Volume 29 Issue 4, Fall 2024

by Kim Strader, Volunteer Coordinator

Honesty, integrity, hard work, and … a ‘can-do’ attitude. You could call that ‘can-do’ attitude optimism, but it is not Pollyannaish optimism. Rather, it is a ‘we’ll figure it out’ type of mentality.” Dylan Taylor (chairman and CEO of Voyager Space) must have had someone like Anne Ellis, our Annual Butterfly Count coordinator, in mind when he said this.

Anne Ellis has been leading Loudoun Wildlife’s Annual Butterfly Count since 2017. Photo by Kim Strader.

Anne has been volunteering with Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy since 2017, when she became the butterfly count coordinator. Each year, she orchestrates the placement of around 100 volunteers into teams that visit assigned locations within 12 count circles spanning the county. Participant experience ranges from people who have never counted or identified butterflies to those who have been doing so for years. Anne is diligent about placing beginning “butterfliers” with experts while painstakingly taking into account where they live and if they are participating all day or half of the day for this one-day-a-year count. Somehow, Anne figures all of this out!

Prior to Butterfly Count Day, Anne coordinates and guides butterfly walks around the county, helping people learn how to identify them. After the count, she meticulously compiles the data from the 12 count circles to submit to the North American Butterfly Association.

In addition to her work with the Annual Butterfly Count, Anne also participates in our Bluebird Nestbox Monitoring Program on a trail at Sweet Run State Park. She is a Banshee Reeks Master Naturalist member and also volunteers at Sweet Run State Park.

We are grateful for all that Anne does to help at Loudoun Wildlife. Her witty, poetic sense of humor, along with her can-do attitude, makes her a favorite to work with for staff and volunteers alike.

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