Virginia Master Naturalists

A Multitude of Moths - VMN 2025 Recertification Artwork

11/6/2024

illustration of moth with black, white, and yellow wings perched on a leaf

Clymene Moth (Haploa clymene) by Rosalind Ilett. Rosalind created the original artwork from pencil, color pencils, markers, paint, feathers, wire, and thread! Her piece was chosen by a team of judges to be the basis for the 2025 Virginia Master Naturalist Recertification Pin.

Each year, previously certified VMN volunteers who complete another 40 hours of approved volunteer service and 8 hours of approved continuing education earn a unique recertification pin for that year. In most years, we have held a contest to choose the artwork for the pin; we are fortunate to have many VMN volunteers with artistic talent! We decided the 2024 recertification pin would be a moth, and we invited VMN volunteers to submit their artwork of any moth species native to Virginia. Why a moth? We chose this group of organisms because moths are underappreciated, yet they are beautiful and very important parts of the food web. The winning artwork was selected based on input from several insect experts from our sponsoring agencies and volunteer corps. Thank you to Eric Day (Virginia Tech Department of Entomology), Anne Chazal (Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation Natural Heritage Program), and Joella Killian (VMN volunteer, Central Rappahannock Chapter and retired professor, University of Mary Washington.)

We received so many wonderful submissions, and here we share all the artwork we received, including, above, the winning Clymene Moth by Rosalind Ilett, a VMN volunteer in the Roanoke Valley Chapter.

The Clymene moth (Haploa clymene) is a boldly-colored moth that is active in the daytime as well as the night, so it may sometimes be mistaken for a butterfly. Like many moth species, its caterpillars feed on a variety of host plants, including willows, oaks, and Eupatorium species (in the aster family.) It is in the tiger moth sub-family.

A HUGE thank you to all the volunteers who participated! It is wonderful to share in your creativity and excitement for our natural world! We truly were so impressed by your creations.

Click on the images below to see each of the other submissions for the 2024 VMN recertification pin artwork. The artist name and the species are listed in each caption.

moth with yellow body and yellow-and-pink wings

moth with black and white patterned wings

green moth with long tails and fringed antennae

large brown moth with yellow and blue eyespots on hind wings

large brown moth with huge feathery antennae

brown and grey moth with striped pattern

black moth with eight white spots on wings and orange spots on legs

fat-bodied moth with orange today and orange and purple wings with one white spot on each wing

moth with brown pattern like lichen or tree bark

moth with clear wings and short body perched on a flower

moth with reddish-orange hind wings and yellow forewings with rows of black and white spots

moth with reddish-clear wings on a flower

green and black moth with distinct arrowhead shape

Laurels - Fall 2024

11/1/2024

two women posed outdoors holding an oversized printed Senate resolution

Virginia State Senator Stella Pekarsky (left) and VMN volunteer and Fairfax Chapter President Sarah Mayhew (right). Photo by Rob Warren.

Virginia State Senate Recognizes VMN Volunteer for Her Conservation Work in Fairfax County

--Contributed by Jerry Nissley, VMN-Fairfax Chapter

Virginia State Senator Stella Pekarsky (36th district) presented Fairfax Chapter President Sarah Mayhew, with a volunteer commendation (Senate Resolution number 161) on September 28, 2024. Senator Pekarsky, a member of the Senate Agriculture, Conservation, and Natural Resources committee, presented Sarah with a conservation award recognizing her 20+ years of conservation and community service in protecting local natural habitat and the Chesapeake Bay water in Fairfax County.

Sarah has been the Fairfax Chapter president since 2023. She has also been an ambassador in the Northern Virginia Bird Alliance program working with property owners and managers to design outdoor landscapes with native plants to conserve and restore Fairfax County’s natural habitat.

She has provided educational enrichment to groups, including local Boy Scout troops, teaching participants how to identify invasive plants and the best techniques for their removal, as well as how to identify and properly care for appropriate native plants.

Sarah has volunteered since 2003 with the Fairfax County Park Authority, organizing volunteer activities at numerous sites. These trash clean ups helped remove plastics and other pollutants from the Chesapeake Bay watershed, and removal of invasive species has helped native habitats to flourish. She also established our chapter project at Mason Neck State Park to restore and maintain the pollinator and demonstration gardens.

This Senate resolution was presented to Sarah Mayhew as an expression of the Senate of Virginia’s admiration for her dedication and service to the Commonwealth.

volunteer at a table outside a nursery with potted plants and printed information about planting native plants, talking to a visitor

Sharon Lamberton (right, speaking with fellow Riverine master naturalist Diane Moxley) shares native plant information as part of the Plant Virginia Natives project at a nursery in Richmond.

A Riverine Master Naturalist Volunteer Makes Native Plants Her Retirement Mission

--Contributed by Peg Mohar, VMN-Riverine Chapter

When she retired in 2021, Sharon Lamberton of the Riverine Chapter did not know in which direction her energies should be focused. Her career focused on “words” in her editing and writing work. Music and art were hobbies she considered pursuing. But gardening called her as well. As a child, she took refuge in a meadow filled with lovely but unnamed (to her) grasses and wildflowers. Memories of those times she spent there and hiking in a local woodland lingered over the years.

Early in 2022, Sharon signed up to take a biodiversity webinar course from Ohio State University. Among the speakers were Douglas Tallamy, the renowned advocate for native plantings; Heather Holm, an entomologist and conservationist; and Lisa Olsen, a Wild Ones staffer. Sharon had already incorporated a few natives in her yard, but now she was hooked!

