President's Corner: December 2022

Photo: Fiery Skipper on Blue Mistflower, Libby Lyons

Elizabeth “Libby” Lyons

I was thrilled last month when our eighth-of-an-acre property was certified by ASNV’s Audubon at Home program as a “Wildlife Sanctuary.” This means that I had seen at least 10 “sanctuary species” on our property and signed the “Healthy Yard Pledge” to do things such as increase native plants, reduce our lawn size, remove invasive species, reduce pesticides and fertilizers, make our windows bird-safe, and keep our cats indoors.

Cooper’s Hawk, Libby Lyons

I like AAH’s “Let the animals decide” approach because the wildlife, by its presence, signals that the property is good habitat! Not surprisingly, many of my “sanctuary species” were birds. With good tree cover in the neighborhood and several birdfeeders, we see a wealth of birdlife – wrens, warblers, woodpeckers, waxwings, and more. This year we saw even more hummingbirds and goldfinches, which were attracted to our native plants. And our feeders, because they attract plump mourning doves, also brought in a Cooper’s Hawk! More than once we found a ghoulish splash of dove feathers under the feeders. But the Cooper’s Hawk counts as a “sanctuary species,” and no habitat is complete without predators (such as hawks) as well as prey (such as mourning doves).

Eligible “sanctuary species” are not just birds. Many are insects on which birds rely for food and which are wildlife worthy of protection in their own right.  Among the insect “sanctuary species” that I counted were loads of monarch and American Lady butterflies, small iridescent native bees, several types of bumblebees, lady beetles, and lightning bugs.

Swamp Milkweed Leaf Beetle on Butterfly Weed, Libby Lyons

Fiery Skipper on Blue Mistflower, Libby Lyons

Why did the diversity of insects shoot up this summer? Insects thrive where native plants abound and I had just increased the number and variety of native plants in my yard. I’m fortunate to have friends far ahead of me on this native yard journey who graciously dug up dozens of plants (e.g., asters, mountain mint, violet, jewelweed, and wild ginger) that I transplanted into my gardens. With my Plant NOVA Natives’ guide to Native Plants for Northern Virginia in hand, I also purchased beebalm, butterfly weed, Joe-pyeweed, cardinal flower, and red chokeberry. I removed invasive species that offer little wildlife benefit and can do serious harm: a non-native Wisteria was replaced with a native coral honeysuckle and out came the English Ivy (which climbs and kills trees, creating a safety hazard) and the Nandina (whose berries are poisonous to waxwings), although not without a fight, as my son can attest!

This experience rekindled my love of gardening, but now I garden for nature, as well as for aesthetic pleasure. I found the whole AAH process simple and I saw wildlife impact within months. This gives me hope that small private landowners can make a difference. And my years of teaching ecology tell me that larger patches of such wildlife habitat should have a bigger impact and be more resilient. So I am spreading the word – and the plants! I collected seeds from two dozen of my native species and will overwinter the seeds outside so they germinate in the spring, when I will share the plants with my neighbors. I alerted a new neighbor to the county’s native tree give-away and we both planted saplings. I started working with the church next door. They are keen to try the AAH approach as a neighborly act that aligns with their faith’s environmental stewardship. They recently had a workday at the church, and we removed invasive plants and identified native species that they can save and transplant. I foresee that these efforts, focused in a cluster, will transform more of the neighborhood into a healthy sanctuary for humans and wildlife for years to come. And I hope we can encourage more clusters of AAH Wildlife Sanctuaries across Northern Virginia!

President's Corner: November 2022

Photo: King Rail, Joshua Galicki/Audubon Photography Awards

Elizabeth “Libby” Lyons

King Rail, Joshua Galicki/Audubon Photography Awards

It seems all too often that a new report documents significant losses in bird biodiversity in the U.S. and around the world. The October release of the State of the Birds 2022 report for the U.S. (SOTB) continued that trend, but it also provided reason for hope linked to an increased sense of urgency.

Yes, the report documented widespread losses of birds across almost all habitats. It included a long list of species that have lost 50 percent of their population within last 50 years, and a list of 70 species at “the tipping point,” that is, in danger of declining by another 50 percent from their remaining population in the next 50 years. There was also some good news: waterfowl populations have increased over the past few decades.

