Photo: Oak Spring Wall, Robin Duska
Winning Birdathon teams traveled out to the Oak Spring Garden Foundation in Upperville, Virginia on September 17 to view some rare books, including a John James Audubon folio, and the grounds of the estate of Rachel "Bunny" Mellon, who designed the White House Rose Garden. The 700 acres of Foundation grounds were certified as an Audubon at Home Wildlife Sanctuary on July 25 by AAH County Coordinator Leslie Paulson. OSGF Project Development Coordinator T.J. Sherman, who led the BIrdathon teams around the grounds, indicated that nearly all AAH Sanctuary Species have been seen on the property.
Species are selected as AAH Sanctuary Species because they breed in Northern Virginia, have a reasonable chance of being found on and/or attracted to a suburban property, are considered a beneficial and/or desirable species, and are a population in decline OR at risk of being in decline (in the Northern Virginia area) due to typical suburban land use issues (pesticides, habitat destruction, etc.).