In January of 2022, Sharon set about organizing the first Wild Ones chapter in Virginia. Wild Ones is a national organization whose mission it is to promote native landscapes through education, advocacy and collaborative action. Sharon had no experience as an organizer but figured it out from the bottom up starting by bending ears (in coffee shops or wherever she found herself) about the importance of planting native plants. Her passion must have been palpable because Richmond Area Wild Ones chapter, of which she is president, today is an active organization with 51 members!

Fulfilling the mandate for collaborative action, Sharon soon learned about and began to participate with the Plant RVA
Natives regional campaign—a collaborative state-wide effort with regional marketing strategies to increase the use and availability of native plants.

Master Naturalist training offered to her the perfect way to deepen her understanding of the natural world. Thus Sharon was part of Riverine’s 2023 training class. She had enthusiasm for nearly every area of study, but in the end she focused on her native plants interest—namely by undertaking another project focusing on native plants. She strived to propose a project for Riverines to engage with the Regional Garden Center Liaison Project sponsored by Plant RVA Natives. Plant RVA Natives Point-of-Sale team, under the direction of Virginia Witmer with the Department of Environmental Quality, launched the garden center liaison work. Many partners have signed on to the effort, but no Master Naturalist chapter had yet become involved with the program. The Point-of-Sale team has the objectives of both enlisting garden centers to sell/promote native plants, reduce the sale of invasive plants and to educate their customers about the value of natives. Volunteer liaisons visit cooperating garden centers quarterly to encourage the sale of native plants and to offer help in several ways. They report on native plant inventories and interview a garden center representative. One way they help promote natives is to host informational tables at garden center events.

During the summer of 2023, Sharon tirelessly worked with the Point of Sale Team developing a project description and other documents (such as the visitation logs) which were necessary for the functions of the program. Sharon presented the project to the Riverine Board. Garden Center Liason/Plant RVA Natives Point-of-Sale Campaign was accepted by the board in the fall, and Riverine became the first VMN chapter to become part of the initiative. Other Master Naturalist chapters and Master Gardener chapters have expressed interest in launching this campaign with the protocols and materials developed by Sharon and her team.

In the Fall of 2023, Sharon began visiting garden centers with various members of the Point-of-Sale team members (including Riverine Catharine Tucker) to invite them to be a part of the program. Riverine members signed-up to be Point-of-Sale RVA liaisons. Presently there are six garden centers participating in the Richmond area. And Sharon hasn’t run out of steam—she is full of ideas and plans to hone this operation!

If native plants (and all the critters they support) could talk, they would thank Sharon for choosing them over art or music to be her “retirement mission!”

two volunteers installing a pole for a birdhouse in a large mowed field

Alan Edmunds and Barry Buschow, VMN volunteers in the Old Rag Chapter, installing a bluebird trail at Cedar Mountain Battlefield.

Supporting History and Nature: A partnership between historians and naturalists

--Contributed by Charlene Uhl, VMN-Old Rag Chapter

Virginia has more Civil War battlefields - over 450 - than any other state. Cedar Mountain Battlefield outside of Culpeper is one of these historic battlefields. These battlefields have been preserved to ensure that future generations would know about the valor of the soldiers that fought here, and the importance of their efforts would be preserved and shared with the general public. Cedar Mountain Battlefield has added another goal: to restore the land of the battlefield to its natural habitat and encourage people to visit, become informed about the battle that occurred here, and to appreciate and appreciate the important role this land can serve in supporting nature.
Cedar Mountain Battlefield (CMB) is among the many battlefields supported by the American Battlefield Trust. It also supported by the Cedar Mountain Battlefield Foundation. In October 2024 the State of Virginia provided $3.9 million of State funding to protect the Civil War Battlefields. The Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation has the responsibility to work with the battlefields and oversee the use of these funds. This will support CMB’s interest to use its property for educational purposes by its own staff and community organizations such as Old Rag Master Naturalists to engage others interested in resource management, conservation and education.

The Old Rag Master Naturalists chapter has established a partnership with CMB to support its long-term commitment to remove invasive plants and plant and promote native vegetation in their place. The battlefield encompasses over 200 hundred acres that includes fields, woodlands and a small pond. The opportunity to create vernal pools is being explored.

Our common goal is to restore the natural habitat to increase pollinators, native insects, birds and other animals. Given the large acreage in open fields, there will be a focus on improving habitat for nesting birds in these fields. In our first few months of partnering with Cedar Mountain Battlefield, ORMN has installed a bluebird trail that include 8 boxes and a CMB volunteer has expressed interest in helping to monitor these boxes next year. We also plan on installing a kestrel box later this year.

ORMN volunteers have worked with CMB to begin to removing invasive plants as well as and conducting the October Big Day bird count, which engaged CMB volunteers, ORMN members, and interested citizens.

ORMN’s partnership with Cedar Mountain Battlefield is an example of how other Master Naturalists chapters could work with other Civil War battlefields around the State to promote native habitat restoration and use this “sacred ground” to educate people about both history and nature.

youth using a laptop computer to look at a zoomed in photo of oysters on a flat surface

A Project Horizons student is using software in order to rapidly count oyster spat numbers and size from a photo of a flat tile placed on an Eastern Shore oyster reef that encourages spat to attach. This is one example of how VCR-LTER graduate students perform research in determining if a reef is thriving or not.

Eastern Shore Chapter Supports “A Day in the Lab” at the University of Virginia’s Virginia Coast Reserve/Long-Term Ecological Research (VCR-LTER) Site

--Contributed by Ann Quigley and Peter Fisher, VMN-Eastern Shore Chapter

On Tuesday, October 22nd, Eastern Shore Chapter (ESMN) volunteers spent the day at the University of Virginia’s Virginia Coast Reserve/Long-Term Ecological Research (VCR-LTER) site helping scientists and staff with the “A Day in the Lab” event.

