Welcome to the Fairfax County Park Authority Latino Conservation Week, July 15th

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Welcome to the Fairfax County Park Authority Latino Conservation Week, a celebration of the community’s profound connection to nature and their contributions to conservation efforts. This week-long event invites you to embark on a journey of exploration, education, and engagement, honoring the rich heritage and environmental stewardship of Latino individuals. Join the celebration with these fun-filled, family programs!

Downloadable Flyers:

In Spanish: SEMANA LATINA DE LA CONSERVACIÓN (fairfaxcounty.gov)
In English: Latino Conservation Week (fairfaxcounty.gov)

Here are some featured events:

Free Fishing at Lake Fairfax
Saturday, July 22, 2023
8:00 AM -12:00 PM

LAKE FAIRFAX LOCATION
1400 Lake Fairfax Drive
Reston, VA, 20190
Map of Lake Fairfax Park

Join our expert staff to guide fun fishing adventures. Our bilingual staff will help answer questions about rules, regulations and fishing advice. The free event includes all equipment, tackle, and bait.

Conservation Day at Frying Pan Farm Park
Saturday, July 15, 2023
10:30 AM – 12:00 PM

FRYING PAN FARM PARK LOCATION
2709 West Ox Road
Herndon, VA, 20171
Map of Park

Head on down to the farm for wagon rides, tours and fun at Frying Pan Farm Park. This free event will feature wagon rides and tours of the farm in Spanish.
Wagon Rides at 10:30 a.m., 11:15 a.m., 12 p.m.
Tours of the Farm at 11 a.m. and 12 p.m.

Native Plant Seminar
Wednesday, July 26, 2023
7-8 PM

Register today at www.plantnovatrees.org/zooms-en-espano

Explore native plants with a free Zoom seminar in Spanish. Learn how to identify and remove invasive plants with expert, Patricia Greenberg, Invasive Management Area Program Manager for the Fairfax County Park Authority.
Register today at www.plantnovatrees.org/zooms-en-espano

Ecology Walk – Hosted by the Friends of Dyke Marsh, September 16th

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Photo by Ned Stone, A Dyke Marsh inlet.

Saturday, September 16, 2023
10:00am

Meet at the Haul Road trail entrance,
Dyke Marsh, Alexandria

Join naturalist and biologist Charles Smith at 10 a.m. on an ecology walk and learn all about tidal marsh ecology, vegetative communities, system stressors, seasonality of vegetation and wildlife and ecosystems’ importance. So everyone can hear and learn, FODM will have to limit the walk to 20 people. To register, email [email protected] and put “September Ecology Walk” in the subject box. Meet at the Haul Road trail entrance. Bring water, wear sturdy shoes and sun protection. We kindly request that you not bring pets. Hosted by the Friends of Dyke Marsh.

Butterfly Walk, August 26th

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Photo by Plant NOVA Natives, Mourning Cloak Butterfly

Saturday, August 26, 2023
10:00am
Meet at the south Belle Haven Park parking lot

Dyke Marsh, Alexandria Join Friends of Dyke Marsh for a butterfly and dragonfly walk with Larry Meade. Meet at the south Belle Haven Park parking lot. Limited to 20. Register by sending an email to [email protected] and put “butterfly walk” in the subject box.

Vernal Pools: Introduction to a Unique Wetland Habitat, August 2nd

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Photo Courtesy of the Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy

 

Wednesday, August 2, 2023
7:00pm

Rust Library
380 Old Waterford Rd NW
Leesburg, VA + Google Map

Learn more and register here.

Vernal pools, also known as ephemeral or seasonal pools, are an important yet often overlooked wetland. As the name suggests, they are temporary pools only holding water for a brief time each year. During that time, they are home to mysterious shrimp, developing dragonfly larvae, and are critical breeding grounds for several of our local salamander and frog species. These vernal pools are in rapid decline due to development. Join Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy’s Jenny Erickson for a look into the wildlife that utilize these pools and what we can all do to help protect these sensitive wetlands. This program is co-sponsored with the Loudoun County Public Library.

