Snipe Hunting

Have you been the recipient of a snipe hunt? A practical joke in existence since the mid 1800’s where naivety is not your friend. The unsuspecting individual is sent out…at night no less…armed with a bag or pillowcase to catch an imaginary creature called a snipe. Left alone in the night, the target of the practical joke realizes they have been duped. Only its not imaginary!

It seems many new to birding are familiar with the case of the “imaginary” snipe. When we introduced some new birders to an area where the Wilson’s snipe would likely be found, they exclaimed that they didn’t think there was such a thing as a snipe. Well there is! And a beautiful, elusive bird it is.

The Wilson’s snipe is a stocky shorebird with a very long straight bill, about the size of a robin. It is very cryptically patterned with brown and buffy colored stripes along the back and a brown streaked and spotted chest. It is perfectly camouflaged in its habitat of muddy pond edges or damp fields with thick vegetation. Unless they move or you get right up close to them as they flush up and away, you’d likely never see them and even when they do, it is quick and then they seem to disappear into the grass.

They forage by probing their long bills into the soft ground searching for earthworms and other invertebrates moving up and down slowly like a sewing machine. The bill is flexible allowing them to slurp up small prey without removing their bill from the soil. The location of the eyes are set far back so it can see well behind them when their head is down to avoid potential predators.

Wilson’s snipe build their nest on the ground with the female only tending the nest and nestlings. A cool fact however is that once fledged, the parents split up, the female departs with the youngest while the male departs with the oldest with no further contact.

So, don’t let anyone fool you about “snipe hunting”. You really can go out and find them!

Kettles over Mahogany Rock

This past weekend is historically the peak migration time frame for Broad-winged hawks over Mahogany Rock in Alleghany County, NC.  So…BRDC staff and volunteers spent Saturday through Monday looking up! We were not disappointed.

Saturday was cloudy and cold and sitting (or standing) looking up into the sky for 7 hours is not for everyone. For those who love it though, the chance to see the mass migration of Broad-winged hawks is worth it. Unfortunately, we were only presented with around 13 Broad-winged hawks along with a couple of other raptors. With the predicted improvement in the weather for Sunday, everyone left looking forward to the sunshine, warmth, and another chance!

Sunday was indeed a better day with 1,413 Broad-winged hawks showing up over a couple of hours. Several large kettles circled above us (only visible with binoculars as they were so high) before souring away to Central and South America. Monday however was spectacular!

There were a couple of 300-600 bird kettles early in the day but around 12:30 pm, they showed up in mass! In a matter of minutes around 1,900 Broad-wings came up over the tree line and just kept coming; some coming down low enough for identification with the unaided eye! By the end of the day, we had 3,140 Broad-winged hawks recorded for the Hawk Migration Hawk Watch data bank.

Huge kettle over Mahogany Rock (photo credit Allen Boynton)

Along with the Broad-wings, Bald eagle, Merlin, Peregrin falcon, Osprey, Red-tailed and Red-shouldered hawks, American kestrel, Copper’s hawk, and Sharp-shinned hawks were seen.

Official Count for September

Many thanks to the many counters and observers this weekend! Special thanks to Allen Boynton, Harrol Blevins, and Bill English for your time, dedication, and expertise!

Youth HBSP Birding Expedition

Huntington Beach State Park (HBSP) hosts some of the best winter birding in South Carolina, and was the destination for our recent youth birding expedition. Eight youth joined guide Allen Boynton and BRDC staff for a whirlwind weekend of migratory waterfowl and shorebirds.

Along the way, our bird-loving executive director, Aaron Floyd, had us take a detour to an area with recent sightings of the red-cockaded woodpecker, a rarity. Sending a message with an exact location ahead to the parent of one of the kids we were picking up en route, we hoped to meet him at the site where this bird had been reportedly seen. Sure enough, Strummer sent word that he had located the bird and had it in his sights…to hurry up and get here before dark. Minding our speed, we made it just in time for the whole gang to see this wonderful bird! A great start to the weekend.

Since our little detour had us a little late, we pulled over in a safe location and had dinner along the way, arriving at HBSP campground after dark. We set up tents by moonlight and headlamps, and crashed for the night while visions of birdies carried us till light.

The morning was met with hot chocolate to warm us and French toast and bacon to fill us. We met the day head-on in search of birds, beginning at the duck ponds and then the marshes and causeways that bring in the wading birds. There were herons, kingfishers, egrets, sparrows, grebes, pelicans, a few ducks, and cormorants. After lunch, we hit the beach and headed toward the jetty. Here, we saw the shore and ocean birds that prefer the sand and sea. Loons, grebes, gulls, and sandpipers filled the lenses while shells and sea creatures filled our hands. We made it back to camp just before dark and ready for supper! I’m not sure the kids know this, but they put in over 8 miles of walking in search of these birds.

