Program and Event Descriptions:

AMPHIBIAN MONITORING PROGRAM: END OF SEASON CELEBRATION ― Sunday, October 4, 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.  Registration Required. As our amphibian friends make preparations for their winter slumbers, let’s gather together for an end-of-season celebration and pot-luck at the Blue Ridge Center for Environmental Stewardship.  After sharing a late lunch, we’ll talk informally about the different monitoring experiences we had out along our frog call routes and at our sites, look at the data as well as aerial maps and other interesting information that’s been gathered thus far through the program, and talk through our classes and field trips for next year. We can then go out on a short walk through the trails to take a look at some of those vernal pools and other wetlands we visited in the spring to see what they look like in the fall and talk about the different species that used them over the course of the year. Meet at the Visitor Center off of Rte 671, a little north of the Neersville Volunteer Fire Station and on the west side of the road.  Registration is required so we can plan accordingly. Registration required. Please Sign Up online. Questions, contact Nicole Hamilton at nhamilton@loudounwildlife.org. 

BIRDING BANSHEE ― Saturday, October 10, 8:00 a.m. Join the Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy and the Friends of Banshee Reeks at the Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve for the monthly bird walk. Because of its rich and varied habitat, this part of the county is a birding hot spot. Please bring binoculars. Questions: contact Joe Coleman at 540-554-2542 or jcoleman@loudounwildlife.org.

VISIT US AT STERLINGFEST ― Saturday, October 10 (Rain date, Sunday, October 11).  We'll have our booth set up at Sterlingfest, ready to greet you!  Some of the materials that we plan to have on hand include our LWC Coloring Book for kids, our Gardening for Wildlife Plant List, information on volunteer opportunities plus much more! Sterlingfest is held at the Sterling Park on Commerce Street and Enterprise Street, with lots of booths hosted by vendors & non-profits. There is a separate "Children's Area" with games and rides as well as children vendors (who make their own stuff to sell). There are a couple of stages with entertainment. For more information, visit http://www.sterlingfoundation.org/SterlingFest.html

NATURE BADGE SUPPORT FOR JUNIOR GIRL SCOUTS AND BEAR/WEBELOS CUB SCOUTS ― Sunday, October 11, at the Chapter House of the Izaak Walton League of Loudoun.  Registration Closed - Full. Volunteer naturalists from the Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy will offer instructional walks and talks to assist scouts in meeting several requirements for the following badges:  1) Junior Girl Scouts “Wildlife” and “Outdoor Surroundings, 2) Cub Scouts Bear Achievement 5 “Sharing Your World with Wildlife,” and 3) Webelos “Forester and Naturalist.” The program is free but space is limited.  Two sessions will be available:  12:00-1:30 for Bear/Webelos Cub Scouts and 2:00 -3:30 for Junior Girl Scouts.  Scouts must be accompanied by their leaders. Questions, contact Paul Miller at 540-882-3112. 

MYSTERIES OF MONARCH MIGRATION ― Tuesday, October 13, 7:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. at the Cascades Library. Registration Requested. Join us for a wonderful discussion of Monarch butterflies, their lifecycle and their amazing migration, which is recognized as an endangered phenomena due to habitat loss here and in their wintering grounds in Mexico. We’ll start the evening with the film, On the Wings of the Monarch. This 45 minute film provides excellent information on the habitats of Monarch butterflies and their development from egg to caterpillar. It talks about different Monarch programs across the country, butterfly tagging efforts, theories on migration, wonderful views of their overwintering sites in Mexico and their return home.  We’ll then talk about Monarch Waystations and the milkweed plants that you can plant in your garden now in preparation for next spring.  Monarch Waystation kits will be available for those interested in starting up a garden this fall that will be ready for next spring. Handouts will be available to learn more about Monarch butterflies. Cascades Library is located at 21030 Whitfield Place Potomac Falls, VA. Registration is requested so we can plan accordingly. Please Sign Up online. Questions, contact Nicole Hamilton at nhamilton@loudounwildlife.org. 

MID-WEEK BIRD WALK AT CLAUDE MOORE PARK IN EASTERN LOUDOUN ― Wednesday, October 14, 9:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. Join the Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy on a mid-week bird walk. We will investigate some of the many diverse natural areas that comprise this beautiful park. Admission to the park is free, there is ample parking, and comfort stations are available. Claude Moore Park is located at 21544 Vestal’s Gap Rd. in Sterling Va. If you own binoculars, please bring them. Questions: contact Bill Brown at 703-437-6277 or billbr50@msn.com.

