NVBA NEWS BLOG
Welcome to the blog for Northern Virginia Bird Alliance, a wealth of resources about northern Virginia birds, wildlife, habitat conservation and restoration, native plants, wildlife-friendly gardening, advocacy and more.
Learn About Warblers Online
Watch ASNV’s pre-recorded four-part program about warblers on our Online Programs page.
Photo: Prairie Warbler, Jesse Gordon/Audubon Photography Awards
The spring migration of warblers through Northern Virginia is just beginning. Would you like to learn more about how to identify them through their plumage, songs and behavior? You can watch ASNV’s pre-recorded four-part program about warblers here. The instructor is Bill Young, the co-creator of MPNature, a website about the birds and plants of Monticello Park, Arlington – a magnet for warblers each spring.
ASNV Online Programs
We’re now offering most of our classes and workshops online due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.
Photo: Blackburnian Warbler, Shirley Donald/Audubon Photography Awards
We’re now offering most of our classes and workshops online due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. We will provide recordings of as many of these events as possible and make them available here, both to keep our members and community engaged while staying at home and to develop an ongoing collection of educational resources. Check back often, as we will add videos and resources as we receive them.
Upcoming Workshops and Classes
Join us online! Read on to learn about some of the virtual classes, workshops and events we have planned.
Photo: Ruby-throated Hummingbird, David Shipper/Audubon Photography Awards
Join us online!
Celebrate Pollinator Week!
The World of Pollinators Workshop – Webinar, with Larry Cartwright
When: June 25, 7 PM
FREE, but space is limited and registration is required. WAITLIST ONLY
To be added to the waitlist, click here
There is a wide diversity of pollinators in the world. Most of us are aware of bees and hummingbirds as major pollinators, but there are many other insect and mammal species that distribute pollen from one plant to another to support fertilization. Some plants co-evolved with specific pollinator species and rely solely on them to ensure reproduction. We will discuss how this process is accomplished and what threats face many pollinator species today.
Instructor: Larry Cartwright has been a nature lover for most of his life and is fond of creatures that fly, especially birds and bats. Larry leads the Dyke Marsh Breeding Bird Survey for the National Park Service and the Winter Waterfowl Survey for the Audubon Society of Northern Virginia and compiles the Washington D.C. Christmas Bird Count sponsored by the Audubon Naturalist Society. He is also a participant in a five-year project to update the Virginia Breeding Bird Atlas. Larry has received several awards from scientific and conservation-based organizations, including the Virginia Society of Ornithology’s Jackson M. Abbott Conservation Award for 2013.
Coming Soon: Ecological Landscaping – Webinar
When: TBD
Fee: TBD
Coming Soon!
Participants will learn to apply ecological principles to creating backyard habitats and restoring ecosystems. Focus will be on looking not only at the needs of animals, but working with nature and using local ecosystems as examples for selecting species, building soils and providing natural structure.
This webinar is open to all. It is especially relevant for volunteer Audubon at Home Ambassadors, and will augment basic training for Virginia Master Naturalists and Master Gardeners and qualifies for advanced training hours. It is recommended that attendees have some familiarity with the book, "Bringing Nature Home" by Douglas Tallamy and the ASNV publication "The Nature of Change" which can be downloaded here.
Instructor: Charles Smith
ASNV Online Programs
Blackburnian Warbler, Shirley Donald/Audubon Photography Awards
We’re now offering most of our classes and workshops online due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. We will provide recordings of as many of these events as possible and make them available here, both to keep our members and community engaged while staying at home and to develop an ongoing collection of educational resources. Check back often, as we will add videos and resources as we receive them.
Also Coming Soon - Virtual Field Trips!
Keep your eyes on your inbox and our website. We’ll be offering field trips from near and far! Weekday events will include visits to birding hot spots from around the world including Florida, Midway, Columbia and Ecuador just to name a few!
Spring Warblers Now Online
If you missed Bill Young’s popular four-part series on Spring Warblers, you can now view the first two sessions on our website here.
Photo: Black-throated Blue Warbler, Lorraine Minns/Audubon Photography Awards
If you missed Bill Young’s popular four-part series on Spring Warblers, you can now view the first two sessions on our website here. 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 webinar presented by Bill Young will help you learn warbler plumages and behaviors.