Photo: Red-shouldered Hawk, Evelyn Garcia/Audubon Photography Awards
Join us for a workshop or class! Here are a few of our upcoming offerings. Check our calendar often for updates.
Dark Skies: Lights Out for Migratory Birds
Snow Geese, USFWS Mountain-Prairie, CC BY 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
Did you know that most birds migrate at night? During spring migration, birds migrating at night are dependent on dark skies to keep their course as they move north to return to nesting grounds. Artificial light at night disorients migrating birds and can lead to devastating effects on flocks. Lights Out campaigns reduce the amount of artificial nighttime light and can help protect migratory birds. ASNV is joining with Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy to co-sponsor their in-person dark skies education event. Speakers from ASNV, Loudoun Wildlife, and Dark Sky Friends will discuss the amazing story of bird migration, the importance of dark skies and what Lights Out really means.
When: Wednesday, May 1, 2024, 7:00 - 9:00 PM
Where: Broadlands Community Center, 43004 Waxpool Road, Ashburn, VA 20148
Fee: FREE, but Registration is required
Ethnobotany and Floral Folklore with Alonso Abugattas
Alonso Abugattas
Ethnobotany is the study of how people relate to and use plants in their lives, be it for food, medicine, tools, and many other ways. Join Alongo Abugattas (The Capital Naturalist) to earn about plant folklore and how people here used locally native and commonly available plants in the past.
When: Thursday, May 16, 7:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Where: Virtual
Member ticket: $15
Non-member ticket: $25
The Basics of Bird Anatomy with Dr. Kathleen Hunt
Bird Guide Part 2, Chas. K. Reed, Public Domain
In this overview of bird anatomy, Dr. Kathleen Hunt from the Smithsonian-Mason School of Conservation will explain how a bird's body is put together and how it all works. Dr. Hunt will go over the visible features that are useful for birding identification, and then take a peek inside at some ingenious internal features like the lightweight skeleton and the avian air sac system. By the end of the class you may be envious of the birds’ design!
When: Monday, May 20, 7:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Where: Virtual
Member ticket: $15
Non-member ticket: $25
Audubon Afternoon and Annual Meeting: Raptor Senses and Abilities with Live Birds
Red-shouldered Hawk, Evelyn Garcia/Audubon Photography Awards
Join us Sunday, June 2, for a brief annual meeting followed by a program, “Raptor Senses and Abilities,” 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. At 3:00 PM we’ll have a brief Annual Meeting where we will elect officers and directors, followed by our main program at 3:15. Our friends from Secret Garden Bird and Bees will present another entertaining and informative program and give you a chance to meet their live hawks, owls, and a tiny falcon. You might even get to take a selfie!
When: Sunday, June 2, 2:30 PM - 4:30 PM
Where: National Wildlife Federation Building, 11100 Wildlife Center Drive, Reston, VA 20190
Fee: FREE
You can also join us for a Bird Walk, Natural Resource Survey or Butterfly and Dragonfly survey.
Online Programs
Many of our programs are offered online, and we will provide recordings of as many of these events as possible and make them available here. Check back often, as we will add videos and resources as we receive them. Please enjoy!