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Author Event: The Bird Way with Jennifer Ackerman, webinar October 15th

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Thursday, October 15, 2020
7 – 8:30 pm
Virtual!
Fee: $10 ASNV members, $15 non-members
Register for the lecture here.

Join Audubon Society of Northern Virginia as they welcome author Jennifer Ackerman to discuss the much anticipated follow up to The Genius of Birds. NPR’s “SCIENCE FRIDAY” picks The Bird Way as one of “The Best Summer Science Books of 2020”:

Ackerman brings scientific research alive with personal observations of colorful and fascinating birds, from the kea parrot to the raven to the brush turkey, among others. By showing how each species communicates, plays, parents, works, and thinks, she reminds us that there is no one way to be a bird.

Learn more about Jennifer and her work here. To order an autographed copy of her book, visit our website.

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.

Creating a Wildlife Sanctuary on Your Property: The Audubon at Home Program, webinar 27 August

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Photo: Audubon at Home Certified Wildlife Sanctuary, Toni Genberg

Webinar
Thursday, 27 August 2020
7 – 8:30 pm
$5
Register here

What can you do on your own property to attract and support wildlife? To learn how, join online for “Creating a Wildlife Sanctuary on Your Property: The Audubon at Home Program.” Originally scheduled as a live event last March, the program had to be canceled due to the pandemic. Now you’ll be able to attend from the comfort of your home.

Betsy Martin will talk about the Audubon at Home program, Wildlife Sanctuary certification and Habitat Best Practices. Betsy is a member of the ASNV Board of Directors and a Co-Coordinator of ASNV’s Audubon at Home program. She is a Virginia Master Naturalist, a founder and President of the Friends of Little Hunting Creek and the Mount Vernon representative to Fairfax County’s Chesapeake Bay Exception Review Committee, which she also chairs.

Laura Beaty will relate how she transformed her yard into a wildlife habitat with a slide program entitled: “Your Landscape as Habitat.” She will show how to support nature’s relationships in your wildlife habitat, and why it’s important to view your habitat from two perspectives: the eyes of turf-grass traditionalists and native pollinators. She’ll show you the truth behind the phrases, “The greater the plant diversity, the greater the wildlife” and “Plant it and they will come.” Laura Beaty is Horticulture Chair of the Virginia Native Plant Society and Propagation/Plant Sales Chair of the Potowmack Chapter of VNPS. She also represents her Fairfax County district on the Fairfax Tree Commission.

This program is co-sponsored by the Friends of Mason Neck State Park and Audubon Society of Northern Virginia. They’re charging a nominal fee of $5.00 per registration to help defray the costs.

Identifying Shorebirds with Marc Ribaudo

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Online: 12 and 13 August, 7-8 pm
Fee: $25
Limit: 95
Register: Here for 12 August session and/or Here for 13 August session

This class is recommended for anyone who would like to tackle shorebird identification on their own. Marc will spend two evenings online covering identification tips for shorebirds that can typically be seen in our region. Emphasis will be on shorebirds that pose the biggest identification challenges, such as peeps. He’ll also discuss places to practice and sharpen your new-found skills. A recommended book for this class is The Shorebird Guide by Michael O’Brien, Richard Crossley and Kevin Karlson (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2006). The Sibley Guide to Birds by David Sibley (Knopf, 2014) is also a good basic field guide.

Instructor: Marc Ribaudo has been birding since he was a teenager in New Jersey in the 1960s. He has a great amount of field experience and is a regular trip leader for the Northern Virginia Bird Club and the Friends of Dyke Marsh.

Board of Supervisors Approves a Major Initiative to Enhance County Properties with Native Plants!

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Members of Audubon Society of Northern Virginia (ASNV) won a big victory on June 9 when the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved an amendment to the county’s comprehensive plan to apply natural landscaping to county properties. This will formalize natural landscaping as official policy for the county and is the culmination of many years of effort, led by ASNV.

The vote was 8 to 0, with Supervisors Dan Storck and Rodney Lusk absent because of a Black Lives Matter march in the Mount Vernon area. Previously, the Planning Commission had voted for it unanimously on May 14.

ASNV believes that Fairfax County is the only jurisdiction in the region to adopt this approach as formal policy in a comprehensive plan. Adoption of this amendment means that natural landscaping, which largely uses native plants and trees, will be used on most county properties, especially as the county builds or remodels buildings and grounds.

Bird Behavior Course – Webinar

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With: Bill Young 
When: May 20, 21, 27, 28; June 3, 4, 10, 11, 7:00 to 8:00 PM
Fee: $40 for all sessions
Register here

Join Audubon Society of Northern Virginia for 8 one-hour sessions examining a variety of bird behaviors, including avian feeding, reproduction, migration, visual and auditory displays and more. Each session will feature video, audio and photographs to help people learn about the many aspects of bird behavior. Classes will draw on the knowledge Bill has gained from birding locally and on all seven continents.