This event is part of Project Horizons, a college-track mentoring program for at-risk middle and high school students in Accomack and Northampton Counties. The program provides an extra academic, social, and cultural boost for economically disadvantaged students and exposes them to the post-secondary education environment.

LTER scientists ran stations in which students did authentic science, including using radio telemetry, measuring tidal movements, learning photosynthesis processes, and using art in science communication. Students also got to have lunch with scientists to learn about their education paths and their daily work. A new experience for many was a a short boat ride into the tidal marsh.

In addition to helping scientists run these stations, ESMNs participated in a planning session and helped with set-up prior to the event. According to Dr. Cora Baird, Site Director, the success of the event was made possible by the support ESMN volunteers provided. Nancy Beigel, a chapter volunteer at the event, said that it was “a great start in introducing local students to careers in science and opportunities that are available here on the shore and elsewhere.”

Students completed short evaluations after the event. A few of their comments:

“Today was actually something new for me. It was easily able to understand, and an attention grabber.”
“#Science is cool.”
“I would describe it as as very interesting and super fun.”

The Chapter enjoys a strong partnership with VCR-LTER. In addition to supporting education and outreach events, ESMN volunteers participate in numerous activities side-by-side with scientists and staff including:

a study designed to compare camera traps and live traps as methods for determining species composition and habitat associations for small mammal species (rodents and insectivores);
quarterly seaside water sampling, taking readings at various stations and assisting in analyzing the samples; and
a tree census to measure the trunk diameter and canopy greenness of trees spanning the edge of a coastal forest in order to track tree health and mortality.

Also, trainees in the ESMN Basic Training Course typically spend a day at VCR-LTER learning about barrier island processes and other important aspects of Eastern Shore ecology. Weather permitting the day includes a field trip with CRC/LTER researchers to Wreck Island, one of Virginia’s pristine barrier islands.

gloved hand holding a turtle with orange construction fencing in the background

Tanya and other volunteers gave more than 100 turtles a helping hand to the next pond when their current ponds were drained. Photo by Tanya Finch.

Turtle Rescues in Northern Virginia

--Contributed by Tanya Finch (VMN-Banshee Reeks Chapter) and Jerry Nissley (VMN-Fairfax Chapter)

Here we share two different stories of VMN volunteers assisting with aquatic turtle rescues from stormwater ponds being drained in Northern Virginia.

Tanya Finch (VMN-Banshee Reeks Chapter) started a conservation effort to save turtles from construction sites. Recently, she has been contacted about several ponds to be drained for construction projects. Because of silt fencing around the ponds, the turtles would not be able to move to new locations on their own.

From Tanya: "Thanks to excellent communication from the site supervisor, amazing weather, and convenient timing over a weekend, we were able to recruit many volunteers to help with this project. We were first notified on Tuesday, September 3rd that the pond would be drained Thursday. Then on Friday, we were notified that the ponds had started draining and should be ready the following day."

For five days in a row, volunteers monitored the drained ponds for turtles and moved them to another pond at the same site. In total, they rescued more than 100 turtles, making for a very successful effort.

Tanya reported some of the lessons they learned:

Aquatic turtles didn’t make a run for it until the temps hit around 65* and the sun was out.
It’s not worth going in the mud to save the turtles rather than waiting for them to leave on their own in really established ponds with lots of soft muck/mud. If doing aquatic rescues, two people needed on site in case of accidental mud entrapment.
Invest in a few items: sled, rope, muck mat
Constant/daily site surveillance is best.
Leave a container & jug of water on site so the construction crew can put turtles in there without needing to take a break from their tasks.

More on the Reston turtle rescue

volunteer wearing muddy boots, holding a plant

Fairfax Master Naturalist volunteer Katy Johnson, with one of the native plants rescued along with the turtles. Photo by Laura Beaty.

Down the road in Fairfax City, Ashby Pond was scheduled for dredging but the city had no real plan to save the turtles. Fairfax Master Naturalist volunteer Katy Johnson to the rescue! Katy was able to work with the city’s Public Works Program Manager for the Ashby Pond Dredging Project and Philip Latasa of Friends of Accotink Creek to rescue the turtles and some native plants. Philip, being familiar with another pond retrofit in Manassas, Va, was able to contract Dr. Todd Rimkus of Hawksbill Hope, a Turtle Conservation Non-Profit. Katy became the Volunteer Coordinator for the rescue.

Volunteers from Fairfax Master Naturalists and the community, were able to assist Dr. Rimkus and his team to pull traps that were baited with raw chicken legs. The largest turtle caught measured in at 18 inches and an estimated 40 pounds. All together, 58 turtles of 3 species were rescued that would have otherwise been destroyed.

The snapping and painted turtles were tagged and inoculated and then safely relocated to ponds identified by Dr. Rimkus that could support them, but do not currently have a turtle population. The river cooter will be held by Dr. Rimkus until the Project's completion and then returned to Ashby Pond.

More on the Ashby Pond turtle rescue, including videos

An important note: Moving wildlife is not allowed in Virginia under most circumstances. Tanya's Turtle Project activities are in accordance with state regulations and are specific to dewatering activities associated with storm water pond maintenance. No permit was required because the turtles were released immediately to a similar habitat within an approximately half-mile radius from the capture location. In the case of the Ashby Pond project, the project leader had the necessary permits for their activity. Neither the public nor other VMN volunteers should assume that other wildlife relocation efforts are permissible. Contact the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources with questions.

several youth using their hands to pick through soil in cardboard trays

Learning about birds at the Bailey Center. Photo by Alicia Washburn.

