A Letter to Our Members
Mouth of Kane's Creek, Mason Neck Park Photo Archive
As the sun slowly sank into Belmont Bay, a full moon rose behind us, lighting our way down Kane’s Creek. We paddled our kayaks back to the launch site with only the splash of our paddles to disturb the quiet of the evening.
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Ospreys and the Menhaden Question
Osprey, Lewis Scharpf/Audubon Photography Awards
It’s always a joy when Osprey return to northern Virginia in the spring to breed after their winters in the Southern Hemisphere, but reports of increased nest failure are cause for concern.
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Bird Banding at Occoquan Bay NWR
Northern Cardinal with bander, Glenda Booth
During spring migration’s height, in April and May, from 6 a.m. to noon, volunteers catch and band birds in the Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge near Marumsco Creek three mornings a week, a project undertaken there every spring since 2001, except 2020, the “covid year.”
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Attracting Hummingbirds (and convincing them to stay awhile)
Ruby-throated Hummingbird with Scarlet Beebalm, Sarah Holtz
With forethought and some planning, you can have a clear and frequent view of these 3.5-ounce, dive-bombing, backward-flying, shimmering, drama-obsessed, and Ferrari-engine-powered birds. If that sounds like fun, here are some tips to attract them now and get them to linger for the season.
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New Study Documents Trends Using eBird Data
Eastern Meadowlark, Sheri Douse/Audubon Photography Awards
It’s difficult to be optimistic about the future of North American birds in the face of a relentless avalanche of news about national policy changes that can challenge conservation efforts.
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A Closer Look: Nature All Around Us
Green Mantidfly, Judy Gallagher
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.
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Wildlife Sanctuary Almanac: Pollinators
Sweat Bee with pollen, Judy Gallagher
Pollinators are important to our daily lives. Without insects, around 80 percent of flowering plants would not be pollinated.
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Upcoming Classes and Events
We have some exciting classes and events coming up, both virtually and in-person! Click any event to learn more and register. You can also check our calendar for our full schedule of events.
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Birds in Watercolor: Belted Kingfisher with Ronna Fujisawa
Belted Kingfisher, Ronna Fujisawa
In this online class, open to all levels of watercolor painters, students will paint a portrait of a Belted Kingfisher, learning how to mix neutral colors, as well as techniques of layering colors to create various feather patterns. Your instructor, Ronna Fujisawa of Salty Water Art, will be your guide through the step-by-step process of painting.
When: Wednesday, June 4, 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
Where: Virtual
Members: $25
Non-members: $35
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Alliance Afternoon: Raptor Reproduction and Nesting with Live Birds
Barred Owls, Jeffrey Dyke/Audubon Photography Awards
Join us Sunday, June 8, for a brief annual meeting followed by a program, “Raptor Reproduction and Nesting,” featuring live birds! We will gather informally starting at 2:30 PM in the cafeteria of the National Wildlife Federation Building, 11100 Wildlife Center Drive, in Reston. We welcome you to bring snacks and drinks to share. We’ll have a short business meeting at 3:00 PM and celebrate our Birdathon winners. Our main program, featuring Secret Garden Birds and Bees, will begin at 3:25 PM.
When: Sunday, June 8, 2:30 PM - 4:30 PM
Where: National Wildlife Federation Building, 11100 Wildlife Center Drive, Reston, VA 20190
Fee: FREE
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Raptors of Northern Virginia with Randy Streufert
American Kestrel, Randy Streufert
This free program features images of most raptors in this area, identification tips, and some interesting behavior aspects of some of the species. Randy Streufert has been photographing wildlife in northern Virginia since 1973 when he moved to this area from California.
When: Wednesday, June 11, 7:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Where: Virtual
Fee: FREE
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Butterfly Identification with Larry Meade
Variegated Fritillary, David Illig
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. Join Larry Meade to learn how to identify many common species in our area. Participants are encouraged to register for the North American Butterfly Association (NABA) count on June 28.
When: Wednesday, June 18, 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
Where: Virtual
Fee: FREE
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Bird Walks
Birding, Camila Cerea
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Check our Bird Walks page for upcoming walks! Registration is no longer required for NVBA-sponsored walks.
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Weekly Bird Word
Chipping Sparrow, Troy Bynum
Our new feature, the Weekly Bird Word, introduces a new bird-related vocabulary word each week.
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Conservation Counts
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Rusty Moran
Join Jim Waggener in his ongoing natural resource surveys at two of Northern Virginia's best birding spots. Surveys alternate between Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge and Meadowood Special Recreation Management Area on Mason Neck.
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National Audubon Society Action Network
The National Audubon Society invites all Auduboners to join its action network. When you subscribe to the Society’s newsletter, you'll receive alerts about important congressional actions and information about how you can affect legislation by contacting your members of Congress.
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Too many emails? Now you can update your profile to let us know how often you'd like to receive email communications from NVBA.
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