Instructor: Bill Young is a writer who lives in Arlington. He is the author of The Fascination of Birds: From the Albatross to the Yellowthroat (Dover, 2014). He is the co-creator of the MPNature.com website, which contains information about birds, plants and other aspects of the natural history at Monticello Park in Alexandria. Bill also makes nature videos, and his YouTube channel has had over half a million views.

Create Helpful Habitat with Native Planting, Virtual Learning

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Looking for a reason to get out into nature?  How about making your property more wildlife-friendly by adding plants native to Virginia?  Find out why this is important during this webinar hosted by Audubon Society of Northern Virginia’s Audubon at Home program. The webinar was recorded on Earth Day, Wednesday, April 22, 2020, and is also is in celebration of our partnership with Green Muslims during National Arab-American Heritage Month.

Watch the webinar! Master naturalists earn one hour of continuing education credit.

Learn about Spring Warblers on line through ASNV, April 15, 16, 22 and 23

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Get ready for spring by learning about the largest and most colorful family of birds who visit the Washington area. Warblers are some of the most challenging birds to identify – they are often small and fast moving with distinctive but easily confused calls and songs. This 4-part FREE Audubon Society of Northern Virginia webinar will help you learn warbler plumages, behaviors and vocalizations. Each webinar will start at 7 p.m. and last about an hour. 

Instructor: Bill Young is a writer who lives in Arlington. He is the author of The Fascination of Birds: From the Albatross to the Yellowthroat (Dover, 2014). He is the co-creator of the MPNature.com website, which contains information about birds, plants and other aspects of the natural history at Monticello Park in Alexandria. Bill also makes nature videos, and his YouTube channel has had over half a million views.

Class 1 – Plumage (Wednesday, April 15)
Learn about the appearance of the 30+ species of wood warblers who visit during the spring.

Class 2 – Behavior (Thursday, April 16)
Learn about the behavior of the 30+ species of wood warblers who visit during the spring.

Class 3 – Vocalizations Part 1 (Wednesday, April 22)
Most warblers are heard before they are seen. Learn how to identify their vocalizations so that you will be better able to find them in the field.

Class 4 – Vocalizations Part 2 (Thursday, April 23)
Most warblers are heard before they are seen. Learn how to identify their vocalizations so that you will be better able to find them in the field.

The series was recorded and can be accessed here.

Spring Warblers, Mar. 30th and April 1st–CANCELED! All ASNV programs through April 30th are canceled or rescheduled

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Alexandria Country Day School
2400 Russell Road, Alexandria VA
Monday, 30 March and Wednesday, 1 April 2020
7 – 9:30 pm
$40 ASNV members; $45 nonmembers

Get ready for spring by learning about the largest and most colorful family of birds who visit the Washington area. Presented by Audubon Society of Northern Virginia.

Class 1 – Plumage and Behavior (March 30th)
Learn about the appearance and behavior of the 30+ species of wood warblers who visit during the spring.

Class 2 – Vocalizations (April 1st)
Most warblers are heard before they are seen. Learn how to identify their vocalizations so that you will be better able to find them in the field.

Instructor: Bill Young is a writer who lives in Arlington. He is the author of “The Fascination of Birds: From the Albatross to the Yellowthroat” (Dover, 2014). He is the co-creator of the MPNature.com website, which contains information about birds, plants, and other aspects of the natural history at Monticello Park in Alexandria. Bill also makes nature videos, and his YouTube channel has had close to a half a million views.

Register here.

Ornithology Topics: Avian Biology, Spring Session (The Study of Birds)

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National Wildlife Federation
11100 Wildlife Center Drive, Reston, VA 20190
Tuesdays, 24 March – 5 May 2020
7 – 9 pm
Cost: $250 ASNV members, $275 non-members

Join Dr. Chris Haney for a new class, “Ornithology Topics: Avian Biology, Spring Session.” There is no prerequisite for this course and it does not repeat the Audubon Society of Northern Virginia’s fall session of Ornithology but offers all new material.

This course is designed and presented at an introductory, university level in 6 parts, with each classroom session 2 hours long. Ornithology Topics: Avian Biology will feature major underpinnings to ornithology within the fundamental context of U.S. national history. Topics covered in Part 2 of this class will encompass: bird song; avian diet and foraging; mate selection and social behaviors of birds; breeding biology (incubation, chick-rearing, post-natal care); bird populations; and avian conservation and sustainable management. Instructional presentations will include PowerPoint slides, auditory or video supplements, and some in-class participatory exercises. Each night’s classroom lecture will be made available to all participants in PDF format by the following day.

Required textbook: Manual of Ornithology: Avian Structure and Function, 1993, Procter and Lynch, ISBN-10: 0300076193

Optional textbook: Handbook of Bird Biology (Cornell Lab of Ornithology), 3rd edition, 2016, Lovette and Fitzpatrick, ISBN-10: 1118291050

Recommended supplement: The National Geographic Society’s Field Guide to the Birds of America, The Sibley Guide to Birds, or a similar guide for field identification

Register here.