Wild About Nature: Engaging Special Learners at the Bailey Center for Special Needs

--Contributed by Terri Mewborn, VMN-Southern Piedmont Chapter

Southern Piedmont Master Naturalists have established a monthly environmental education program at South Hill’s Bailey Center for Special Needs. The program, called Wild About Nature, is an ongoing part of the Southern Piedmont chapter’s education and outreach, bringing environmental education to life through engaging, hands-on activities. Meeting once a month, chapter volunteers, led by VMN Alicia Washburn, introduce participants to the natural world in creative, interactive ways, tailored specifically for this group of underserved individuals.

The Bailey Center for Special Needs is dedicated to providing support, care, and education to individuals with developmental and intellectual disabilities. The program is designed to engage these participants by introducing them to the wonders of nature in an accessible and enjoyable format. Many individuals in this community may not have regular access to nature-focused activities, which is why it's so important to bring the outdoors to them in meaningful and creative ways.

A recent and memorable session focused on the life cycle of a sunflower, where participants planted their own sunflower seeds, learning firsthand about the process of growth and the importance of nurturing living things. They have also explored the tracks and scat of Virginia's wildlife, using replicas of animal tracks, scat, and pelts to engage the senses and stimulate curiosity.

Activities are always hands-on, like building bird nests and testing beak adaptations in a bird-themed session, or creating bird feeders to take home, which allows participants to continue learning after the program. Additionally, the chapter organized a nature hike and scavenger hunt, where participants explored the outdoors, spotting and identifying various natural elements, making the experience both fun and educational.

Reaching out to individuals at the Bailey Center is rewarding for participants and VMNs alike. Says VMN Alicia Washburn, “By creating inclusive, sensory-rich experiences, we are not only opening up the world of nature to those who may face physical or cognitive challenges, but also providing opportunities for growth, discovery, and confidence-building.” Nature offers an excellent way to connect with the world, and by making it accessible to all, the chapter hopes to foster a deep appreciation for the environment in these special learners. Wild About Nature embodies our commitment to serving the community in meaningful ways. Southern Piedmont Master Naturalists aim to inspire these participants to connect with the natural world and discover their own strengths and abilities along the way.

volunteer demonstrates a bird beak activity to two youth, using chopsticks to pick up different food items

VMN volunteer Paula Wood demonstrates bird beak adaptations at Baily Center. Photo by Alicia Washburn.

six youth crowd around a table where two volunteers are leading activities

Youth stop by for activities at the Pawpaw Festival. Photo by June Hartzler.

PMN at the 4th Annual Paw Paw Festival and Historic Endview

--Contributed by Meera Rao, June Hartzler, and Daina Henry, VMN-Peninsula Chapter

Under the leadership of Peninsula Chapter President Dr. Daina Henry, the 4th Annual Paw Paw Festival at Historic Endview in Newport News, VA was held on Saturday, August 24, one of the most beautiful days in August! The cooler temperatures and the great marketing by our chapter and Historic Endview brought out a record crowd of 2239, many of whom indicated they were first time visitors. The Festival celebrates the paw paw fruit, which is the largest native North American fruit. Historic Endview is home to many trees and several large groves.

The Festival was originally conceived by Daina Henry who has chaired it every year since the beginning. Forty Chapter volunteers helped at the information table, tasting table, speaker’s tent, children’s activities, PMN outreach tent, Paw Paw tree sales table, cutting up samples in the “kitchen”, as well as setting up and tearing down the festival and managing all the other festival details all day long.

Forty-five other vendors, Newport News City workers, musicians, friends and family also contributed to the success of the day! Vendors included VIMS, NOAA, Leave No Trace, Tidewater Oyster Gardening Association, The Butterfly Society, Newport News Waterworks, Master Gardeners, Colonial Bee-keepers Association, Foxy Lady Press and Concessions by Rhonda and her crew.

A Shout-Out to PMN Volunteers at the festival: John Adair, Marilyn Adair, Kevin Barry, Twila Blume, Charlotte Boudreau, James Burgess, Shirley Chirch, Ellen Dudley, Melissa Freudenberg, Fred Kohlman, Phyllis Kohlman, Christy Gardner, Sandy Graham, Caroline Herath, June Hartzler, Daina Henry, Rex Homlin, Lee Hughes, Yukari Hughes, Kathy Huston, Jacqueline Keener-Weatherford, Caroline Lawrence, Prafulla Patel, Gayle Phillips, Felicia Purdy, Lisa Pyle, Meera Rao, Abigail Rausch, Zachary Rausch, Ella Reiley, Kate Schaller, Dave Singletary, Loye Spencer, Janet Tucker, Francoise Veland, Helmut Walter, Barbara Waring, Beth Watson, Tina White, Gary Wright.

crowd of people lined up outdoors, outside a row of white tents

Visitors line up to taste pawpaw at the Pawpaw Festival at the Historic Endview Plantation. Photo by June Hartzler.

volunteer and a dog wearing a life vest posed on a dock with multiple bags of trash

VMN volunteer HC Lim and pup pose on the dock with the trash they collected from the Occoquan River. Photo by CC Lim.

