Stream Monitoring: Citizen Science & Training Opportunities

Photo by J. Quinn

Below is a list of Stream Monitoring Citizen Science, Workshops, and other monitoring opportunities in the area for July and August.

 

 *NVSWCD Workshop 

Pohick Creek Stream Monitoring Workshop

When: Sunday, July 17, 10:00am-12:30pm

Where: Hidden Pond Nature Center, Springfield

This is the workshop site of a recently-retired stream monitor and is currently up for adoption. Come join us at this beautiful county park! Space is limited, please register for the workshop here.

 

*NVSWCD Workshop 

Holmes Run Stream Monitoring Workshop

When: Saturday, July 23, 9:00-11:30am

Where: Holmes Run Stream Valley Park, Falls Church

This workshop site is an easily-accessible location just downstream of Lake Barcroft. Come explore this beautiful spot in the Cameron Run watershed! Space is limited, please register for the workshop here.

 

*NVSWCD Workshop 

Difficult Run Stream Monitoring Workshop

When: Sunday, August 21, 10:00am-12:30pm

Where: Difficult Run Stream Valley Park, Great Falls

This quiet site is known for numerous macros and a relatively high stream score. In spring we found a high number of midges – will we find the same this visit? Space is limited, please register for the workshop here.

 

*NVSWCD Workshop 

Horsepen Run Stream Monitoring Workshop

When: Saturday, August 27, 9:00-11:30am

Where: Horsepen Run Stream Valley Park, Herndon

This stream site parallels the park trail and is a favorite with local runners, bikers, and dog walkers! This site scored higher in the spring monitoring than it had in past years – join us to see if this positive trend continues! Space is limited, please register for the workshop here.

*Northern Virginia Water and Soil Conservation District

Creek Critters Count and Catch Program

When: Sunday, August 28, 1:00pm

Where: Chapman DeMary Trail, Purcellville

Join the Purcellville Parks and Recreation Advisory Board, Purcellville Tree and Environment Sustainability Committee and Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy to get up close and personal with the creek critters living in the South Fork of the Catoctin Creek at the Chapman DeMary Trail. Loudoun Wildlife Stream Team members will discuss the natural history of these critters, help participants learn how to identify them, and explain how they can help us determine the health of a stream. Registration required through Purcellville Parks and Recreation website. Learn more here.

 

More Training and Stream Monitoring Opportunities

 

The Northern Virginia Water and Soil Conservation District (NVSWCD) is very excited to contribute their stream data to state and national datasets. If you’d like to see data from all the NVSWCD regional stream monitoring team’s active sites, you can find our organization on the Clean Water Hub. Keep in touch with NVSWCD on our Facebook and Instagram.

 

Latino Conservation Week Celebrates Community and Nature, July 16th – 24th

Image: Courtesy of the Fairfax County Park Authority

Latino Conservation Week is from July 16-24, 2022. Fairfax County will be celebrating the Latino community’s love of nature. Modeled after the Hispanic Access Foundation’s Latino Conservation Week, the Fairfax County Park Authority together with Providence District Supervisor Dalia Palchik, Defensores de la Cuenca, Northern Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District, and other community partners will provide free bilingual (English/Spanish) conservation-themed programs, nature activities and recreational opportunities at parks around the county throughout the week.

To kick off the week, there will be activities at three parks on July 16, 2022, including Hidden Oaks Nature Center, Frying Pan Farm Park and Eakin Park. There will be a capstone event at Justice Park on July 24, 2022. Other Fairfax County Park Authority parks and partners will also offer programs that embrace Latino Conservation Week themes, while working with the Latino community.

Highlights include:

To find additional information about the Latino Conservation Week events, please visit the Latino Conservation week webpage.

Click here for event flyer in Spanish. 

Click here for event flyer in English.

Hope for Humpbacks, webinar July 19th

Photo:  Pacific Whale Foundation

Tuesday, July 19, 2022
7 pm
Register here.

Biologist Stephanie Stack from the Pacific Whale Foundation will share tales from her 10 years of research on humpback whales. Humpback whales are a conservation success story, having largely recovered from the threat of commercial whaling, but they still need our help. Stephanie will discuss the most urgent threats to whales today, why whales are critical for a healthy ocean, and the actions needed to protect these ocean giants.

This is a Smithsonian Environmental Research Center monthly science talk from the Virtual Earth Optimism lecture series.

“How do Birds get their Colors?” webinar with Ivan Phillipsen, July 14th

Photo: Andrean Emerald Humminbirds, Ly Dang/Audubon Photography Awards

Thursday, July 14, 2022
7 pm
ASNV members $15, nonmembers $25
Register here.

One of the things most loved about birds is their wild array of plumage colors and patterns. Where does all that color come from? In this presentation, you’ll learn how pigments and microscopic structures in feathers create the kaleidoscope of beauty we find in the avian world. Topics covered include iridescence, molting and feather wear, the evolution of feather color, and the functions of feather colors.  Audubon Society of Northern Virginia presents.

Ivan Phillipsen is a professional naturalist guide with a background in scientific research. Amphibians and reptiles were his first obsession as a kid. He eventually earned a PhD in Zoology, working in the field of conservation genetics. Ivan’s love of nature has expanded to include plants, fungi, and all animals, including birds. Birds have become his greatest passion. He’s an avid birder, hosts The Science of Birds podcast, and co-owns a birding ecotour company.

Butterfly Identification Workshop, July 9th

Image: Courtesy of The Clifton Institute

Saturday, July 9  10:00 am – 12:00 pm

The Clifton Institute
6712 Blantyre Road
Warrenton, Virginia 20187

Free

Instructor: Dr. Bert Harris

More information and registration.

