Recovering Native Plant Diversity in the Piedmont, webinar, November 15th

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Photo courtesy of VNPS

Sunday, November 15, 2020
1 pm
Register here.

Join the Virginia Native Plant Society (Potowmack Chapter) for their annual meeting. The speaker at the event will be Dr. Andrea Weeks of George Mason University. She will be discussing her research project, Recovering Native Plant Diversity in the Piedmont, that aims to initiate a long-term floristic study of Gilbert’s Corner in Loudoun County to support ongoing habitat restoration at the site – and to educate the public about the importance of conserving local biodiversity. Dr. Weeks is the recipient of the inaugural Mary Pockman Memorial Research Grant from VNPS.

Dr. Andrea Weeks

Dr. Weeks’ research focuses on the systematics, historical biogeography, and evolution of flowering plants, particularly those within the frankincense and myrrh family, Burseraceae. Dr. Weeks is also director of the Ted R. Bradley Herbarium at George Mason University and is engaged in making this valuable resource of information about the Virginia flora available to the public via the internet.

More on Dr. Weeks’ research here.

Friends of Mason Neck Swanfall: All About Foxes, December 6th

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Photo from Friends of Mason Neck State Park

Sunday, December 6, 2020
2 pm
Webinar
$5 per family
Register here.

Swanfall, the Friends of Mason Neck State Park‘s annual holiday celebration that traditionally is held at the Jammes House in the Park, will be held online. Erin Thady, a Wildlife Biologist with Fairfax County, will entertain and inform with a presentation about the secretive lives of foxes.

Northern Virginia is home to a diverse assemblage of mammals that cohabit our suburban communities. Foxes are among the mammals that have adapted to an increasingly urbanized landscape and have learned how to successfully coexist alongside humans. Although foxes can be elusive, they are often commonly observed throughout our communities.

Erin will discuss the natural histories of red foxes and gray foxes and their unique adaptations for survival in a dynamic landscape. She will also discuss fox characteristics and identification tips, diet and habitat preferences, population dynamics, and ways that humans successfully coexist with foxes.

Naturally Latinos Conference, December 2nd-4th

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Wednesday, December 2 – Friday, December 4, 2020

Experience thought-provoking presentations by diverse regional and national environmental experts.

Join the Audubon Naturalist Society and their partners and become inspired to use the many strategies and tactics you will learn to transform your local community. You will have the opportunity to virtually and interactively network with leading nature professionals.

To see the 2020 Naturally Latinos Conference Agenda & Schedule, click here.

Register for the Conference Now!

Nature Talk: Plants Shaped by Water, November 10th

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Photo by Jerry Nissley

Tuesday, November 10th
7:30 pm
Zoom webinar
To register, email [email protected] and put “November 10 program” in the subject line and your name in the body of the email

Water is essential for life. Plants are composed mostly of water, which also defines reproductive strategies and vegetative community composition.  Presented by Friends of Dyke Marsh (FODM), Fairfax County naturalist and ecologist Charles Smith will explore how these issues are expressed in natural communities in Northern Virginia and how changes in land use and climate affect the health and future of our ecosystems.

FODM will confirm your registration and send you instructions for joining the meeting.

The American Horticultural Society, the Washington, D.C., chapter of the Society for Conservation Biology and the Friends of Little Hunting Creek are cosponsors.

Nature’s Puzzle: The Interconnectedness of the Natural World, November 25th

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Wednesday, 25 November 2020
7 pm
Register here. (And while you’re there, check out the other wonderful programs lined up!)

Join Alonso Abugattas, Capital Naturalist on FaceBook and blogger, for an in-depth look at how pieces of the nature puzzle fit together. Nature is intricately interconnected, and while we certainly don’t know how all the pieces fit, we can have some fun trying to put them together. Get a peek at just how interdependent our plants, fungi, insects, other wildlife, and, even humans, can be. You’ll be challenged to try to piece together parts of our local nature puzzle.

