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Dates: June every year. Teams conduct point counts from June 1 - 30.
Locations: Multiples sites in the Northern Virginia Area
Contact: ASNV at
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or (703) 256-6895 Conducted annually since 1994, this comprehensive, long-term survey of breeding birds takes place at over 600 points in more than 25 designated areas, including many parks and other conservation sites, throughout the region. A standardized point count methodology is used to closely monitor and assess bird populations and trends. Join your fellow birders! The same points are surveyed every year by teams of volunteers, consisting of an experienced birder and usually one or more assistants. The teams count the birds they see or hear at each site for five minutes. This methodology is especially valuable for discerning trends. On average, more than 50 individual volunteers participate each year, and nearly 250 individuals have participated since the survey began. Not surprisingly, species such as warblers, quail, bluebirds, meadowlarks, and wood ducks have declined as forests, fields, and wetlands have been eliminated by development. Northern Bobwhites, for example, are rapidly disappearing from our area. In Lorton (one of the survey areas) no Bobwhites have been counted since 2005. On the other hand, some species—such as gulls, pigeons, starlings, house finches, and house sparrow—have been able to adapt well to suburban neighborhoods and thrive.
The compiled data now consists of over 73,000 records. The data is shared with resource managers and others who oversee public lands. The data were analyzed and trends published in a book entitled, Birds in Northern Virginia - Documenting the Nature of Change (ASNV, 2006) - download a PDF of this 60-page book here. Many thanks to Carolyn Williams, Jim Waggener, Carl Kikuchi and numerous other volunteers for the countless hours devoted to this program.
2008: 2007: 2006: · 2006 NVBS summary · 2006 NVBS Species Distribution · 2006 NVBS Species Abundance
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