Why do I say the report provided hope when most of the news seems so dire?

One significant cause for hope is that the increase in waterfowl populations is a model for how interventions for conservation, such as through wetland protection, can help bird populations rebound.

More importantly, the report laid out positive and proactive approaches in the form of science-driven solutions that engage communities in bird conservation at the local level. These are exactly the kinds of approaches ASNV is exploring as bird conservation takes on new urgency. We will need your help to implement these solutions!

ASNV’s strong tradition of citizen science, coupled with the scientific expertise on our Board and in our community, can serve as a foundation for developing science-based conservation solutions.

One of ASNV’s greatest assets is its cadre of dedicated citizen scientists who have spent tens of thousands of hours collecting data on biodiversity in our region. We are now digitizing and analyzing this data. We have data from regional surveys:

• The Northern Virginia Bird Survey has counted birds at over 500 points across northern Virginia for almost 30 years.

• The Occoquan Bay area surveys have monitored bird, butterfly, dragonfly, damselfly, and plant species year-round for over 30 years.

To these we can add regional information from broader-based surveys: 40 years of Christmas Bird Counts, numerous Winter Waterfowl Counts, World Migratory Bird Counts, Backyard Bird Counts, and the North American Butterfly Association’s spring, summer, and fall butterfly counts. And, of course, there is eBird data entered by so many of our members and others over the last 10 years. 

We also can use information from SOTB; from the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation’s Natural Heritage Program; from National Audubon Society’s Survival by Degrees online tool, which estimates the potential impact of climate change on North American bird species; and from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife’s list of Birds of Conservation Concern (2021) that need focused, conservation efforts. Another new resource is the Bird Migration Explorer, just released this September by the National Audubon Society and 10 partners, that provides data on the migration pathways and obstacles faced by birds that migrate through our area. See this month’s article about this remarkable tool and how it can provide information on individual species in our area.

Our scientific team, which includes ASNV Vice-president Greg Butcher, a member of the SOTB Science Committee, can use these datasets and tools to identify which species in northern Virginia are at greatest risk and how and where we might work to mitigate threats and advocate for protection. 

But plans alone are not sufficient. We must turn data and plans into action with lasting impact. SOTB noted that bird conservation offered bold opportunities for locally led, voluntary efforts. Such community efforts are essential if the positive effect of conservation initiatives is to be sustainable. I see the potential for ASNV to combine a proactive, science-based approach with strong community engagement as the greatest source of hope and optimism stemming from this report. In fact, Community Engagement is ASNV’s newest committee. ASNV is exploring how it might use activities such as nature education and Audubon at Home to make neighborhoods and communities the drivers for sustainable conservation projects. Such community-linked conservation efforts could provide our volunteers the opportunity to make a positive difference for birds, but also for broader protection of plants and other animals, for climate resiliency, for environmental justice, and for enhanced quality of life for all communities in northern Virginia.

Stay tuned as we develop local solutions that we will need your help to make happen!

October 2022

Photo: Snow Geese, Noah Reiter/Audubon Photography Awards

Elizabeth “Libby” Lyons

ASNV is emerging from the pandemic re-energized and looking to boost its impact! Essential to this strategy is increasing our community engagement. We want to serve the wide range of communities in Northern Virginia more fully by providing them more opportunities to learn about and enjoy wildlife and nature. We also want to enable more community members to contribute to local conservation as volunteers.

So, last month the ASNV Board of Directors agreed to form a new Community Engagement Committee. Its charge is to reach out to our communities to recruit new members and volunteers and to coordinate how we work with those volunteers, involving them in the full array of ASNV activities, from education to advocacy to citizen science to conservation. 

We recognize that Northern Virginia is a very special place that is filled with amazingly talented and passionate people, many of whom might like to use their skills to help protect birds and other wildlife. The chair of the new Community Engagement Committee is Stacey Remick-Simkins, herself a long-time volunteer in environmental and faith communities. She described the opportunity this way, “Because so many people are passionate about wildlife and nature, we have the chance to match their passion with community conservation and education activities. This allows that passion to grow and deliver tremendous benefits.”

