A Race Well Run – Post-season Update 2020
Leaves are turning gold and frost covers the grassy fields here in the mountains of southwest Virginia. Drab little Cape May and Tennessee Warblers flit through the tree lines, while streams of Common Nighthawks track southward through the river valleys. Read more…
Sniffing out the Late-Season Chicks
As the Atlas project wraps this final data collection season, we wanted to remind our volunteers that the time has come to dispense with regular use of breeding codes. Read more…
Fall Migration Approaches, Once Again…
Bringing an end to data collection for the second VA Breeding Bird Atlas project. The start of this year’s Fall migration season marks the final phase of our five-year VABBA2 journey. Read more…
The Early Movers
If you can believe it, we are now far enough into the latter portion of the breeding season that a few early migratory species are on the move. This means, we need to start adjusting how we code the early movers on Atlas checklists. Read more…
Late Season Progress Report…
A big final-season push is bringing interesting finds and spectacular statistics from across the state. Learn more about them below. Read more…
A nine-year-old’s interest in birding came suddenly. Introducing her to eBird led to tough talks about population decline—and atlasing for the VABBA2
It came seemingly out of nowhere: Last month, my nine-year-old daughter, Zoe, flung open my office door mid-workday and, in a fluster of excitement, announced she’d been “birdy watching” and seen “a Gray Catbird!” Read more…
Against the Odds: VABBA2 volunteers have rallied to make 2020 the most successful season for block closure yet—and it’s paying off.
This past spring, things were looking grim for the second Virginia Breeding Bird Atlas: COVID-19 was rampaging across the U.S. and stay-at-home orders had shut down the state. Read more…
A Day in the Life… Part 2!
College students Logan Anderson and Andrew Rapp spent two months camping and birding in remote areas for the VABBA2 and VABBA-PC. Read more…
A Day in the Life…
College-aged field technicians are gaining valuable professional experience working with the VABBA2—and having awesome adventures along the way. Read more…
Bob Epperson spent 30 years as a pro birder and now is helping KO priority blocks for the VABBA2.
Bob Epperson was uniquely qualified when the second Virginia Breeding Bird Atlas launched in 2016: He’d spent more than 30 years conducting avian surveys as a contract biological consultant for conservation organizations and agencies. Read more…
Celebrating Top Atlas Contributors from Around Virginia
While atlasing activities have been rather curtailed by covid-19, we still want to share some of the great stories and achievements to come out of our project so far. In that spirit, we’ll be continuing to push out Atlas stories and articles in the coming weeks. Read more…
Atlasing is a great way to exercise and maintain sanity – while still practicing good social distancing
“Birding is the perfect activity while practicing social distancing,” writes National Audubon Society associate editor, Andy McGlashen, in a recent op-ed addressing the global coronavirus pandemic. Read more…
The High-Points of Southwest Virginia
When aspiring naturalist and ecologist Cade Campbell turned 16, a driver’s license paired with his recent discovery of the VABBA2 to open a new world of ornithological adventure. Read more…
Volunteer Guidance for Final 2020 Field Season
Volunteer Guidance for the Final Season of the VABBA2 With some perseverance (and good weather), the VABBA2 can reach 100% priority block coverage, as well as set a Virginia record for block completion, in the final year of VA’s second breeding bird atlas project. Read more…
Summer Blockbusting Rallies – 2020!