Call of the Wild Conference, Wildlife Rehabilitation Conference, November 20-22

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Eastern painted turtle, photo by M. Prysby

November 20-22, 2020
Online
Cost: $50 for one day, or $100 for all three days.
For More Information, Conference Schedule, and Registration: Wildlife Center of Virginia Call of the Wild Conference

The Wildlife Center of Virginia invites you to the 25th annual Call of the Wild Conference on wildlife rehabilitation, co-sponsored by the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources. Wildlife rehabilitators, veterinary professionals, wildlife biologists, environmental educators, and wildlife enthusiasts from Virginia and beyond will share ideas and knowledge that can benefit wildlife, the environment, and the continually evolving field of wildlife rehabilitation. 

Octobird Fest at The Clifton Institute, webinars October 16th and 30th

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Winter Bird Identification
Friday, October 16, 2020
7 – 8 pm
Register here.
$20 registers you for both webinars.

Every season brings its own challenges for birdwatching. In winter similar-looking sparrows can be hard to tell apart and birding by ear becomes more difficult as birds start singing less and calling more. Join the leaders of The Clifton Institute bimonthly bird walks, including Executive Director Bert Harris, to learn some tips for identifying winter birds. Managing Director Eleanor Harris will quiz them with tricky calls and pictures and you can play along as Bert talks through the identification process. And then come out for one of their bird walks and put your new skills to the test!

Evolution and Biology of Bird Song
Friday, October 30, 2020
7 – 8 pm
Register here.
$20 registers you for both webinars.

Bird songs are beautiful and diverse and they have played an important role in the evolution of birds. Bird songs also give us the opportunity to see animals learning and sexual selection in action. In this presentation Managing Director Eleanor Harris, Ph.D., will give an overview on the biology and evolution of bird songs. And she’ll highlight some of the questions about bird songs that scientists still don’t have answers for. Throughout the talk she’ll focus on local examples.

Great Lakes Water Conference, “Water in the Courts,” webinar November 6th

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Photo by Jack Anstey on Unsplash

Friday, November 6, 2020
9 am – 12:30 pm
Registration by November 4th required.

Water-related cases of international, national, regional, and local import will be the focus of the 20th Annual Great Lakes Water Conference. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s conference will be conducted virtually online as a live webinar.

Titled “Water in the Courts,” the half-day conference will feature six legal experts addressing litigation about the Enbridge oil pipeline underlying the Straits of Mackinac; an interstate groundwater allocation case pending before the U.S. Supreme Court; the Court’s recent County of Maui decision affecting permitting under the Clean Water Act; challenges to the new federal “waters of the United States” rule, high water levels and flooding in and around Lake Ontario; and the Lake Erie Bill of Rights.

This conference is sponsored by The University of Toledo College of Law and its affiliated Legal Institute of the Great Lakes.

Registration for the conference is free for the public. The deadline for registration is November 4, 2020. For more information and to register, visit the conference webpage.

Friends of Mason Neck State Park Owl Moon Program, Zoom session October 17th

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Saturday, October 17, 2020
7 pm
FREE
Register here

It’s nearly time for the Friends of Mason Neck State Park’s annual presentation of OWL MOON! This year, they will be bringing the event to you right in your own home using Zoom.

You will meet and learn about all the owls from raptor rehabilitator Secret Garden Birds and Bees, their favorite presenter. A special treat will be the introduction of Phantom – a beautiful barn owl. Find out what makes him unique as you also explore the life of a barred owl, great horned owl, and screech owl.

You will be able to ask questions about all the raptors in the program.
Get the whole family together. This event is appropriate for all ages and is open to the public. Registration is only $10 per person or family, which will help to offset the cost of the program. Don’t miss it!

After you register, they’ll provide you the instructions you’ll need to join the program.

Planning for a Pollinator Landscape, videoconference October 22nd

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Thursday, October 22, 2020
11:00am-12:00pm
Register here.

Join Landscape Designer Barbara Ryan as she addresses questions about creating a good design for a pollinator landscape. Submit your questions on the registration page, and please send photos of the area in question to [email protected]. This videoconference will be recorded and posted to YouTube.