After dinner and a dessert by campfire, we ventured out to see if we could get a glimpse of an owl. With the moon so bright, we could definitely see them, but only got to hear one…the call of a great-horned owl. We returned to camp for sleep. Morning brought hopes of finding more species in a different section of the park.

It was another beautiful sunny day, so after breakfast we checked the ponds again for ducks. We had gadwalls, grebes, teals, and buffleheads. A walk through the maritime forest got us a great view of a northern parula, very rare for this time of year, and an orange-crowned warbler too! Several species were added to our growing list before we had to depart for the drive home. The total for the weekend was 77 species and 827 individual birds seen. Amazing!

Many thanks for our guides Aaron and Allen, for the parents who took strange detours and for getting their kids to us, and especially for such a great bunch of kids who love nature as we do! Please enjoy some of the weekends photos!

Birding Burke's

Per usual, the weather was cool and damp, but that had no bearing on the birds or the company when ten of us traveled the approximately 10-mile radius of the high elevation limestone valley known as Burke’s Garden. The reason for our February visit? Birds. And raptors in particular. Burke’s Garden never disappoints.

Following a cup of coffee at Maddie’s Place, we hit the road. During the morning half-loop, we got two of our key species: rough-legged hawk and red-headed woodpecker. Numerous other species were seen, including downy woodpeckers, northern flickers, yellow-bellied sapsuckers, kingfishers, a northern harrier, and an eastern meadowlark.

After refueling at Maddie’s Place once again with hearty soup and sandwiches, we set out to conquer the remaining half of Burke’s Garden. Eagles dominated the afternoon species with both the bald and golden being seen! We met another birding group that directed us to the an opportunity to catch sight of the elusive snipe (which we got!) along with several more common species, such as tufted titmice, Carolina chickadees, blue jays, bluebirds, juncos, crows, ravens, and goldfinches. We also caught a glimpse of a male northern harrier!

What we missed were the ducks! Overall, it was a stellar birding trip with 30 species accounts and 774 total individual birds.

Birds of a Feather

Birders are passionate about birds. Age plays no factor here. From 9 to 99, they love them all and will sometimes go to great lengths to see them. The campers at BRDC’s Ornithology Camp were tough! It was cold (for June) and the days were long but nary a complaint came from a one of them. They were on a mission to see as many species (mostly new ones) as they could in our time together.

We visited multiple habitats where a diverse number of birds could be seen. It’s that life list. A list of all the species one has seen. Everyone added birds to their list! We managed to hear and view nearly 80 species from hummingbirds to bald eagles. Not only did they observe birds all day each day, but we listened for and saw them at night too. We viewed the Center’s resident screech owl and attempted to hear a Northern saw-whet owl.

This camp was the epitome of all that is BRDC. We explored an array of habitats, discovered new birds, and shared it with the world. As rain entered the forecast and our day, we sought shelter in the cottage at the Center. We connected to eBird as citizen scientists and documented our findings in the Virginia Breeding Bird Atlas. Did I mention that they also observed all birds for breeding activity? Well they did that too! It was not just “I see hummingbirds!”, it was “Oh…they are building a nest!” For every species seen, our ornithology campers also noted any type of breeding behavior, be it nest building, food gathering, or singing.

This was an amazing bunch of passionate, knowledgeable young people. We all learned from one another and shared that information lovingly and cheerfully. Our feathered friends are in good hands.

A big THANK YOU shout out to Allen Boynton, Katie Cordle, and Aaron Floyd for all their help during this very special camp!

Summer Day Camps

For the last two weeks, BRDC staff and interns have been sharing the Blue Ridge with the kids of Grayson, Smyth and Washington Counties.

Explorers Camp and Prehistoric Cultures Camp with Fairview Elementary, Prehistoric Cultures and Highland Games Camps with Baywood Elementary and our very own Discovery Day camp in Konnarock have filled our days with excitement and FUN!

The kids at these camps have joined us on explorations in the fields of ornithology, entomology, geology, herpetology, dendrology and stream ecology. They have traveled to new places, used tools and equipment of a naturalist and experienced the wonders of the outdoors. And this is just the beginning as our camps continue throughout the summer.

January Programs with Grayson County Public Schools

Blue Ridge Discovery Center shared two programs with 1st and 5th graders in Grayson County. Reaching five schools and seven classes in each grade. 

The 1st-grade K-2 Reading program enlisted our very own Didelphis virginiana, the only marsupial of North America. After reading, "There is an Opossum in my Backyard", the students colored, cut and pasted together their own opossum to hang around the room. We discussed all the reasons this mammal is so special and needs protecting. As one of our guides so fondly declares; "The opossum is a true superhero among animals!"

