals and humans typically occur when an animal reacts to an unexpected disturbance or to a perceived threat. Each document entry includes a description of the animal, its habitat and likely geographic range in Virginia, the source of poison or venom, potential physical symptoms and possible animal “look-alikes.”

The Cleopatra Project is now available at med.virginia.edu/brpc/the-learning-center/the-cleopatra-project/. It joins a companion book, “The Socrates Project – Poisonous Plants of Virginia,” which describes the 25 poisonous plants that grow in the wild in Virginia and can be downloaded at med.virginia.edu/brpc/socrates.

 

36TH ANNUAL LAHR NATIVE PLANTS SYMPOSIUM, March 25th

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Saturday, March 25, 2023
9:30 AM–3:45 PM

Administration Building Auditorium,
U.S. National Arboretum
3501 New York Avenue, NE
Washington, DC 20002

Reserve your spot now! $100 (FONA members $80)
View the full program here.

What do George Washington, the National Arboretum’s bonsai curators, and several of the region’s grassland restoration experts and landscape designers have in common? An appreciation of the ecosystem services provided by native plants and a commitment to their conservation.

Learn from the National Arboretum’s line-up of native plant professionals about efforts to reestablish beautiful and unusual habitats and how you can successfully manage and design your cultivated landscapes. The 36th Lahr Native Plant Symposium provides inspiration from the wild and practical advice for your gardens.

Registrants attend all plenary sessions and one concurrent session of their choice.

Registration is required and includes all sessions, morning coffee and refreshments, and box lunch.

Questions? Email us at [email protected].

For FMN CE credit use All Continuing Ed and select ‘Other’ as the Approved Organization. Please make a note in the description that it is for the NBG symposium.

As with all CE, VMN does not permit travel time to be included. Also, with symposiums and conferences, only actual ‘learning sessions’ can be claimed. Lunch, plant sales, intros, breaks, etc. are not considered learning sessions.

Wetland Dynamics through the Seasons

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Photo: Courtesy of the National Park Service, Vernal Pool

Wednesday, March 1, 2023
7:00PM

This is an On-line program.

Click here for program registration.

Wetlands like those at Mason Neck State Park experience dramatic changes over the course of a year. The Friends of Mason Neck State Park are co-sponsoring the Friends of Dyke Marsh’s online program “Wetland Dynamics through the Seasons” at 7 PM on March 1. The presentation will explore the secrets and wonders of freshwater and tidal wetlands and associated woodland over the course of a year: spring’s avian migrations, quickening of vegetation, burgeoning of myriad invertebrates and the assaults of extreme weather conditions; summertime’s proliferation of flora, fish, fowl and mammals; amazing feats of biological inventiveness during the autumnal preparation for winter; and how plants and animals adapt to winter’s harsh conditions.

The program will be presented by Dr. Colin Rees, retired biodiversity specialist at the World Bank and professor of Zoology at the University of Maryland. He is one of the developers and founders of Jug Bay Wetlands Sanctuary on the Patuxent River, part of the Chesapeake Bay watershed in Southern Maryland, which is the focus of his recent book, Nature’s Calendar: A Year in the Life of a Wildlife Sanctuary.

 

Mira, A Spectacular Variable Star

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The Online Planetarium (In-The-Sky.org) star map snap shot, showing the location of Mira (circled) at 5:00 AM on June 15, 2023 in the eastern sky. Mira might be hard to see until later in the summer.

Illustrations and article by FMN Stephen Tzikas

When does a bright star come out of nowhere, rise in the east, and attract a gathering of followers? It might sound like a familiar story about a star in the east a couple millennia ago. However, this star repeats a cycle every 11 months, and is an attention getting event in the constellation Cetus. The star is Omicron Ceti, otherwise known as Mira by its common name. It is my favorite variable star and I track it continuously when it is not behind the Sun, which makes it unobservable for a few months. Mira is unique in that its brightness varies from nearly a magnitude of 2 to dimmer than magnitude 9. This means that at its brightest, it is one of the brightest stars in the sky. At its dimmest, it is invisible and a telescope is needed to see it. One can watch it over the weeks, even as short as days, and see it growing brighter and then dimmer. Serious observers like myself will submit their observations to the American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO). There are many other variable stars that one can observe, and some of them have cycles that are entirely naked eye. But observing with binoculars opens many opportunities. There are many reasons why a star can regularly vary in brightness.