The 2019 Atlas Rally Series was a big success—participants gathered tons of data and had a blast doing it. This season will bring new events and locations. Read more…
A Look Back at the 2019 Field Season
As we look ahead to the fifth and final field season of Virginia’s second breeding bird atlas, lets first look back at some highlights from the 2019 field season. If you clink on the image, you will be able to view and download our 2019 field summary report. Read more…
Winter Atlasing: Great-Horned Owls On CBC Routes
The time for Christmas Bird Counts is upon us and with it comes the first opportunity to document a breeding bird record for the FINAL Atlas field season. What species starts setting up breeding territories during the months of frigid temperatures, biting winds, sleet, and snow? Read more…
Natural Tunnel Rally Highlights
An interest in birds is often the gateway or companion to a fascination with all facets of the natural world. While many VA Atlas volunteers would describe themselves as primarily birders, others find an equal fascination for flowering plants, insects, and reptiles/amphibians,. Read more…
Making the Most of Mid-summer Atlasing
July has arrived with some of our hottest and often driest weeks of the summer. It is tempting to write off birding efforts at this time of year, but! While birds may sing less frequently, July is a very busy time for most breeding species. Read more…
Staunton River Rally Highlights
Best described as our most ‘rustic’ event of the summer, the Staunton River Blockbusting Rally included tent camping, a cedar bunkhouse, campfires, a darn good buffet dinner, and best of all, lots of breeding birds in priority blocks! Read more…
MVPs of the VABBA2, Part 2
Donna Mateski de Sanchez has singlehandedly completed nearly every priority block in Amherst County. Yet, she calls Atlasing her go-to form of relaxation. Read more…
Hungry Mother Rally Highlights
Fifteen volunteers converged on Hungry Mother State Park this past weekend for the 2nd VA BBA Blockbusting rally. Traveling from every region of the Commonwealth, volunteers included long-time veterans, newer recruits, state park employees, and Team Warbler. Read more…
VABBA2 Spotlight on Open Habitat: Shrublands
What do lightly-grazed pastures, powerline right-of-ways, and regenerating clear-cuts have in common? They are all examples of shrubland habitats here in Virginia. Shrublands are home to a wide variety of birds that to date are under-represented in the Atlas. Read more…
Rally in the Mountains: Natural Tunnel SP
Four months ago, Natural Tunnel State Park chief ranger of visitor experience, Rachel Blevins, knew little about the Virginia Breeding Bird Atlas—much less that its follow-up was about to enter the fourth of its five seasons. Read more…
High-Elevation Birding in SWVA
Little-known southwest Virginia peaks offer some of the East Coast’s most fantastic birding opportunities. And they’re dramatically under-Atlased. Read more…
MVPs of the VABBA2, Part 1
Diane Lepkowski was hesitant to join a bird club—yet doing so introduced her to a lifechanging passion. Atlasing for the VABBA2 has brought further opportunities and rewards to her birding journey. Read more…
Calling All Blockbusters to Southern VA!
The Tobacco Heritage Trail offers great Atlasing opportunities in one of the VABBA2’s most under-birded areas. To date, VABBA2 volunteers have logged more than 341,000 breeding codes and 3.2 million birds. Read more…
VWL makes the Commonwealth a template for grassland bird conservation
Grassland birds are among the most under-researched of North America’s avian species. Virginia Working Landscapes, a partner of the VABBA2, is making the Commonwealth a template for conservation. Read more…
New Weekend Blockbusting Rally Series
New Weekend Blockbusting Rally Series makes traveling to help with the VABBA2 easier than ever. We know many VABBA2 volunteers would love to help blockbust in under-birded priority blocks—but juggling busy lives often leaves little time for planning. Read more…
To Code or Not to Code?
This is a question we often find ourselves asking each spring, as residents birds get busy with their breeding activities and migratory birds begin moving through Virginia. The simplest way to address this question is to consult our handy Breeding Timeline Charts found on the Atl Read more…
Bringing the Atlas to Hungry Mother State Park
Hungry Mother State Park chief ranger of visitor experience, Tanya Hall, has been leading kids on interpretive wildlife experiences for years. Atlasing for the VABBA2 brought her walks to a whole new level. Read more…
Treasures in the Database
In October 2018, VABBA2 director Dr. Ashley Peele began the task of reviewing the year’s observations. Running stats for montane songbirds, Peele noticed something exciting. Read more…
Atlas Blockbusting Guide – 2019
What is blockbusting? This term is frequently used, but rarely explained in the context of breeding bird atlases. Simply put, blockbusting refers to the practice of surveying one or more Priority blocks over the course of several days or a weekend. Read more…
Welcome to Rockbridge’s Community of Birders
Check out this great Atlas advice article contributed by Kurt Gaskill, a volunteer coordinator for Atlas region 2. He shares some Atlas tips gleaned not just from his participation in the VABBA2, but also from his experiences in the first VA Breeding Bird Atlas. Read more…