Occoquan River Clean-Up

--Contributed by CC Lim, VMN-Merrimac Farm Chapter

On September 21st, a rare Saturday that was open on our calendar, my husband, HC, and I decided to respond to a call for volunteers to clean up the Occoquan River - the main water supply for Fairfax County and Eastern Prince William County. Although we are both avid kayakers, we decided to ditch our kayaks and rent a canoe for 2 hours from Lake Ridge Marina to easily carry the trash we expect to haul from the river. On a cloudy morning, we signed in at the desk set up by Prince William Soil and Water Conservation District and Prince William Trails and Streams Coalition, picked up blue trash bags, gloves, and a trash picker, rented a canoe from the marina, and set off with our sea-legged pup on our assignment.

On the water, we set up the Ocean Conservancy’s Clean Swell App and pondered an inlet holding a recycling bin load of plastic water bottles from the 2021 water cleanup we participated in. It didn't take us long to find that inlet, only the second to the west of the marina, where we came upon a mother lode of trash on the shore. I got on shore in waders to pick up the trash and called out counts of what I found to HC on the canoe to record on the Clean Swell App. While making the collection, I noticed that this “treasure trove” was underneath a constructed runoff next to a retention wall from the Lake Ridge neighborhood, so I took a picture and a mental note of the location to report to PWSWCD to initiate trash mitigation at the source. We stayed on the shore of this inlet almost the entire time, filling up 3 blue trash bags. We also picked up a large plastic pallet and a long tree-planting tube. Based on data entered into the Clean Swell app, we collected approximately 36 lbs of trash. We picked up 201 counts of small foam/plastic pieces, making this item type the champion. Many of the 33 plastic cups proudly donned the familiar McDonald’s, Chick-fil-A, or Starbucks logo. An interesting item type collected was golf balls (7 in total grouped under ‘toys’) which wasn’t that surprising since a golf course is part of Lake Ridge Park.

Upon submitting our observations and request for mitigation of trash at the source, PWSWCD responded,” Thanks for sharing your concerns about continuous plastic accumulation at this pointed location,... The issue of plastics in our waterways is a huge concern. This year's Floatable Monitoring Report to the County had plastic bottles at the top of the list……The Conservation District will keep you posted on any developments following this shared concern about plastic accumulation at this location.”

We felt that our time was well spent, but we came away with heightened concern for plastic pollution in our waterways which not only affects freshwater and marine life but directly impacts human health and the economic wellbeing of our community. Here are sample articles about microplastic and PFAS pollution in our waterways:
https://www.elglaw.com/blog/microplastics-pfas-climate-change-poor-water-quality/
https://pubs.acs.org/doi/epdf/10.1021/acsestwater.3c00607?ref=article_openPDF
https://www.bayjournal.com/opinion/forum/how-pfas-microplastics-join-forces-as-a-synergistic-threat/article_634b24b6-d25e-11ee-adc1-d7d52920fb27.html
https://www.epa.gov/water-research/microplastics-research

volunteer shows an activity to a youth at a county fair

Visitors to the Prince William County Fair stop by the Merrimac Farm Master Naturalist table. Photo by Cynthia Lin.

Review of the 2024 Prince William County Fair with Merrimac Farm Chapter Virginia Master Naturalists

--Contributed by Cynthia Lin, VMN-Merrimac Farm Chapter

The 2024 Prince William County Fair was a resounding success, thanks to the engaging and educational activities organized by the Merrimac Farm Chapter Virginia Master Naturalists. The event focused on promoting environmental awareness and sustainable practices through a series of interactive areas.

We had volunteers from August 9-18. Each day, we experienced hundreds of new contacts. Some wanting to work with us in the future, some people interested in joining our group, including a young teen naturalist! Other groups ranging from a prison warden to a government official wanting to utilize our group for a wellness activity. Hopefully, we will link up.

Our table had amazing content for passerbys. Thank you Robin Vanderlip for chairing this event. Thank you Tom Ligon for the IT tutorials. And thank you to all of our volunteers for their time, effort, and experience.

Here’s a look at what we offered this year.
AREA 1: MAIN LEARNING ACTIVITY - “Pack a Waste-Free Lunch”
Participants were invited to create a “trash-free” lunch by choosing between reusable or compostable items and single-use items. The activity featured four sets of items, each containing both reusable and single-use materials. The activity emphasized the importance of making environmentally friendly choices and highlighted how reusable items have a lower overall impact compared to single-use items.

AREA 2: How Long Does It Take to Decompose?
This area featured small triangular prisms with pictures of various items, such as plastic, clothing, and batteries. Each prism displayed the decomposition time of the item and offered a “Good news!” alternative. This interactive display helped participants understand the long-term impact of waste and encouraged them to make more sustainable choices.

AREA 3: How Trash Affects the Environment
A large aquarium was used to demonstrate the decomposition process by layering soil, trash, and materials. Containers of earthworms and other critters were included to show the role of decomposers in breaking down waste. Additionally, signs from the PWC Water Authority highlighted the impact of trash on waterways and drinking water. Donated water bottles were given away, courtesy of the PWC Water Authority. The area also featured a microscope, laptops, and monitors displaying a slideshow of photos showing the impact of dryer lint on the environment.

AREA 4: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
This area provided information on the recycling process of plastic, courtesy of TREX. Recycled materials and signage were displayed to educate participants on the benefits of recycling and how it contributes to a more sustainable future.

Overall, the 2024 Prince William County Fair was an informative and engaging event that successfully raised awareness about environmental sustainability and encouraged participants to adopt more eco-friendly practices.

cover to book, From Worms to Whales, Natural History Notes by Bess Murray, Selected, arranged, and edited by Mary Lee Epps

Cover of the new book, From Worms to Whales.

The Book, From Worms to Whales: Natural History Notes by Bess Murray Has Been Published

--Contributed by Mary Lee Epps, VMN-Rivanna Chapter

With the help of many members of the Rivanna Master Naturalists, Bess Murray’s book, From Worms to Whales: Natural History Notes, has been published and is now available both Paperback and Kindle versions.