Mira is part of a group of variable stars called long-term Mira variables, named after Mira itself, the most famous

Light curve for Mira produced by all observers, including the author. Notice the sinusoidal manner in which Mira varies in brightness over the months and years. The orange markers are the author’s contributions.

of this type of star. Mira type variable stars are red giant stars in the later stages of evolution, and they pulsate with cycles longer than 100 days, and with amplitudes greater than 2.5 in visual magnitude. They will eventually become white dwarf stars at the center of a planetary nebula, the remains of the original star’s dissipated outer envelope.

I track the brightness of Mira by comparison to the known brightness magnitudes of neighboring stars that do not change in magnitude. When at its brightest, I track Mira’s changes in magnitude visually. When it is dimmer, by binoculars. At its dimmest, I need a telescope.

Mira will be at brightest again in June 2023. Mira just passed its dimmest magnitude in January 2023. The challenge this year is that Mira will be its brightest at early dawn rising in the eastern sky. That may make it unfavorable for some people to see, but as we get into the summer months, Mira will be higher and higher in the eastern sky before sunrise and probably still a naked eye object depending on your location’s light pollution.

Light curve specific for the author’s input since 2013, with other observer contributions removed.  This contribution is thus one part of a more complete light curve.

One can check the magnitude of Mira on the AAVSO website (https://www.aavso.org/). Besides Mira there are other common naked eye variable stars that can be observed. Learn more at: https://www.astroleague.org/al/obsclubs/variablestar/VSOIntroduction.html, the Astronomical League’s variable star program.

 

Winter Stream Life, February 18th

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Photo: Courtesy of Fairfax County Park Authority, E C Lawrence Park

Saturday, 02/18/2023
1:00-2:00 PM

ELLANOR C. LAWRENCE PARK LOCATION
Visitor Center & Amphitheater
5040 Walney Road
Chantilly, VA, 20151

Enrollment Fee: $8:00

Click here for additional details and registration information.

Explore Walney Creek with a naturalist to meet some of the small creek critters (macroinvertebrates) that call it home. Learn why so many different types of macroinvertebrates are active in winter streams. The naturalist will demonstrate winter collecting and participants can help pick, sort and learn to identify these magnificent critters.

A Birder’s Garden: Habitat for Feathered Friends with Alyssa Morel, February 28th

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Photo of Alyssa Morel, Courtesy of the Audubon Society of Northern Virginia

Tuesday, February 28, 2023
7:00 – 8:00 PM
Virtual
Tickets: $10

Click here for registration.

Birders who want to see feathered friends without leaving the comforts of home can create a garden that attracts and supports them. This talk gives practical gardening advice for new gardeners as well as suggested plant species to help turn your bit of ground into an avian sanctuary.

Speaker Alyssa Ford Morel is one of our Audubon at Home Ambassadors, as well as a member of the Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia and the Arlington Regional Master Naturalists. She also helps coordinate the Glencarlyn Library Demonstration Garden.

This event is brought to you by Audubon Society of Northern Virginia.

 

Doug Tallamy On Hope and Restoring Biodiversity, February 26th

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Image: Courtesy of Friends of Hollin Hills, Doug Tallamy

Sunday, February 26, 2023
Book signing and reception starts at 3 pm
Talk starts at 4 pm

Mt Vernon Unitarian Church,
Main Building, 
1909 Windmill Lane Alexandria, VA 22307

Tickets: $25

Click here for tickets and additional details. 

Friends of Hollin Hills are hosting an in-person event with professor and author Doug Tallamy on Sunday, February 26.

Doug Tallamy addresses the need to restore our natural world. Global insect declines and 3,000,000,000 fewer birds in North American are a bleak reality check about how ineffective our current landscape designs have been at sustaining the plants and animals that sustain us.

To create landscapes that enhance local ecosystems rather than degrade them, we must 1) remove invasives and 2) add native plant communities that sustain food webs, sequester carbon, maintain diverse native bee communities and manage our watersheds.

​If we do this in half the area now in lawn, we can create Homegrown National Park, a network of viable habitats throughout the US that will provide vital corridors connecting the natural areas that remain. This approach to conservation empowers everyone to play a significant role in the future of the natural world. It is also enormously satisfying and restorative for those who act.