Questions: Contact [email protected].

Stream Monitoring Citizen Science & Training Opportunities

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Photo by FMN J. Quinn, Stream monitoring at Pohick Creek.

 

Difficult Run Stream Monitoring Field Training

When: Thursday, July 20, 9:00-11:30am
Where: Difficult Run Stream Valley Park, Great Falls

This field training is targeted to those pursuing the VASOS stream monitor certification and will focus heavily on protocols. This long-standing stream site has changed greatly in width, depth, and streambed composition since NVSWCD first began monitoring the site. You never quite know what you’ll find! Learn more and register for this workshop and others here.

 

Cub Run Stream Monitoring Field Training

When: Saturday, July 29, 9:00-11:30am
Where: Cub Run Stream Valley Park, Centreville

This field training is targeted to those pursuing the VASOS stream monitor certification and will focus heavily on protocols. Trainees often find a variety of interesting macroinvertebrates here, including large hellgrammites. Learn more and register for this workshop and others here.

 

Little Difficult Run Stream Monitoring Field Training

When: Thursday, August 10, 9:00-11:30am
Where: Fred Crabtree Park, Herndon

This field training is targeted to those pursuing the VASOS stream monitor certification and will focus heavily on protocols. This beautiful stream site is located a short hike into the woods and currently available for adoption by a certified stream monitor. Learn more and register for this workshop and others here.

 

Pohick Stream Monitoring Field Training

When: Saturday, August 19, 9:00-11:30am
Where: Pohick Creek Stream Valley Park, Springfield

This field training is targeted to those pursuing the VASOS stream monitor certification and will focus heavily on protocols. This site along Pohick Creek runs adjacent to the Cross County Trail and features a family- and pet-friendly walking trail in addition to cool stream critters. Learn more and register for this workshop and others here.

 

More Training and Stream Monitoring Opportunities

 

The NoVa Soil & Water Conservation teams are  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.

Results of Third Annual Dragonfly Count at The Clifton Institute

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Photo by Ana Ka’ahanui, Blue Dasher dragonfly

The Clifton Institute third annual dragonfly count took place on Sunday, June 25th. Their goals with the count are to track changes in dragonfly numbers to aid in their conservation and to generate interest in this fascinating group of insects.

With the help of 25 volunteers, they found 57 species of dragonflies and damselflies, a new high! They have now seen 67 species across the three years. They added three new species to the count this year, Aurora Damsel, Vesper Bluet, and Sable Clubtail (Larry Lynch photo). Other highlights included rare or uncommon species like Laura’s Clubtail, Lilypad Forktail, Appalachian Jewelwing, Sphagnum Sprite, and Amber-winged and Elegant Spreadwings (Linda Gammello photo).

It’s really exciting to start to be able to compare abundance across years. Numbers of several of the common pond-dwelling species (Slaty and Widow Skimmers, Eastern Amberwing, Common Whitetail, and Blue Dasher; Bob Blakney photo) were down this year. Could this be a result of lower water levels from the drought?

The results of the count are here and some of the best photos are here.

Thank you so much to the volunteers that made the count possible! Their area leaders this year were Bridget Bradshaw, Josh Jakum, Larry Lynch, and Larry Meade. A thank you to the landowners who allowed access to their special properties! The count volunteers are so grateful for their support of the count.

Summer Creatures of The Night, July 14

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Image: Courtesy of The Clifton Institute

Friday, July 14, 2023
7:30 – 9:30 pm
Cost: Free

Registration is REQUIRED.

The Clifton Institue
6712 Blantyre Road
Warrenton, Virginia 20187

Come join members of The Clifton Institute to look and listen for creatures of the night! Summer is an ideal time to observe several species of katydids, crickets, cicadas and birds. Participants will also look for beavers, reptiles and amphibians, and other animals! Back at the farmhouse attendees will see what kinds of moths and beetles are attracted with black lights. Hope to see you there!