The book should be an excellent resource for Master Naturalists, covering a wide range of natural history topics. It is divided into five parts: The Plant Kingdom, Invertebrates, Vertebrates, Exploring Natural History at Home and in the Wider World, and finally a miscellaneous section with chapters on fungi, the weather, the seasons, prominent naturalists, and more.

This is a book to explore. Each reading is about two pages long and is self-contained. You will probably want to start with those that most interest you, but don’t stop there. Look over the rest. There is surprising and interesting information about various plants and animals. For example, what do horsehair worms have to do with crickets? How did elephants know to flee to higher ground before the 2004 Tsunami struck? What are hoopoes and why do they “paint” their eggs?

You can also read about how the Monarch butterfly’s overwintering place in Central Mexico was discovered. Or check out the readings on eels. Eels are mainly freshwater fish, but they give birth in the ocean; the mystery for a long time was where? You can also read about one of only 20 or so species of fresh water jellyfish, Craspedacusta, “usually described as sporadic, unpredictable, uncommon and imperfectly studied” that showed up in an Albemarle County pond.

Bess and her husband Jim Murray graciously gave me permission to put together the book from Bess’s original five-minute radio broadcasts on WTJU, the University of Virginia’s radio station, lending me the typed transcripts of the broadcasts.

The first step was to scan these into my computer as PDFs. Then Rivanna Master Naturalist (RMN) Dede Smith converted the PDFs to Rich Text Format (RTF) and also digitized the cassette tapes of Bess’s original recordings. In a few cases, Master Naturalists and other volunteers created Word documents from Bess’s original radio recordings, but in most cases the RTF versions were converted directly into Word documents. However many of the RTF versions had garbled parts where RTF was not able to decipher the original typescripts because of smudges, handwritten changes, etc. and this is where other Master Naturalists came in, comparing the RTF versions to the original PDFs and correcting those parts that weren’t translated correctly. Many RMN’s contributed here, but Karen Mulder stands out as doing a large share of correcting the garbled first versions. Later, other Master Naturalists including Tana Herndon, who read through an early draft of the entire book, Jenny Gaden, RMN member, and Michelle Prysby, state director of the Master Naturalist Program, both of whom lent their expertise to fact checking and updating the pieces on birds (Jenny) and Michelle (butterflies). Of course, some non-Master Naturalists also contributed their expertise to the work, including Henry Wilbur, Professor Emeritus from UVA, who read through an early draft of the whole book and who made many helpful suggestions and corrections; Clint Epps, Professor and Wildlife Ecologist at Oregon State University, who looked over the section on mammals; and Mary Jane Epps, Associate Professor of Biology at Mary Baldwin, who fact checked the chapter on fungi as well as other parts of the manuscript.

The text has color photos of some of the animals and plants that Bess discusses and more photos are available in a PDF on the Ivy Creek website. Many of these photos, too, were contributed by Master Naturalists.

The book has an index. Also, the Table of Contents lists all the Notes by title and date first aired on WTJU. Whatever your Natural History interests are, chances are that you can find at least one and possibly several Natural History Notes about them in this book. If you want to check it out and are in the Charlottesville area, there are copies of the book in Ivy Creek’s library in the Education Building, and also in the Central Branch of the Jefferson-Madison Library. I think you will find it a great resource with many fascinating pieces. I hope you will want a copy of your own.

All royalties after deducting the cost of printing the book benefit the Ivy Creek Foundation.

volunteer posed with recognition certificate mounted on a large gold star

Middle Peninsula Chapter Advisor Karen Duhring (left), volunteer Bill Blair (center) and Middle Peninsula Chapter President Luanne Johnson (right). Photo by Susan Walton.

10,000 Hours of Service for Bill Blair!

--Contributed by Susan Walton, VMN-Middle Peninsula Chapter

Middle Peninsula Chapter recognized Bill Blair for reaching the 10,000 hour milestone at the Fall Equinox/Annual Conference event. A charter member of the chapter, Bill became a Master Naturalist in 2014 with the Northern Neck Chapter. Bill has led the chapter in many roles – bird and butterfly counts, outreach events - if anything is needed. Bill is there to help. He has been a crucial member of the Basic Training Committee and currently serves as the Better Impact Chair. (We should also note that Bill was acknowledged for volunteering 17,000 hours with Gloucester Master Gardeners in August!)

volunteers and state park personnel in uniform poised to cut a ribbon across the Songbird Trail, a mowed path with trees in the background

Doug Dwoyer (center) with other VMN volunteers and Virginia State Parks staff. Photo by Ruby Williams, Gloucester-Mathews Gazette Journal. Used with permission.

Middle Peninsula Chapter Develop New Trail

--Contributed by Susan Walton, VMN-Middle Peninsula Chapter

Middle Peninsula Chapter worked with Machicomoco State Park staff to develop a new trail. The half mile long Songbird Trail was recently opened to the public. The trail includes six bluebird boxes which were installed by the chapter. Chapter members also monitored the boxes for the recent bluebird season.

Seeking Nominations for the 2024 VMN Statewide Program Awards

11/1/2024

The Virginia Master Naturalist program’s state office is now accepting nominations for six statewide awards.

Chapter Leader of the Year
Volunteer of the Year
New VMN Volunteer
Most Impactful Project
Chapter Advisor of the Year
Diversity & Inclusion Award.

