Author Talk: Birds of the Tropical Andes with Michael Parr
Michael Parr, president of American Bird Conservancy and author of several bird guides and articles, discusses his newest book, Birds of the Tropical Andes.
Photo: Birds of the Tropical Andes, courtesy of Princeton University Press
Original program date: September 24, 2025
Michael Parr, president of American Bird Conservancy and author of several bird guides and articles, discusses his newest book, Birds of the Tropical Andes. This gorgeous photographic guide is dedicated to the birds of the tropical Andes that contribute to the abundance of biodiversity in the region.
This event is part of NVBA's Hispanic Heritage Month programming. While free to attend, any donations will go directly to supporting supporting new and diverse birding programmin in Northern Virginia!
Fall Butterfly Identification with Larry Meade
Brush up on your butterfly identification skills! Larry Meade will walk us through the common species and help us differentiate some of the trickier look-a-like species.
Photo: Variegated Fritillary, David Illig
Original program date: September 9, 2025
The sight of butterflies fluttering around on a warm day is one of the most iconic signs of summer, but they can still be found well into the fall months. These beautiful insects usually live for only a few weeks as adults, but they make quite an impression while they are in their full glory. There is a large variety of butterfly species in our area. Larry Meade will walk us through the common species and help us differentiate some of the trickier look-a-like species.
A good way to prepare this program is to review Butterflies of the Mid-Atlantic, a Field Guide, by Robert Blakney and Judy Gallagher. Judy Gallagher is a member of the ASNV Board, and the field guide is available for purchase on the NVBA website.
Larry Meade is president of the Northern Virginia Bird Club and a member of the NVBA Adult Education Committee. He is a frequent bird walk leader and has been involved in numerous Audubon Christmas Bird Counts and NABA Butterfly Counts. He is the compiler of the Alexandria Circle NABA Butterfly Count
2025 Backyard Bird ID Workshop - Get Ready for Birdathon at Home!
Join us for an exciting backyard bird identification workshop, where we’ll dive into the fascinating world of local birds and seasonal visitors!
Photo: Eastern Towhee, Calli Cook/Audubon Photography Awards
Original program date: March 20, 2025
Join us for an exciting backyard bird identification workshop, where we’ll dive into the fascinating world of local birds and seasonal visitors! Whether you’re watching from your window, patio, or garden, you’ll gain the confidence to identify and appreciate the birds around you.
During this workshop, we’ll cover:
Common backyard bird species you’re likely to see year-round
Migratory warblers that might pass through your yard this Spring
Essential birding tools—from field guides to apps and binoculars
How to use Merlin to identify unfamiliar birds
How to use eBird to report birds you observe
Tips for creating a team and participating in Birdathon
This event is perfect for those looking to compete in the Backyard Birdathon category of Birdathon, our Spring Fundraiser, where you create a team to count as many unique species as you can in one day!
This is also a great opportunity for Wildlife Sanctuary Program participants to brush up on how to identify the Sanctuary Species that visit their yards. You need to document 10 sanctuary species to get your certification! Board Member Betsy Martin will join us to speak about that program and how we can all make our yards friendlier to birds.
Ospreys in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed with Joanie Millward
Did you know that the osprey is one of the greatest environmental success stories? Learn more about this fish-eating bird of prey with Joanie Millward, founder and Executive Director of the Virginia Osprey Foundation.
Photo: Osprey, Doug German/Audubon Photography Awards
Original program date: March 11, 2025
Ospreys are a fish-eating bird of prey that can be found all over the world. Did you know that the osprey is one of the greatest environmental success stories? Osprey numbers crashed in the early 1950s to 1970s, when pesticides poisoned the birds and thinned their eggshells. Along the coast between New York City and Boston, for example, about 90% of breeding pairs disappeared. Osprey studies provided key support for wider legal arguments against the use of persistent pesticides. Learn more about their history, the challenges this species faces today in the Chesapeake Watershed and how you can help.
Joanie Millward is the founder and Executive Director of the Virginia Osprey Foundation. The Virginia Osprey Foundation based in Colonial Beach, VA is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization dedicated to the conservation, protection, and stewardship of the majestic Osprey species and their fragile habitats throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia. Our mission is to foster a sustainable environment where Ospreys thrive, inspiring a harmonious coexistence between humans and wildlife.
2025 Ducks and Waterfowl Identification with Greg Butcher
Join Greg Butcher, NVBA board member and retired migratory species coordinator for the U.S. Forest Service International Programs, for an introduction to waterfowl identification.
Photo: Green-winged Teal, James Fatemi/Audubon Photography Awards
Original program date: January 16, 2025
Join Greg Butcher, NVBA board member and retired migratory species coordinator for the U.S. Forest Service International Programs, for an introduction to waterfowl identification. Get to know many of the species that winter in the open waters of our region. You’ll learn how to tell a Bufflehead from a Hooded Merganser, and, you’ll learn the features (and hear the call) of the beautiful Tundra Swans that winter in Northern Virginia. Strategies will include identification by shape and color pattern.
Project FeederWatch Workshop with Greg Butcher
Greg Butcher covers a bit of Project FeederWatch history, its purpose, tips for identifying birds, and the protocols to be followed while counting.
Photo: Yelllow-bellied Sapsucker, Pamela Brown/Audubon Photography Awards
Original program date: November 21, 2024
From the comfort of your home, you simply count the winter birds that visit your feeders and report your data to Cornell Lab of Ornithology.
This FREE workshop covers a bit of Project FeederWatch history, its purpose, tips for identifying birds, and the protocols to be followed while counting.
