News and updates from the Blue Ridge Conservation Alliance.
We need more climate education in our schools. A 2016 survey of science teachers found that, on average, American students are getting just one or two hours of climate education per year. In the schools where climate change is part of the curriculum – only 60 percent percent of schools in the country – three […]
It was her first time traveling to San Francisco. She is 68 years old and worked since she was just a child. As an eldest daughter of 6 siblings, mostly boys, her role was to support her mother, the matriarch of the family, on all the house chores you can name. As soon as she […]
By Linda Millington Christine Perdue and I led a Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy-sponsored walk at a private farm in Upperville, Virginia. The property owner mows late in the season so the fields are perfect nesting habitat for the threatened grassland species Bobolinks, which have been breeding there in large numbers for years. Bobolinks were plentiful chasing […]
Dear Friends of Friends, Recently we lost someone who has been at the core of Friends’work over the past 5+ years. Jed Shilling, recently retired Friends Board member, died of complications of ALS in California where he had moved in December to be close to his daughters and their families. As the spouse of Jane Pratt, […]
The Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy sponsored one of its many free birds walks at the Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve in central Loudoun on Saturday, May 11. Because 21 people showed up for the walk we split into groups, one led by Jane Yocom and Dori Rhodes assisted by Bryan Henson and one led by Mary Ann Good and Joe […]
Volume 24 Issue 2, Spring 2019 by Kim StraderVolunteer coordinator The Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy is fortunate to have many dedicated and passionate volunteers, so choosing one to honor as Volunteer of the Quarter can be difficult. This quarter was no exception, but one event and one person seemed to stand out — Wine for Wildlife […]
Volume 24 Issue 2, Spring 2019 In celebration of Morven Park’s 50th anniversary of opening to the public, park staff launched an innovative AnniversaTree campaign aimed at replenishing and supplementing the beautiful native trees that are essential elements of Morven Park’s picturesque landscape. Throughout the rolling hills of Morven Park, hundreds of trees and plantings […]
Volume 24 Issue 2, Spring 2019by Anne Owen, Audubon at Home AmbassadorIn the late summer of 2016, within four weeks of moving to their new property, Abby and Marc Seeley asked Audubon at Home (AAH) for a visit to their 11 acres in rural Western Loudoun. The acreage is mostly wooded, but even so, it […]
Volume 24 Issue 2, Spring 2019 by Michael Myers and Dave Manning Native habitat is the cornerstone of Loudoun County’s wildlife, providing a year-round food source as well as shelter for raising young and protection from predators. Native flora is also a critical component in water quality. Trees, shrubs, and grasses along local waterways provide […]
Volume 24 Issue 2, Spring 2019 Review by Steve Allen I have some bad news and some good news. As you read this review, several dozen to several hundred species of Mycobacterium (the genus that includes the pathogens which cause tuberculosis and leprosy) are living in your house. And that’s just in the showerhead you […]