Come and learn about butterfly biology and identification. Dr. Bert Harris will give a short presentation followed by a guided walk around the field station to look for butterflies (and perhaps some dragonflies as well :). All skill levels welcome!

Hosted by The Clifton Institute.

Summer Wildflower Identification, July 18th – August 15th

Mondays, 6 – 8pm
July 18 – August 15
Zoom lectures + 3 field trips
$260 members/$310 nonmembers
Instructor: Clare Walker, Ph.D
More information and register here.

Gain an appreciation of the varied summer wildflowers of our region from dazzling orchids to roadside ‘weeds’ and from distinctive milkweeds to the complicated asters. Explore methods of field identification, from traditional field guides to the advantages/disadvantages of different apps, giving you the tools to go outside and hunt for flowers (recording flower observations in an optional iNaturalist class project). Registration closes on July 13.

Hosted by Audubon Naturalist Society.

Rare Plant Reintroduction and Restoration, recorded webinar

Watch the presentation now on Vimeo.

On May 12th, Matt Bright of Earth Sangha made a presentation on Rare Plant Reintroduction and Restoration for the Potowmack Chapter of the Virginia Native Plant Society.

Matt reviews how the Earth Sangha and Fairfax County Park Authority have collaborated on reestablishment of several state-rare native plant species, some of the challenges that work has entailed, and why home gardeners may be better served — and better serve our local environment — by focusing on more common plants instead

Life in the Flower Bed, webinar July 20th

Photo:  Sue Dingwell

Wednesday, July 20, 2022
7 – 9pm
LWC event link.

The flower patch is abuzz with pollinators but also predators looking for a meal. Learn about the good guys vs. the bad guys with “wolves in sheep’s clothing,” camouflaged “crabs,” and zombie bees. You will never look at your flowers the same way after visiting this “Serengeti” in miniature. This talk is co-sponsored by Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy and the Loudoun County Public Library.

The library doesn’t require pre-registration. Just click on the library website link (coming soon) through the Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy event link included above to join when it’s time.

Stream Monitoring: Citizen Science & Training Opportunities

Photo by J. Quinn

 

Below is a list of the various Stream Monitoring workshops and other monitoring opportunities in the area throughout June and July.

 

Accotink Creek Stream Monitoring

When: Saturday, June 11, 9:30 – 11:30am

Where: Accotink Creek, Springfield

Join Friends of Accotink Creek to monitor the health of the stream. For more information and to register, click here.

 

Little Hunting Creek Stream Monitoring Workshop

When: Sunday, June 12, 10:00am-12:30pm

Where: Paul Spring Stream Valley Park, Alexandria

This workshop was originally scheduled for April but was rained out… twice! Take this opportunity to join us as we visit the Paul Spring Branch of Little Hunting Creek for the first time in many years! Space is limited, please register for the workshop here.

 

Sugarland Run Stream Monitoring Workshop

When: Tuesday, June 21, 4:00-6:30pm

Where: Sugarland Run Stream Valley Park, Herndon

This site is close to one of the largest great blue heron rookeries in the area at Kincora along Route 28, and seeing these beautiful birds along Sugarland Run isn’t uncommon. What a nice bonus to complement Sugarland Run’s big crayfish and other mighty macros! Space is limited, please register for the workshop here.

 

Pohick Creek Stream Monitoring Workshop

When: Sunday, July 17, 10:00am-12:30pm

Where: Hidden Pond Nature Center, Springfield

This is the workshop site of a recently-retired stream monitor and is currently up for adoption. Come join us at this beautiful county park! Space is limited, please register for the workshop here.

 

Holmes Run Stream Monitoring Workshop

When: Saturday, July 23, 9:00-11:30am

Where: Holmes Run Stream Valley Park, Falls Church

This workshop site is ae easily-accessible location just downstream of Lake Barcroft. Come explore this beautiful spot in the Cameron Run watershed! Space is limited, please register for the workshop here.

More Training and Stream Monitoring Opportunities

 

The Northern Virginia Water and Soil Conservation District(NVSWCD) is very excited to contribute their stream data to state and national datasets. If anyone would like to see data from all the NVSWCD regional stream monitoring team’s active sites, the NVSWCD organization can be found on the Clean Water Hub. Keep in touch with NVSWCD on our Facebook and Instagram.

Author Event: “A World on the Wing” with NY Times Bestselling Author Scott Weidensaul, webinar June 28th

Photo: Yellow Sea Shorebirds, Scott Weidensaul

Thursday, June 28, 2022
7 – 8:15 pm
ASNV member $20, nonmember $30
Register here.

Audubon Society of Northern Virginia and the Virginia Society of Ornithology are proud to present an author talk with New York Times Bestselling Author, Scott Weidensaul!

His recent book, A World on the Wing: The Global Odyssey of Migratory Birds, has captivated birders and non-birders alike with stories of astounding discoveries about the navigational and physiological feats that enable migratory birds to cross immense oceans or fly above the highest mountains, go weeks without sleep or remain in unbroken flight for months at a stretch.

For this lecture, author and researcher Scott Weidensaul takes you around the globe — with researchers in the lab probing the limits of what migrating birds can do, to the shores of the Yellow Sea in China, the remote mountains of northeastern India where tribal villages saved the greatest gathering of falcons on the planet, and the Mediterranean, where activists and police are battling bird poachers — to learn how people are fighting to understand and save the world’s great bird migrations.

Get your ticket at reduced price by joining Audubon Society of Northern Virginia or the Virginia Society of Ornithology.