Great News to Share About the FMN Chapter Project at Mason Neck State Park – Volunteers Are Still Needed

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FMN Chapter Project update and photo from Sarah Mayhew, President, Fairfax Chapter Virginia Master Naturalists:

After three very busy workdays, the Mason Neck State Park Pollinator Gardens are looking great. Fairfax Master Naturalists, working with volunteers from the Friends of Mason Neck State Park, have weeded four flower beds around the Visitors Center building. They installed 50 plants into rock hard ground. Finally, the beds were aerated with garden forks and top dressed with a 5-inch-thick layer of compost.  June 17th marked the last scheduled workday. The volunteers cleaned out two of the rain barrels and sat up soaker hoses in two of the beds in front of the Visitors Center. A third rain barrel was examined to figure out why it wasn’t holding water.  Now, it is time to switch to a “maintenance” schedule. The project will need volunteer support on the second Saturday and the second Tuesday of each month.

The project also has a focus on the Meadow or Circle Garden, which is a fenced area in the middle of the road when you drive up to the Visitors’ Center. This garden has well-established sun-loving flowers, shrubs and trees. A volunteer from the Friends has been spreading arborist wood chips in this area for several weeks. There is a need to spread some compost around the established plants to give them a boost as well as a need to help the Friends finish spreading the wood chips.

Helpful tools for this work include shovels, pitch forks, and rakes to spread the compost and wood chips. If you have a wheelbarrow or cart, please bring it to carry the compost and wood chips short distances to the Meadow Garden. Seeing a finished flower bed at the end of two hours brings great satisfaction. PLEASE, come join us, and become a part of this wonderful FMN Chapter Project!  Sign up is easy; just click this link:  https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0c4ba9a72fa6fc1-mason#/

In addition to the regular workdays, volunteers from both organizations have watered every other day to keep the seedlings alive (there are slots on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and a weekend day). This is an easy job, as the hose is right in front of the Visitors’ Center and reaches to all the beds. The Friends have done most of the watering so far. FMN volunteers are needed to help support watering the beds during weeks in July and August. It would be best to have someone claim a slot for a month, this would give the volunteer time to become familiar with the gardens. However, feel free to volunteers as your schedule will allow.  Please contact Sarah Mayhew at [email protected] to volunteer for watering. When you volunteer you get free entrance into the park and can spend the rest of the day kayaking, hiking and birding. Or you can just sit, listen to the birds sing, read a good book, and admire the view across Belmont Bay. The park even provides rocking chairs!

Help Count Butterflies on July 1 at Occoquan Bay

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Photo by Plant NOVA Natives, Mourning Cloak Butterfly

Saturday, July 1, 2023
8:00 AM – 1:00 PM

Occoquan Bay NWR,
13950 Dawson Beach Road
Woodbridge, VA, 22191

Participation is limited. To sign up, email Tina at [email protected].

Volunteers are needed for the upcoming North American Butterfly Association butterfly count at Occoquan Bay on July 1, starting at 8:00AM. No previous experience is required, and beginners will be grouped with more experienced volunteers. This is a great opportunity to learn more about local butterfly species, enjoy some lovely summer weather, and give back by volunteering.

Click here for more information.

Invasive Removal Grant Opportunity for Communities in Fairfax County

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Photo: FMN Margaret Fisher, Trees being engulfed by invasive plants

The wooded common areas of community associations and places of worship are not only amenities for humans but also important elements of the infrastructure, cooling the environment and soaking up stormwater that otherwise causes downstream flooding. The woods are also home for many non-human neighbors. In times past, these areas would take care of themselves, but those days are past in Fairfax County. The trees are under numerous threats, but the invasive non-native tree-killing plants constitute one of the worst of them. Invasive plant removal and management can be achieved with dedicated leadership, expertise, long-term planning, and funding. This grant program is intended to help communities start that process and to provide some funding opportunity.

Audubon At Home mini-grants of $3,000 are available. Applications are due August 15. Learn more here.