Judy Gallagher is an NVBA board member and a regular surveyor of local wildlife who also captures photos of what she sees, in particular the less common species.

Pollinators are important to our daily lives. Without insects, around 80 percent of flowering plants would not be pollinated.

Our new feature, the Weekly Bird Word, introduces a new bird-related vocabulary word each week.

The Board Birders started their Birdathon at 6:00 AM at Dyke Marsh Wildlife Preserve. Read about their Birdathon adventure and find out how many species they saw!

Now that it is spring, NVBA’s conservation work has gone into high gear and it is this work that has taken on new meaning for me.

Thanks to NVBA advocates’ and many others’ efforts, Virginia has a new law that requires, by January 1, 2027, retailers to conspicuously post “in proximity to each invasive plant display” signs indicating that a plant is invasive and “encouraging consumers to ask about alternatives.” 

It’s that time of year again: the days are longer, you have dirt under your fingernails from planting natives, and all across the region teams of people are birding for a good cause. 

Some history and background on a favorite birdwatching locale for many northern Virginians as Huntley Meadows celebrates its 50th year.

As Margaret Atwood once said, “In the spring, at the end of the day, you SHOULD smell like dirt.” It’s very good for us on so many levels.

I started birdwatching during my freshman year but was lucky enough to be living then in Zimbabwe, home to hundreds of species of birds, ranging from the tiniest sunbirds to the flightless guinea fowl and several species of elusive turacos.

Judy Gallagher is an NVBA board member and a regular surveyor of local wildlife who also captures photos of what she sees, in particular the less common species.

Have you taken steps to create bird habitat in your yard? Now is your chance to see the fruits (or rather, birds) of your labor by observing how many species visit your yard in a single day.

Our new feature, the Weekly Bird Word, introduces a new bird-related vocabulary word each week.

As spring transforms our northern Virginia landscape, millions of birds take to the skies in one of nature's most spectacular phenomena. This annual migration brings both opportunities for celebration through events like birdathons and responsibilities for ensuring that these travelers reach their destinations safely.

First, the bad news: The U.S North American Bird Conservation Initiative just released its State of the Birds 2025 report, and the birds with the most dire losses continue to be grassland birds, a 43% decline since 1970.

Avian influenza has been around for centuries in many strains, but the strain making the news as bird flu is a “highly pathogenic avian influenza,” caused by the H5N1 virus. It’s being found in both wild birds and domestic fowl and, less commonly, in mammals, even humans.

The spring migration for birds is happening NOW - from March 15 through May 31 our feathered friends are making their long journeys north. It is estimated that over 100 million birds fly over northern Virginia in the spring. Migration usually occurs at night, and many birds use the stars to navigate. 

There are more than 50 species to see and hear at this time of year. Most migrants pass through, but the Prairie Warbler, Setophaga discolor, breeds in northern Virginia. 

NVBA is pleased to announce that Deborah Hammer is the 2025 winner of our scholarship to attend "Sharing Nature: An Educator's Week" at Hog Island Audubon Camp in Maine this coming August.

Our woodlands and meadows are about to awaken and burst into a vibrant display of spring ephemerals, the transient native beauties we love to see, especially after the cold and snowy days of winter.