Learn Something New with ANS Naturalist Hour

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Mason Neck photo by Jerry Nissley

One of Capital Nature’s favorite providers of virtual nature programming in the region is the Audubon Naturalist Society (ANS). Through its Naturalist Hour series, ANS hosts two to three expert naturalists each week to explore fascinating topics such as urban foraging, birds, caterpillars, climate change, botanical folklore, fungi, crickets, nature journaling and the list goes on.

Learn from entomologist Mike Raupp, for example, that 1.5 million periodical cicadas will emerge per acre next Spring! Mycologist and environmental educator Serenella Linares has taught us about the proper way to photograph mushrooms for identification. Wildlife education and outreach specialist Kerry Wixted has elucidated how various animal species mate in her session: “Wild Sex: How Nature Does It.” Stay tuned for details about another ANS Naturalist Hour from our team on October 27th, “Community Science with Capital Nature.”

If you have any nature-related expertise that you’d like to share with the community, contact [email protected] for possible consideration for Naturalist Hour. 

Invasive Water Chestnut Presentation, by Dr. Nancy Rybicki

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Photo by N. Rybicki

Posted with permission of the U. S. Geological Survey (USGS)

At the virtual Fairfax Master Naturalists Quarterly Chapter Meeting in May, Dr. Nancy Rybicki introduced us to a recently discovered non-native, invasive water chestnut species that is overrunning lakes and ponds in Fairfax County. She is seeking help organizing mechanisms to locate and eradicate this culprit before it becomes widespread.

Her presentation may be found here.

Fairfax Master Naturalists receive one hour of continuing education credit for reading the presentation if they missed it in person.

As an added bonus, there is a recent article in Chesapeake Bay Magazine about this water chestnut problem. 

Audubon Afternoon with Amanda Gallinat, September 13th

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Photo: Hermit Thrush, Jeremiah Trimble

Sunday, 13 September 2020
3 – 4:30 pm
VIRTUAL!
Free, but registration is required

Climate change shifts the timing of autumn, risking mismatch between migratory birds and nutritious native fruits

Dr. Amanda Gallinat is an ecologist who studies how environmental change affects plants, birds, and their interactions. Her recent research focuses on the effects of climate change on the timing of seasonal biological events in the northeast, including fruit ripening and bird migration, and how these climate-driven changes alter food availability for birds in autumn. Amanda’s research incorporates the historical field notes of Henry David Thoreau, long-term bird banding records, museum specimens, and field observations, and her work has been featured by National Audubon, The Wildlife Society and American Scientist. Amanda has a B.A. from Carleton College and a PhD from Boston University, and she is currently a postdoctoral research fellow at Utah State University.

Fairfax County Community-Wide Energy and Climate Action Plan Seeks YOUR Input

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Fairfax County is developing its first-ever Community-wide Energy and Climate Action Plan (CECAP) and your input is needed! Only three percent of greenhouse gas emissions in the county come from local government and school operations, the rest are from cars and trucks on our roads, energy use in our buildings, waste management processes, and other community sources.

It’s up to all of us to take steps, even small ones, to reduce our emissions so that our families, friends, neighbors, and future residents of Fairfax County are spared the consequences of climate change and can thrive in a clean, healthy, prosperous community. Join one of three virtual public meetings in late August and early September and take the CECAP public survey to share your opinions and suggestions. Your input will be considered by the CECAP Task Force as they make decisions about climate change mitigation goals, strategies, and actions we can take in the years to come.

FMN Quarterly Chapter Meeting, 21 September

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Photo by Jason Gunn Burton

Monday, 21 September 2020
7 pm
Zoom link forthcoming

Two speakers have been scheduled to engage us in our natural curiosity. Each presentation will last about 45 minutes. A Zoom link will be sent out through our FMN GoogleGroup for your connection convenience. Please email [email protected] if you are not on our GoogleGroup and would like the link. This is a public event.

Jay Lechtman will talk about carnivorous plants. Jay, a resident of the Wolf Trap area of Fairfax County, has been an enthusiastic amateur botanist for more than 30 years. He learned about both basic (e.g. stratification) and advanced (e.g. smoke water, gibberelic acid) methods of germinating seeds as part of his involvement in propagating rare and often endangered carnivorous plants, many of which are native to the Eastern United States, including several in Virginia. As a former journalist and a published author, he has written a number of articles on botanical topics in both local and international publications, including Grandiflora MidAtlantic Gardening Magazine.