Greg Butcher, formerly on the Board of NVBA, served as the Migratory Species Coordinator for the U.S. Forest Service’s International Programs, and also worked at the National Audubon Society, American Birding Association, Partners in Flight, and Cornell Lab of Ornithology. He also served as editor of Birder’s World magazine. He now leads birding tours around the world and volunteers on the NVBA Conservation Committee.
2024 Ducks and Waterfowl Identification with Greg Butcher
Join Greg Butcher for the 2024 edition of this wonderful introduction to waterfowl identification.
Photo: Green-winged Teals, James Fatemi/Audubon Photography Awards
Original program date: January 25, 2024
Join Greg Butcher, ASNV board member and retired migratory species coordinator for the U.S. Forest Service International Programs, for an introduction to waterfowl identification. Get to know many of the species that winter in the open waters of our region. You’ll learn how to tell a Bufflehead from a Hooded Merganser, and, you’ll learn the features (and hear the call) of the beautiful Tundra Swans that winter in Northern Virginia. Strategies will include identification by shape and color pattern.
Winter Bird Feeding Workshop with Greg Butcher
Greg Butcher offers tips about increasing the number and variety of birds that visit your backyard this winter.
Photo: Northern Cardinal, Alexis Hayes
Original program date: November 29, 2023
Greg Butcher offers tips about increasing the number and variety of birds that visit your backyard this winter. In addition, he introduces you to Project FeederWatch, a program of the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology that allows you and your family to contribute to science.
Greg Butcher is a Ph.D. ornithologist and former ASNV board member. Now retired, Greg worked for the U.S. Forest Service, the National Audubon Society, American Birding Association, Partners in Flight, Birder’s World magazine, and Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Greg is a lively and informative public speaker and interpreter for bird conservation and ecology worldwide.
Competitive Birding and Birdathon
Join us for a webinar with ornithologist Greg Butcher to learn some strategies of competitive birding right here in Northern Virginia.
Photo: Birding, Laura McDonald
Original program date: March 30, 2023
Competitive birding is using one’s birding skills to try to identify the most bird species possible in a set period, such as over a year. For example, Tiffany Kersten saw 726 different species of birds in 2022, beating a previous record. The 2011 movie Big Year, featuring Jack Black, is a great depiction of three competitive birdwatchers on a year-long birding adventure.
Join us for a webinar with ornithologist Greg Butcher to learn some strategies of competitive birding right here in Northern Virginia. You will learn the best places to go to see the most species, how to time your big day to hit peak migration numbers, what to consider when forming your team, and more!
Also, we are excited to have youth birder Maxwell Julius join us to tell us about his experience doing Birdathon last year and his tips to maximize your list.
Project FeederWatch with Greg Butcher
This workshop will cover a bit of Project FeederWatch history, its purpose, tips for identifying birds, and the protocols to be followed while counting.
Photo: Eastern Bluebirds, Herbert Fechter/Audubon Photography Awards
Original program date: November 22, 2022
This workshop will cover a bit of Project FeederWatch history, its purpose, tips for identifying birds, and the protocols to be followed while counting.
Greg Butcher is a Ph.D. ornithologist and ASNV board member. In addition to the U.S. Forest Service, Greg has worked for the National Audubon Society, American Birding Association, Partners in Flight, Birder’s World magazine, and Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Greg is a lively and informative public speaker and interpreter for bird conservation and ecology worldwide.
World Migratory Bird Day Workshop: Lights Out for Birds
In the workshop, Greg Butcher shares simple steps that everyone can take to reduce light pollution and help birds.
Photo: Miguel Eduardo Matta Pereira / World Migratory Bird Day
Original program date: May 5, 2022
World Migratory Bird Day (WMBD) is May 14, 2022. This year’s campaign highlights the impact of light pollution on migratory birds with the theme “Dim the Lights for Birds at Night.” Join us on May 5 for a WMBD virtual workshop led by Greg Butcher, ASNV Vice-President and Migratory Species Coordinator for U.S. Forest Service International Programs.
In the workshop, Greg shares simple steps that everyone can take to reduce light pollution and help birds. Most bird migration in the Americas occurs at night, with birds using stars and the moon to guide them. Urban and suburban lights increasingly outshine or lessen natural light sources, confusing the migrating birds. That confusion can slow or misdirect birds in the middle of an already strenuous journey. People are the source of this light pollution and people can take action to reduce it.
Great Backyard Bird Count Workshop
This workshop covers the history of GBBC, its purpose, tips for identifying birds, and the protocols to be followed while counting.
Photo: Tufted Titmouse and Carolina Chickadee, Gary Mueller/GBBC
Original program date: February 3, 2022
Launched in 1998 by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and National Audubon Society, the Great Backyard Bird Count was the first online citizen-science project to collect data on wild birds and to display results in near real-time.
Now, hundreds of thousands of people, all ages and walks of life worldwide, join the four-day count each February to create an annual snapshot of the distribution and abundance of birds.
This workshop covers the history of GBBC, its purpose, tips for identifying birds, and the protocols to be followed while counting.
2022 Winter Waterfowl Workshop
Join Greg Butcher, ASNV board member and migratory species coordinator for US Forest Service International Programs, for an introduction to waterfowl identification.
Photo: Green-winged Teals, James Fatemi/Audubon Photography Awards
Original program date: January 27, 2022
Join Greg Butcher, ASNV board member and migratory species coordinator for US Forest Service International Programs, for an introduction to waterfowl identification. Get to know many of the species that winter in the open waters of our region. You’ll learn how to tell a Bufflehead from a Hooded Merganser, and, with luck, you will see the beautiful Tundra Swans that winter in our area. Strategies will include identification by shape and color pattern.