The 5th graders and the Natural Heritage Program focused on adaptations. We focused on birds, in particular, identifying many of our winter birds and learning the various ways they adapt to survive the harsh winter. Using technology to aid in identifying and sharing data about the birds in our communities, students are able to share what is going on with true Ornithologists and see the data they are helping generate as citizen scientists. Sibleys, Merlin ID, and eBird were used to demonstrate how accessible bird information can be. We viewed the eBird website and logged in to share birds we might see while watching a feeder during winter.  Using these tools, students learn the importance of this information and strengthen their relationship with nature which leads to stewardship.

2018 Summer Camp registration is now open!

We are excited to announce our 2018 Summer Camps. Online registration is now open!

Blue Ridge Discovery Center has put together six exciting camps for next summer, including backpacking, fly fishing, kayaking, ornithology, and two discovery day camps. Even though each of these camps originates with different subjects of focus, they are all ultimately gateways to exploring the rich natural history of the Blue Ridge. There is nothing more powerful than spending time outdoors with mentors who can connect you to the wonders of nature.

ORNITHOLOGY CAMP
$355 (Members) / $395 (Non-members)
Wednesday-Saturday, June 6-9
4 days / 3 nights
Ages 9-13

NEW RIVER EXPEDITION
$355 (Members) / $395 (Non-members) 
Wednesday-Saturday, July 11-14
4 days / 3 nights
Ages 11-15

WILDERNESS DISCOVERY
$455 (Members) / $495 (Non-members)
Monday-Friday, Jun 30 - August 3
5 days / 4 nights
Ages 11-15

FLY FISHING
$795 (Members) / $755 (Non-members)
Tuesday-Saturday, July 24-28
5 days / 6 nights
Ages 11-15

DISCOVERY DAY CAMP: KONNAROCK
$50
Monday-Friday, June 11-15
8:30am-3:30pm daily
5 Days including lunch and snacks
Ages 6-10

DISCOVERY DAY CAMP: GALAX
$50
Monday-Friday, June 25-29
8:30am-3:30pm daily
5 Days including lunch and snacks
Ages 6-10

We are keeping the limits of the camps low to provide an engaging experience for the kids and allow us to take flexible trips in the BRDC van. With this slate of camps we have the opportunity to serve 64 kids throughout the summer. We need your help getting the word out and connecting us with youth who could really benefit from our camps! Tell your friends and family about BRDC and get them signed up! You can sign-up and learn more on our webpage.

Of those 64 kids, we aim to offer 22 full scholarships to our camps, opening the door for everyone in our community to participate in these opportunities. If your child has a real drive to attend camp or your family has a financial limitation, we encourage you to apply for one of our scholarships at: Summer Camp Scholarships 

Raptors and Kids Circle Burkes Garden

It's not often that the weather at Burkes garden cooperates in February. It can be downright nasty! Saturday was a little windy but fairly comfortable so the students of Galax Middle School experienced a real treat.

Five eager and energetic students climbed into the van and began the trip to Burkes Garden, Virginia. It is referred to by many as "God's Thumbprint".  Based on its aerial and topographic view, Burkes Garden is an oval bowl completely surrounded by Garden Mountain. It was formed by the collapse of limestone caverns below and is now a very fertile valley; the highest in Virginia at over 3000 ft! But this is not all that makes this place special. It just happens to be a hot spot for raptors on their migratory path South for the winter.

The kids are very excited to be on an adventure to such a special and unique spot. At one of our rest stops, our birding guide for the day, Amy Renfranz, from Grandfather Mountain helped them understand and use their field guides by asking questions and having them find that particular species. It was a great exercise and gave the students confidence. Back in the van and up the curvy road we went!

Our first stop was around a large pond at the entrance of the community. It was a great place to get out and learn how to use the binoculars. There were geese on the pond, so it made for easy viewing. The students were naturals and all could find the birds in their binoculars. We were about to head back to the van when one spotted three birds soaring up high. There was a question..."Hey, what is that?" All the binoculars went up to witness three different raptors. Two were fairly obvious, but the third was a really special raptor. One was a Bald Eagle, the second was a Red-tailed Hawk and the third, identified as it swooped down really close, was a Rough-legged Hawk! At their first stop and within a half hour, we had seen spectacular birds! We were all so excited for what the rest of the day would reveal.

Observing a Bald Eagle on the nest

Continuing on through the valley, we turned off the main road onto a side road following fellow birders. All of a sudden the cars pulled over and out we all jumped again. The buzz and excitement were palpable as the bird soaring up above was a Golden Eagle! 

We spent the entire day, riding and stopping and jumping out of the van in search of new and exciting species of birds. Allie was the scribe for the trip keeping a vigilant record of all species found. They found 22 different species of birds and became confident birders. More importantly, they had a great time! 

Many thanks to Cindy Joines-Huff for getting that van, Coach Barkley for handling that vehicle so well and tolerating all the "wait!...stop!....back-up!...pull over!" all day, and especially, Amy Renfranz! You were such a pleasure to have along both educating and entertaining us all day.