How You Can Contribute to the Breeding Bird Atlas While Out Hunting or Fishing
Attention Virginia’s sportsmen and women: we need your bird observations! Read more…
Common Atlas Coding Boo-Boos
Check out this great Atlas advice article contributed by Kurt Gaskill, a volunteer coordinator for Atlas region 2. He shares some Atlas tips gleaned not just from his participation in the VABBA2, but also from his experiences in the first VA Breeding Bird Atlas. Read more…
VABBA2 Season Three Summary: Halfway Home
In 2018, we waved hello and goodbye to the halfway point for this project and are now blazing ahead toward the finish line in 2020. Read more…
The Early Bird: Great Horned Owls
This weekend marks the start of Christmas Bird Count (CBC) season for many counties in Virginia, which also means that we’ve arrived at the start of the breeding season for one of our most impressive Virginia species, the Great-Horned Owl (GHOW). Read more…
VABBA2 Season Three Summary: Halfway Home
In 2018, we waved hello and goodbye to the halfway point for this project and are now blazing ahead toward the finish line in 2020. As we look toward year four, we will be pushing out new resources to help guide volunteers for our last two field seasons. Read more…
Time for Review
As we continue to wind down our third breeding season, we encourage Atlas volunteers to take the time for a little self-evaluation of this season’s data. Read more…
A Historical Perspective
Veteran BBA volunteer Mike Stinson reflects on atlasing in the era before eBird. Imagine working on a breeding bird atlas in a pre-internet world where The Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s eBird platform amounts to little more than a sci-fi pipedream. Read more…
Data Guys
A team of dedicated eBird reviewers is working behind the scenes to ensure the accuracy of the eBird database in Virginia. Spreadsheet wizard Rob Bielawski is helping to revolutionize the data filtering process. Read more…
Sister Projects
For two years, Virginia Tech Conservation Management Institute technician Garrett Rhyne scoured far southwest Virginia collecting point-count data for breeding birds. Noticing the lack of information on the Swainson’s warbler, he’s now conducting a study of his own. Read more…
Young Birders of Virginia
When Monticello Bird Club member Eve Gaige met Gabriel Mapel, he was 11-years-old. Bonding over a mutual love of birds, the two founded what is now Virginia’s largest and most active youth birding club. Read more…
Blockbusting Duo
Since discovering birding in 2014, husband and wife super-duo Guy and Susan Babineau have become some of the VABBA2’s most active supporters. These days, most weekends find them slipping out of bed and hitting the road before dawn. Read more…
What is the deal with priority blocks?
Atlas volunteers may have wondered why the Breeding Bird Atlas project focuses primarily on Priority Blocks for breeding bird survey effort. This is a fair thing to wonder about! Read more…
Top Atlas Locations: South-central and Western Piedmont
For adventurous birders, Region 9 has mountains, rivers and a ton of history. In its northwestern-most regions, follow the Maury river from Lexington to downtown Buena Vista’s super-cool Glenn Maury Park by way of the 7-mile Chessie Nature Trail. Read more…
Sportsmen-women Birders of VA
For these sportsmen and women, hunting, fishing, birding, – and atlasing – go hand in hand. Dawn is breaking over the Blue Ridge Mountains and Todd Fearer and his 14-year-old daughter, Libby, are sitting quietly atop a high Giles County hillside in the Jefferson National Forest. Read more…
Tracking the Ghost Owl
Barn Owls and the VABBA2 One evening several years ago, while I was standing in the middle of a grassland somewhere on Long Island, NY, a Barn Owl flew over my head, pale and silent despite the flapping of its wings. It was a definite WOW moment. Read more…
Transplant Atlaser in Southwest VA
Certified master naturalist Kelly Krechmer took a break from her life in Fauquier County to spend the summer atlasing in far southwest Virginia. In the spring of 2017, certified master naturalist and VABBA2 super-volunteer Kelly Krechmer faced a tough decision. Read more…
Top Birding Locations: Far Southwest Virginia
Wild and remote, Region 7 is a haven for adventurous Atlas volunteers. Here, regional coordinator Steven Hopp gives you the inside scoop on the area’s top spots to check out. Read more…
Diana Doyle hiked Virginia’s Appalachian Trail while birding for the VABBA2
For retired mathematics and social sciences professor Diana Doyle, birding and outdoor adventure have always gone hand in hand. Read more…
Faces of the VABBA2: Fred Atwood
Sixty-two-year-old Flint Hill School science and biology teacher Fred Atwood likes to joke his passion for birding was established before his first memories. Read more…
The Northern Saw-whet Owl: Virginia’s Other Small Owl
When it comes to Virginia’s owls, the Eastern Screech-Owl is often thought of as our smallest species. But that distinction really belongs to the Northern Saw-whet Owl. Read more…
Top VA Atlas Locations: The Northern Neck and Middle Peninsula