These awards will be judged by the VMN statewide office team and one or more VMN sponsoring agency representatives. We will announce the winners around the end of January. To submit a nomination, please send the information requested for that particular award to Michelle Prysby. Nominations are due by December 6 at 5:00 pm. You can find this year's award nomination information below. You also can learn about our 2023 award winners!

Chapter Leader of the Year
This award is intended to recognize a volunteer for extraordinary service as a leader in their chapter. The person could be a board member, committee chair or committee member, or any other type of leader in the chapter, so long as their work involved chapter administration of some sort and demonstrated leadership.

In your nominations, please include the following:

Name, email address, and VMN chapter affiliation of the nominator
Name, email address, VMN chapter affiliation, and leadership role(s) for the nominee
Description of why the volunteer should receive the award, limited to 400 words. Please include a description of the volunteer’s contributions this year and why they stood out to you.
One photo that illustrates the nominee and their service. Please attach the photo as a separate file (not embedded in a document), include photo credits, and make sure we have the photographer's permission to use the photo.

Volunteer of the Year
This award is intended to recognize a volunteer who has made outstanding contributions to natural resource education, citizen science, and/or stewardship. Criteria we consider include the impacts the volunteer has made on natural resource conservation and education, ways the volunteer has impacted or influenced other volunteers, and impacts the volunteer has had on their community, all in the context of the volunteer's VMN service. There is no minimum requirement for amount of hours or length of service for a volunteer to receive this award. Our focus is on the last one to two years of service.

In your nominations, please include the following:

Name, email address, and VMN chapter affiliation of nominator
Name, email address, and VMN chapter affiliation of the nominee
Description of why the nominee should receive the award, limited to 400 words. You may choose to include a description of the individual’s service, specific examples of positive impacts made, aspects that make the individual stand out from other volunteers, and quotes from other volunteers or local partners. Please place your primary focus on the last 1-2 years of the volunteer’s service.
One photo that illustrates the nominee and their service. Please attach the photo as a separate file (not embedded in a document), include photo credits, and make sure we have the photographer's permission to use the photo.

New VMN Volunteer
This award is intended to recognize a new volunteer who completed or will complete basic training in 2024 and has been highly engaged during and after the training. The volunteer may have completed many volunteer hours, started a new project, helped on a chapter committee, or been engaged in other ways. In your nominations, please include the following:

Name, email address, and VMN chapter affiliation of the nominator
Name, email address, VMN chapter affiliation, and basic training graduation date of the new volunteer
Description of why the volunteer should receive the award, limited to 400 words. Please include a description the volunteer’s activities and contributions this year and why they stood out to you.
One photo that illustrates the nominee and their service. Please attach the photo as a separate file (not embedded in a document), include photo credits, and make sure we have the photographer's permission to use the photo.

Chapter Advisor of the Year
This award is intended to recognize a chapter advisor who has made significant and noteworthy contributions to a VMN chapter within the last 1-2 years. In your nominations, please include the following:

Name, email address, and VMN chapter affiliation of the nominator
Name, email address, and VMN chapter affiliation of the chapter advisor
Description of why the chapter advisor should receive the award, limited to 400 words. Please include specific examples of how the chapter advisor has helped the chapter run effectively, make positive impacts in the community, or otherwise achieve its goals.
One photo that illustrates the chapter advisor and their service. Please attach the photo as a separate file (not embedded in a document), include photo credits, and make sure we have the photographer's permission to use the photo.

Most Impactful Project
This award is intended to recognize a project that has made significant and noteworthy positive impacts for natural resource education, citizen science, and/or stewardship this year. Our focus is on projects for which the VMN chapter played a significant, unique role in creation, implementation, and leadership (rather than projects that were created and run by another organization.) These awards go to the chapter, not to an individual, so the expectation is that multiple members of the chapter be involved in the project. The project need not have started this year, but it should have had significant impacts this year.

In your nominations, please include the following:

Name, email address, and VMN chapter affiliation of the nominator
Name, email address, and VMN chapter affiliation for any primary VMN volunteer contacts for the project
Description of why the project should receive the award, limited to 400 words. Please include a description of the project goals, activities completed, and impacts and outcomes for natural resources in your community and/or for your chapter. Include the roles and contributions of VMN volunteers to the project. Identify any significant partners for the project.
One photo that illustrates the project. Please attach the photo as a separate file (not embedded in a document), include photo credits, and make sure we have the photographer's permission to use the photo.

Diversity & Inclusion Award
This award is intended to recognize efforts to engage underrepresented audiences and efforts to increase diversity and inclusion throughout the VMN program and the educational programs volunteers provide in their communities. It could be a particular service project that the chapter did that successfully engaged new audiences, work done by a chapter committee to create new partnerships, work done by chapter leaders to make all members feel more welcome and included in the program, or many other possible efforts. This award will go to the chapter, not to an individual, though we can highlight particular individuals who played a significant role in our awards announcement.

In your nominations, please include the following:

Name, email address, and VMN chapter affiliation of the nominator
Name, email address, and VMN chapter affiliation for any primary VMN volunteer contacts for the diversity and inclusion efforts being nominated
Description of what the effort or activity was and how it successfully engaged underrepresented audiences or increased inclusion within the VMN program and/or educational programming by VMN volunteers. Identify any significant partners involved in the work.
One photo that illustrates the effort or activity. Please attach the photo as a separate file (not embedded in a document), include photo credits, and make sure we have the photographer's permission to use the photo.

Please help us recognize the outstanding people and work of your chapters!

From Our Sponsors - Fall 2024

11/1/2024

Orange-eye butterfly-bush--a newly added species to Virginia's invasive plant list. Photo by Gary P. Fleming.