 

Approved for FMN Continuing Educattion Credit as ‘Other’ as the Approved CE Org

Birding Banshee, February 11th

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Saturday, February 11, 2023
8:00 AM

Where: Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve; 21085 The Woods Road, Leesburg VA 20175
Members: FREE
Non-members: FREE

Click here for Registration.

Whether you’re a beginning birder or an expert, you’ll enjoy searching for the many bird species found at the Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve south of Leesburg. Join Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy and Friends of Banshee Reeks for the monthly bird walk at this birding hot spot. Bring binoculars if you have them.  Registration required.

Your Closest State Park – Mason Neck

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All photos by Jerry Nissley

Are you gazing over your horizon for a different new place to volunteer?

FMNs Tom Blackburn, Rob Warren and Jerry Nissley recently met with Jamie Leeuwrik, Chief Ranger – Visitor Experience, at Mason Neck State Park to discuss the areas of need at the park and how FMN volunteers may help.
In a general sense, Jamie mentioned a range of needs and opportunities available now and in the immediate future:
1. Park interpreters (wetlands, birds/eagles, herps, indoor, outdoor)
2. Trail monitoring (rovers, tour guides)
3. Adopt-a-Trail program (cleanup, invasive removal)
4. Shoreline cleanups
5. Special events (from interpreting to costumed entertainer)
6. Kayak/paddle tour guides (join 6 current FMN guides)
7. Visitor Center Assistant
8. Summer Camp Program Leaders

White egret swooping into the grasses of Kane’s Creek

All of the above require some sort of training and registration as a state park volunteer, which is standard procedure at all parks. Some may be tackled as scheduled group/team efforts, some may be individual efforts done as your time permits.

Please contact Jamie directly to get signed up as a State Park volunteer. Mention you are an FMN volunteer and would like get involved with any of the listed opportunities or express your personal interests and see what else they have. Paddle guides are being actively recruited now. [email protected]

Evening paddle tour

FMN has two service codes to cover any and all projects in Virginia State Parks.
– S179: Virginia State Park Stewardship Projects – – VDCR, to cover any approved stewardship activity in a State Park. For example, maintenance, cleanups, invasive removal.
– E179: Virginia State Park Educational and Outreach Projects – – VDCR, to cover any approved educational activity in a state park. For example, paddle guide, festivals, interpretive programs.

Tidal marsh from the forested Bayview Trail

Mason Neck is very much about the water but it also has 10 hiking trails through multiple ecosystems – freshwater tidal marsh, coastal depression wetlands, and mixed mesic hardwood forests. It is home to several resident eagles and is a seasonal sanctuary for hundreds of migratory waterfowl, including tundra swans. It is a great place to learn more about.

For now, an FMN liaison is on the MNSP Volunteer notification list as there is no current signup calendar service available. However, signing up as a State Park volunteer places you on their list so you get advanced notice of events. Some events are posted on the State Park web site.

MNSP started as a sanctuary for eagles. Several pair nest on the Neck.

Project teaser – We then presented an idea from Sarah Mayhew (FMN President) about a ‘Chapter Project’ to restore and maintain their pollinator gardens. They have two major plots (~20’x30’) and small spaces around the visitors center. More on this project as details develop.
Please contact Jerry Nissley of this peaks your interest – [email protected]

Arlington Regional Master Naturalists Presents Seminar: Too Many Deer? February 22nd

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Photo: Whitetail Deer Courtesy of National Park Service

Wednesday, February 22,2023
7:00 p.m.

Free Zoom Seminar

Register here for Zoom details

Click here for presentation flyer.

Are too many deer endangering our local flora and fauna? If so, what can be done about it?

As humans have transformed landscapes, many species have lost their habitats, struggling to survive, while whitetailed deer have thrived. Overwhelming evidence points to high deer populations as a main factor in reducing
biodiversity and limiting forest regeneration. Cornell University Professor Blossey, a leading expert on forest health in
the Eastern United States, will present evidence for this imbalance and discuss potential solutions. “Deer are
charismatic native species that belong in our fields and forests,” Blossey said. “Humans have allowed them to become
ecological bullies, and if we are serious about our responsibilities to protect all native species, we need to embrace the
need to reduce deer impacts through reductions in the local deer herds.” This presentation, sponsored by a network of
Northern Virginia environmental organizations, comes as Arlington County studies the impact of deer.

See more information on the Arlington Regional Master Naturalists web page:  armn.org/deer