For Virginia birders, the Northern Neck and Middle peninsulas offer diverse habitats ranging from fresh and saltwater marshes, to dense forests, grasslands, Chesapeake Bay beaches, and miles of rivers, including the Rappahannock, York, and Potomac. Read more…
Year of the Night Birds – Prowling for Screech Owls
As many of our readers may already be aware, this year marks the 100th anniversary of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. This landmark leglislation paved the way for legislative regulation of bird hunting/harvest, ultimately helping to prevent the loss of many species of birds. Read more…
Finishing those pesky Atlas blocks: an update
Despite the recent snows, birds are singing and spring is in the air! As thoughts turn towards this year’s Atlas activities, some volunteers may be pondering over their Atlas blocks. Read more…
Season Three of the 2nd Virginia Breeding Bird Atlas – How You Can Help
Harness your interest in birds and the great outdoors by contributing to a homegrown project that aims to make a difference for bird conservation right here in Virginia! Read more…
Techniques for Locating Great-Horned Owl and Hawk Nests
Many birders find their interest piqued by a specific group of species. For Jon and BJ Little, finding and confirming the nests of large raptor species, including Great-Horned Owl, Red-tailed Hawk, and Red-Shouldered Hawk has been a labor of love for many years. Read more…
Atlasing After Dark: an overview of nocturnal surveys
As we enter the earliest phase of the 2019 breeding season, more and more reports of Great-Horned Owl breeding activity are coming into the Atlas. Read more…
American Woodcock, The Forest Species Few Have Seen
For many, the American Woodcock (Scolopax minor) remains a somewhat mysterious species and for good reason. A forest-dwelling bird species doesn’t seem remarkable until we consider that the woodcock is in the shorebird family, Scolopacidae. Read more…
VA BBA Season Two Results Are In!
As the minds of many birders turn toward Christmas Bird Counts and the start of a new year of birding, project leaders and technicians are busily reviewing data collected by volunteers over the first two years of the second Virginia Breeding Bird Atlas (VABBA2). Read more…
The migrants are coming… again!
Atlas Birding in Late Summer… As we slowly roll into the Fall migration season, we need to start using a little more care when applying breeding codes to our observations. Read more…
Inspired by Birds and Birders: meet Maeve and Joey
Birds are a class of animals that inspire people. Those who study birds, write about them, photograph and watch them, find their intelligence, beauty, and adaptability inspiring. Read more…
Crazy for Cherries: a look into breeding bird use of fruit
This season Steven Hopp watched numerous birds carrying cherries away from a tree, and on one occasion watched a pair of Northern Mockingbirds repeatedly carrying cherries to their nestlings, alerting him to the possibility that birds were carrying cherries to their young. Read more…
The Home Stretch: Guidelines for Completing an Atlas Block
Halfway through the second field season of the VABBA2 project, many volunteers are turning their thoughts toward completing their Atlas blocks. Read more…
Meet Haley Olsen-Hodges, a wildlife rehabber, birder, and Atlas volunteer
The increasing range and diversity of people who make up the birding community is encouraging to those of us who work with them. For some, birding is a hobby, an outlet for connecting to the natural world and contributing to conservation efforts. Read more…
Tackling Tricky Codes Pt. 3: The Confirmations
Mid-June has somehow already arrived, which means that confirmed breeding codes are springing up on many checklists. We’re excited to see volunteers adding new species confirmations to their blocks or documenting uncommon breeding species. Read more…
Meet Garrett Rhyne, a Jack-of-all-Atlas-trades
One of the overarching goals and hopes of the second Virginia Breeding Bird Atlas is to foster an appreciation for birds in new or young birders. Read more…
Meet the Littles: An Atlas Volunteer Tale
A refrain that many of you will hear from me is that people are the critical factor in wildlife conservation. People will determine the future of our natural resources and thus the future of birds. Read more…
Breeding Codes and Migratory Species
Migratory birds, particularly those colorful, diverse species that spend winter in the Neotropics and summer in the US, add a new dimension to collecting breeding data for the VA Breeding Bird Atlas. Read more…
Bringing VABBA2 into the outdoor classroom
The 2017 Atlas season is rolling along and it’s high time to begin our volunteer profile series! These articles introduce members of our Atlas community who are making significant and unique contributions to the project. Read more…
Student Adventures in Atlasing
The Atlas is a great opportunity to engage students, as well as birders, with wildlife conservation and to provide chances for learning more about bird identification and behavior. Read more…
Tackling Tricky Codes Part 2: The Probables…
For our second installment of this series, we’ll be focusing on tricky Probable codes. Much of atlasing effort is focused on trying to upgrade species to this category or higher. Read more…
First VA Breeding Bird Atlas Data!