Looking out several months, we plan to start bolstering our community engagement activities by addressing the growing and often unmet need for environmental information and nature outings from groups such as libraries, homeschoolers, elderly citizen centers, and boys’ and girls’ clubs. We hope to tap the enthusiasm and broad expertise of Northern Virginia residents by recruiting them, training them as volunteers, developing outreach and education materials for them, and sending them out across the region. And looking even further ahead, as we strengthen our ability to manage volunteers and have engaged many groups across Northern Virginia, we plan to focus on finding volunteers for ASNV community conservation projects that combine the strengths of our various programs.

We have an immediate need for volunteers:

1. We are seeking board members and volunteers to serve on ASNV’s committees. ASNV’s work is done by its committees, which are Adult Education, Advocacy, Audubon at Home, Citizen Science, Communications, Community Engagement, Conservation, Diversity and Inclusion, Finance, Fundraising, and Youth Education. We welcome inquiries from folks with a wide range of backgrounds.

2. We hope to identify at least a few volunteers to serve on the board or committees who have fundraising experience or a commitment to helping us with such efforts.

3. We also are looking for people who have experience managing volunteers. We are hoping to hire a part-time volunteer coordinator and would like to have this person work with a team of folks on our volunteer effort.

Please contact me if you are interested in volunteering to serve on the board or any of the committees, or to help us with fundraising or managing volunteers. And STAY TUNED because we will soon be recruiting volunteers more regularly for many of our activities! 

September 2022

Photo: Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Kristine Olson/Audubon Photography Awards

Elizabeth “Libby” Lyons

I recently came across the question online, “What is the point of birdwatching?” This reminded me that when I started to bird regularly I enjoyed hearing birder Chris Cooper list his seven pleasures of birdwatching in the 2012 documentary, "Birders: the Central Park Effect." The link allows you to watch it for free.

Cooper compiled his list to explain his passion to his non-birding friends and began with his love of birds’ beauty. He went on to cite the joys of being in a natural setting, of scientific discovery, and of hunting without bloodshed. Next, he professed joy in solving the puzzle of a bird’s identity especially when glimpsing only parts of it, and of adding another item to his collection (that is, his life-list). He called his final pleasure the “unicorn effect,” the almost surreal joy of finally seeing a species of bird in real life that he had long studied via books, film, and audio.

I remember thinking at the time that I also enjoyed the almost infinite richness and novelty of birding.  At one instant I witness birds that might at other times or places vary in appearance, voice, and/or behavior. I also found great joy in the social aspects of birding, for example, helping someone find a bird in a large leafy tree, teaching someone a bird’s telltale call and seeing their face light up when they heard it, and enjoying the camaraderie of others who unabashedly share the same passion. And I knew then as I know now that birdwatching was a form of escapism that can transport me to a world where birds are the sole focus, leaving behind and putting in perspective any cares and troubles. 

During the pandemic I can attest that birding was essential to my mental health; millions of others, some new to the activity, clearly felt the same way. In recent years, as I used eBird, participated in Christmas Bird Counts, and worked to digitize ASNV’s citizen science surveys, I found a new appreciation for birdwatching. My efforts take on added meaning because they can help reveal larger patterns that emerge only from thousands of observations that can collectively inform conservation, education, and advocacy.

So, you might ask, what was the answer to that question I found online? The answer, from John White, highlighted the intimate connection to nature that birdwatching provides people, and so invests them with a stake in conservation. 

In my work with ASNV I also value birdwatching as a way to build community. The love of birds and nature is a unifying force that can bring us together to conserve them, especially as we recognize the vulnerability of wild things and wild lands around us. I hope ASNV can nurture our common enjoyment of nature via our programs and activities. Equally important, I hope we can tap into those shared protective urges and convert the support of volunteers’ passion, time, and donations into effective conservation actions.

In that vein, let’s please remember that we all can make a difference during the next two months as songbirds are migrating southward – please turn off as many lights as possible at night! See Audubon’s website for more information on its Lights Out program. 

And if you have other reasons that you love birdwatching, please let me know!

Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Kristine Olson/Audubon Photography Awards