Many grassland birds, including Northern Bobwhites, Grasshopper Sparrows, Bobolinks, Eastern Meadowlarks, and Dickcissels, have experienced significant declines in recent years due to loss of habitat and changing agricultural practices, especially here in Loudoun County.
What You Can Do: If you live in a community where your HOA has a meadow area or if you are a large, or even moderate, landowner and don’t need your meadows for pasture or hay, please hold off on cutting them until later in the summer.
By doing this you will give the numerous birds that nest in tall grass an opportunity to nest and raise their young. Every year the young of these species are killed by unnecessary mowing. You don’t have to mow all that, especially every week. For more information on the native grasslands of Loudoun and the birds that you can help save, click here.