Use your Birding Skills for Science

Photo: Prairie Warbler, Dixie Sommers

Want to bird for science?  Consider participating in the Northern Virginia Bird Survey, ASNV’s long-running survey of breeding birds in our region!

We are busy getting ready for the 2022 survey which will take place in June. We are contacting volunteers from prior surveys and recruiting additional volunteers.  

Acadian Flycatcher, Dixie Sommers

The NVBS is a point-count survey. The survey team counts all birds heard and seen during a 5-minute period at each assigned point. Because this survey relies mostly on auditory observation, we need survey participants who can recognize our common birds by sound and can hear a range of calls, including our sometimes difficult to hear species such as Cedar Waxwings. Surveyors should also be able to identify birds by sight with the use of binoculars. If you are an experienced birder and want to participate, please contact Elizabeth Krone at citizenscience@audubonva.org by May 23, 2022.

The NVBS started in 1994 and provides information on trends for breeding birds in our area. Many of these species have declined over the last 25 years, although some have fared well and others have recovered from population crashes, such as Bald Eagles and American Crows. Continuing to document these birds helps us understand the state of the birds in Northern Virginia and inform decisions about habitat protection. 

Wood Thrush, Dixie Sommers

ASNV Resumes the Northern Virginia Bird Survey with New Coordinator

Photo: Camilla Cerea

Remember the Northern Virginia Bird Survey (NVBS), ASNV’s long-running survey of breeding birds in our region? We are busy getting ready for the 2021 survey, after cancelling last year’s data collection because of the pandemic. 

We are very happy to have Elizabeth Krone as the NVBS coordinator. You may remember Elizabeth from her assistance on this year’s Winter Waterfowl Count. She brings to the NVBS experience as a field biologist in Hawai’i on the endangered Palila, as well as work in our region on Bald Eagle and other avian monitoring projects, and in wetlands and wildlife habitat. Elizabeth has a master’s degree in environmental and resource policy from the George Washington University, and a biology degree from Towson University.  

To prepare for the 2021 survey, which will take place in June, we are contacting volunteers from prior surveys, recruiting additional volunteers as needed, organizing and distributing the survey materials and training our volunteers. If you are an experienced birder and want to help, watch for announcements on our website and social media, or contact Elizabeth at citizenscience@audubonva.org. 

The NVBS started in 1994 and provides information on trends for breeding birds in our area. Many of these species have declined over the last 25 years, although some have fared well and others have recovered from population crashes, such as Bald Eagles and American Crows. Continuing to document these birds helps us understand the state of the birds in Northern Virginia and informs decisions about habitat protection. 

What Happened to the Northern Virginia Bird Survey?

Photo: Red-winged Blackbird Chicks, Dixie Sommers

ASNV has held the Northern Virginia Bird Survey every June since 1994, providing a picture of the trends over 25 years on the number and species of breeding birds in our area. 

Sadly, we could not run the 2020 survey because of the pandemic. The survey requires obtaining permits from several parks and refuges, which were closed when we would have been requesting permits. We would have been organizing teams of counters when pandemic conditions for June were unknown. 

We plan to resume the survey in 2021. If you are interested in becoming a survey counter, please contact us. We are looking for birders with some experience who can identify our common Northern Virginia birds by both sight and sound, and who have good hearing. 

ASNV thanks Carolyn Williams, who has retired from the survey, for her many years of managing, counting, recording and other work on the survey.