FAMILY STREAM DAY ― Saturday, October 17, 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at Claude Moore Park. The 8th annual "From Your Backyards to the Chesapeake Bay". Come and experience the many ways you can help keep Loudoun's Streams clean by smart landscaping, stormwater and erosion control, water conservation, stream assessment and monitoring, and more. Rain or shine. Location: Claude Moore Park is located at 21544 Vestal’s Gap Rd. in Sterling Va. Questions: contact Gem Bingol at 703-431-6941 or gbingol@pecva.org.

VISIT US AT THE ALDIE HARVEST FESTIVAL ― Saturday, October 17, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. We'll have our fair booth set up with lots of free information and materials for you - bring us your wildlife questions and enter our raffle. We'll also have our LWC hats, tshirts and lapel pins on sale. In coming to the fair, you can rediscover the simple pleasures of village life in rural Virginia.   See grain grinding demonstrations, blacksmith forging and the Waterford Cloggers at Aldie Mill. Traditional crafts will be offered by vendors at the Mill.  Enjoy music, food, antiques, collectibles and children's activities throughout the village along with a dose of Civil War history. For more information, check the Village of Aldie's website: http://www.villageofaldie.com/harvestfest.htm

SUNDAY IN THE PRESERVE ― Sunday, October 18, 1:00 p.m. Join a naturalist from the Friends of Banshee Reeks and the Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy for a free informal, family walk around the preserve. Search for the many natural wonders that make this such a special place. For information call the Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve at 703-669-0316.

BIRDING THE BLUE RIDGE CENTER ― Saturday, October 24, 8:00 a.m. On the fourth Saturday of each month (except December) the Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy leads a free bird walk at the Blue Ridge Center for Environmental Stewardship (BRCES). This beautiful 900-acre preserve is located on Harpers Ferry Road, Rt. 671, in northwestern Loudoun County. Only a few miles south of Harpers Ferry and the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers, the property includes meadows in the valley and heavily forested slopes on the Blue Ridge. Meet at the visitor center. The Blue Ridge Center is located just north of Neersville, at 11611 Harpers Ferry Road (Rt 671). Detailed directions can be found on the website, www.brces.org. Questions: contact Joe Coleman at 540-554-2542 or jcoleman@loudounwildlife.org.

JOURNEY SOUTH BUTTERFLY WORKSHOP ― CANCELLED - Saturday, October 24, 1:30 p.m. – 3:30 pm. Registration Required. Join us at Banshee Reeks in the Annex classroom for this great kids program. We’ll begin with a short video on the lifecycle of the monarch butterfly and the great migration that they are making as they leave Virginia in September and October and fly all the way to Mexico, arriving there in November, to spend the winter.  After watching the video, we’ll talk about where our monarch butterflies are going by looking at the map Then, we’ll get our hands dirty with doing a bit of crafting to make our own set of monarch butterflies. The butterflies that the kids make will be sent to children in Michoacan, Mexico where our real monarchs are overwintering. The children in Mexico protect the butterflies all winter and send them back north in the spring. United by the monarch butterfly, children across North America learn lessons of conservation and ambassadorship. As part of the program, and we’ll take a short walk to a stand of milkweed to look for Monarch butterflies so that the kids can see live Monarchs and wish them well on their travels. We’ll have a follow-up program next spring as the symbolic monarch butterflies are sent back here. Crafting supplies will be provided and each child will go home with a monarch butterfly sticker and card as a reminder of the symbolic migration. Prior to the workshop, participants will be provided with a couple of easy handouts for parents to walk through with their kids. Registration is required. Please Sign Up online. Questions, contact Nicole Hamilton at nhamilton@loudounwildlife.org.

IDENTIFYING HAWKS: A CLASS AND A FIELD TRIP TO WAGGONER’S GAP, PA. October 27 and November 1. Registration Required. Each fall hawks migrate south along the Blue Ridge. On Tuesday, October 27, Liam McGranaghan, a master falconer, licensed bander of raptors, and educator, will teach a 7:00 evening class on how to identify hawks and other birds of prey in the field. On Sunday, November 1, we will take a field trip to Waggoner’s Gap in PA, about a 2.5 hour drive. Waggoner’s Gap is one of the premier hawk-watching sites in our area, and if the weather cooperates, we should see a wide diversity of birds of prey, including Golden Eagles! While the field trip will be free and one does not need to take the class to go on the field trip, there is a fee of $10 ($15 for non-members) for the class. Registration required ($10/member or $15/non-member fee for the class) – Please Sign Up online or contact Laura Weidner at lweidner@loudounwildlife.org to sign up. Laura will follow up with you regarding the fee.