Nick Walker will talk about the American Eel. Nick is a conservation biologist and the mayor of Eel Town. He runs the eeltown.org website. Nick is an environmental scientist focused on American Eel research, taking an integrative approach that combines natural science, social science and cultural science. In addition to his eel work he’s been a park ranger, an award-winning teacher, owns Journal Editors of America LLC and is the Mayor of Eel Town. He holds a Ph.D. in Environmental Science & Public Policy from George Mason University and an M.Sc. in Animal Biology from the Universidade Federal de Viçosa. He founded Eel Town in 2017.

Virginia Water Monitoring Council Virtual Conference

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21-22 September 2020
Via GoToWebinar

This year’s Virginia Water Monitoring Council Conference will be held using a virtual format through GoToWebinar. Topics include coastal resilience, plastic pollution, Winter Salt Watch, and more. The program runs from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. each day, September 21st and 22nd. Registration is $30/person.

For more agenda, information, registration and contacts, see the conference webpage.

Confusing Fall Warblers, webinars 9 & 10 September

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Photo: Magnolia Warbler, Seth Davis/Audubon Photography Awards

Two webinars
Wednesday, 9 Sep and Thursday, 10 Sep 2020
7 – 8:30 pm
$25
Register here

Join Audubon Society of Northern Virginia for a webinar with Marc Ribaudo and learn to identify warblers that pass through Northern Virginia in the fall.

This workshop is back by popular demand. Don’t be afraid of the little green jobs! The presenter will focus on the field marks of fall warblers that typically pass through our region, with an emphasis on species that look very much different in the spring than fall, and species that are most often confused. 

Marc Ribaudo is an avid birder with over 40 years of field experience.  He regularly led trips for the Northern Virginia Bird Club and Friends of Dyke Marsh before retiring and moving to North Carolina. We are thrilled to have him teach this online workshop.

Monarch Larva Monitoring Project Training, August 29

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August 29, 2020

11:00 am – 5:00 pm

Some of our VMN chapters already participate in the Monarch Larva Monitoring Project, a large-scale citizen science study of monarchs during the breeding season. This is a project that can be done outdoors on-your-own or in small groups and even on your own property (if you have sufficient milkweed plants.)

This online training will give you the background you need on monarch biology, the monitoring protocols, and the data entry procedures in order to participate in the MLMP in the future. The training will also be relevant for people already participating in the MLMP. If, after the training, you want to participate in the MLMP, please work with your chapter to make sure it is an approved project.

This training is being coordinated by the Monarch Larva Monitoring Project and Monarch Joint Venture, so please visit their web page for the event for more information and registration. Note that the registration deadline is August 19 if you choose to receive print materials in the mail (which is not required.)

Starting the MLMP was part of my graduate research back in the 1990s, so I’m always excited to get Virginia Master Naturalist volunteers involved in the project and to help if I can. There’s a lot more to learn about monarchs in Virginia, so we can use some more data points!

Michelle Prysby

VMN Program Director

VMN Continuing Education Webinar, August 26: Fireflies

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Who doesn’t love fireflies? Many of us have fond memories of catching fireflies when we were kids, or watching a magical light show on a summer evening. This webinar will discuss firefly natural history, behavior, identification, and conservation. We will outline useful physical and behavioral characteristics for identifying common groups of fireflies in Virginia.
Other questions we’ll discuss include:  How many firefly species are there? Why do fireflies flash? What do fireflies eat? Are firefly populations declining? 

Didn’t quite get your firefly fix this summer? There’s still time! We’ll discuss how you can organize your own personal firefly safari this fall. Tune in to learn more!

Presenter Ariel Firebaugh is a lifelong learner and explorer. As an undergraduate at Roanoke College, she spent weekends practicing German verb conjugations while hiking around the Blue Ridge Mountains. She became semi-nocturnal in graduate school studying firefly behavior at UVA’s Blandy Experimental Farm field station. She now serves as the Director of Scientific Engagement at Blandy.

Webinar Details

When: Wednesday, August 26, 2020, 12:00 pm

Meeting Registration: Register for webinar (a requirement)

Link for recordings of this and past webinars: VMN Continuing Education Webinar page

Virtual Walk & Talk: Healthier Streams for a Healthier Community

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Thursday, 10 September 2020
7-8:30 pm EDT
Register and learn more.

Join Fairfax County staff Charles Smith & JoAnne Fiebe for a virtual walk and talk about ideas for making a stream part of the community again. Sponsored in part by Audubon Naturalist Society, they’ll show videos of a recent site visit, talk with Charles and JoAnne about the vision for the Route 1 redevelopment, and talk about how, as we face bigger rain storms, redevelopment can be tied to creating healthier streams, and therefore a healthier world for us. Free.