Species lists and breeding status data are now available for every block surveyed in the first VA Breeding Bird Atlas via the Atlas Block Explorer tool. This effort took place from 1984-1989, thus nearly 30 years have passed, since these data were collected. Read more…
Tackling Tricky Breeding Codes (Part 1): the Possibles…
Breeding behaviors and the use of breeding codes to describe these behaviors is probably the most unique, interesting, and important aspect of an Atlas project. In Virginia, we have a diverse bird community, which makes collecting breeding evidence both fun and challenging. Read more…
Holiday birding can include breeding birds!
The season for Christmas Bird Counts has arrived! As we head into the end of 2016, birders thoughts may turn more and more toward the start of the 2017 breeding season. Read more…
VABBA2 Season One: A Win for Virginia’s Birds and Citizen Science
Temperatures continue to drop, as Autumn arrives and we wrap-up the first season of the second Virginia Breeding Bird Atlas (VABBA2). Two things stand out about this summer’s field season. Read more…
Priority Species Database has arrived!
It has happened, Atlas Birders, the Priority Species database has arrived! A quick reminder: the VABBA2 is first and foremost a conservation tool for assessing bird populations in Virginia. Read more…
Atlas Volunteer Story – Meet James Fox
Meet James Fox, a stellar Atlas volunteer whose story needed sharing amongst the larger birding community. He is an awesome contributor for several reasons, but primarily because he not only dove in to the Atlas project this spring, but also launched a Virginia Big Year in Jan! Read more…
The migrants are coming! Atlas tips for late summer
As we slowly roll into the Fall migration season, we need to start using a little more care when applying breeding codes to our observations. As migrants begin moving back through Virginia, it’s a good idea to consult the Breeding Guidelines Chart. Read more…
VABBA2 Volunteer of the Week – Dave Larsen!
Weekly Atlas volunteer story – Meet Dave Larsen! Dave has now confirmed 72 breeding species, contributing a tremendous amount of his time and effort to the VABBA2 project. Read more…
New Feature: Meet Virginia’s Atlas volunteers!
We’re starting a new series to highlight and thank the many awesome Atlas volunteers participating all around Virginia. These folks have and are making significant contributions to the VABBA2 project, either through data collection, recruiting new volunteers, or tutoring others. Read more…
A Mid-Summers Update on the VA Breeding Bird Atlas
The summer is winging past and the summer solstice has already arrived! Many mark this as the first true day of summer, but birders might argue that our summer begins when the Neotropical migratory birds return and set up shop for the breeding season. Read more…
Atlasing vs. eBirding: When to submit checklists to the Atlas portal
Now that the breeding season is in full swing and the atlas project is off and running, I wanted to write a quick article to highlight when and where to submit observations to the Atlas eBird portal vs. the traditional eBird portal. Read more…
Atlas Data Entry Round 3: Location Precision
This is the third of the VABBA2 data entry tutorials. If you missed the first two, check them out here: Tutorial 1: Recording incidental checklists Tutorial 2: Submitting complete checklists In this article, we will focus on location precision. Read more…
Myth-busting the VABBA2: Tackling Atlas Blocks with Teamwork
If you’re involved in several large-scale birding citizen science projects these days, e.g. Breeding Bird Surveys, Project Nestwatch, Project Feederwatch, or the VABBA2, it’s easy to get confused about protocols and methods. Read more…
Atlas Data Entry Round 2: Submitting Complete Checklists
This is the second in a series of tutorials walking you through the process for submitting your bird observations for the second Virginia Breeding Bird Atlas. The first highlighted Incidental Observations and can be found here. Read more…
Tips for Identifying Crows and Ravens
For any and every checklist submitted to eBird, care should be taken to accurately identify or distinguish among species. This can be tricky when several very similar species occur in the same locations. Read more…
Switching between eBird portals
Maybe Atlas volunteers find themselves asking where they should submit their breeding data? Simply put, if your checklist has ANY breeding codes on it, then it should be submitted to the Atlas eBird portal at https://ebird.org/atlasva/home. Read more…
Atlas Data Entry Round 1 – Recording Incidental Observations
Atlas Data Entry Round 1: Incidental Observations* We will be posting a series of tutorials walking you through the process for submitting your bird observations for the second Virginia Breeding Bird Atlas. Read more…
What is the 2nd Virginia Breeding Bird Atlas all about?
The second Virginia Breeding Bird Atlas is launching soon! Spring is in the air and birds are returning to their summer breeding grounds around the state. Read more…
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