13 species added to Virginia’s invasive plant list
Contributed by Emi Endo, Senior PR and marketing specialist for Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation

Thirteen more species that pose a threat to the state’s ecosystems have been added to the Virginia Invasive Plant Species List.

The additions include:

Italian arum (Arum italicum) - Competes with spring ephemerals due to early emergence, extremely difficult to remove, toxic to mammals if ingested, causes skin irritation
nandina (Nandina domesticum) - Frequently escapes from plantings, fruit is a rare but significant threat to birds such as Cedar Waxwing due to cyanide poisoning, invades forest understory
orange-eye butterfly-bush (Buddleja davidii) - Shrub grows to 10 feet in height, can escape plantings, provides nectar to pollinators but does not host native larvae

“If you learn you have an invasive species in your yard or garden, whether or not you planted it there, we strongly encourage removal,” said DCR Stewardship Biologist Kevin Heffernan. DCR provides a free, online Virginia Native Plant Finder tool to search for native species to plant instead of invasives.

To report a sighting of an invasive plant in Virginia, use the EDDMapS website or app, iNaturalist or visit: https://www.invasivespeciesva.org/report-sightings.

leafy green pawpaw tree branches with several fruits attached

Pawpaw trees in fruit. Photo by Michelle Prysby.

Shrub-lings for Sale!
Contributed by Ellen Powell, Conservation Education Coordinator, Virginia Department of Forestry

Are you a wildlife lover? Check out this year’s DOF seedling catalog for an affordable and effective way to improve wildlife habitat on your property.

The new catalog’s expanded selection of native shrubs includes black chokeberry, Washington hawthorn, Chickasaw plum, smooth sumac, pawpaw, and several species of shrub dogwood. All of them produce fruits that are eaten by many species of birds and mammals. Their flowers and leaves feed pollinators as well.

Perhaps most importantly, shrubs provide cover for wildlife. A shrub layer is an important habitat component that is missing from many landscapes. Shrubs “soften” the woods’ edge, providing a transition zone between the tree canopy and adjacent fields or yards. Shrub borders can be critical areas for wildlife to raise young, shelter from the weather, and escape from predators. Because shrubby edges are used by wildlife from both the nearby wooded and open areas, they tend to be excellent places for wildlife watching.

Perennial catalog favorites returning this year include elderberry, indigobush, hazelnut, chinkapin, and buttonbush. In all, the DOF seedling catalog now offers more than a dozen native shrubs. Each one has wildlife benefits, from flowers for pollinators to berries for songbirds to nuts for game animals.

These aren’t the kind of shrubs you might carefully shape into balls for a neat landscape. Instead, these species provide a natural look to yard borders or group plantings. The bare-root seedlings may need protection from deer to get a good start. Once established, many of them will sucker, or spread from the roots to form thickets.

Extension agent holding an Ailanthus seedling next to a house

Virginia Cooperative Extension Natural Resources Extension Agent explains how to kill the invasive tree-of-heaven. Photo captured from video, Fifteen Minutes in the Forest: Killing Tree of Heaven: Why, How, and When by the Virginia Forest Landowner Education program.

Fifteen Minutes in the Forest
Contributed by Jennifer Gagnon, Virginia Forest Landowner Education Program Coordinator, Virginia Tech/Virginia Cooperative Extension

Have you experienced Fifteen Minutes in the Forest? Yes, we should all get out in the woods in person when we are able, but you also can experience a succinct and informative quarter-hour of forest time through the Virginia Forest Landowner Education Program's Fifteen Minutes in the Forest video series. The playlist currently has 106 videos, including many with general naturalist appeal, even for people who are not forest landowners themselves. New videos are shown on Facebook Live and YouTube Premier at 12:15 on designated Fridays, followed by a question-and-answer time. And, all videos can be accessed anytime later on the YouTube playlist. The most popular video, with 41,714 views, is Fifteen Minutes in the Forest: Killing Tree of Heaven: Why, How & When.

Sunrise over the Atlantic Ocean at Virginia Beach. Photo by M. Prysby.

Contribute to Virginia's Ocean Plan

The Virginia Coastal Zone Management Program invites the public to help shape Virginia's vision for our ocean waters. We especially encourage Virginians to share their stories of how they connect to Virginia's coast and ocean waters: How and where do you interact with the Ocean? What ocean uses are important to you? What issues or concerns should we be considering?

The online forum has passed, but there still are various ways to provide your input:

Via a very brief survey.
Via an email to [email protected]
Via a voicemail or text message to (804) 420-8457
Send us a picture with a caption that describes your connection to the coast and ocean waters! We may use your picture in the future and will make sure to contact you before doing so. You can send pictures via text to (804) 420-8457 or via email to [email protected].

Hurricane Helene and Climate Change

11/1/2024

satellite map showing large storm over the southeastern United States

GOES-16 GeoColor satellite imagery showing Tropical Storm Helene moving through the Southeast U.S. September 26-27, 2024. Produced by the National Weather Service.

--By Quin Campbell, Virginia Master Naturalist Communications and Volunteer Engagement Intern and Virginia Tech Student

Hurricanes are becoming increasingly intense, destructive, and frequent, and this trend is only predicted to continue as temperatures increase. Like many, I was aware that climate change is contributing to stronger storms, but I didn’t fully understand the science behind it. That changed when I took a meteorology class at Virginia Tech, where I learned the specific ways climate change amplifies these storms and fuels their devastating power. Seeing the unprecedented destruction of Hurricane Helene in my home state of North Carolina and across other southeastern states made me realize just how essential it is to understand hurricanes and to address the climate crisis fueling them.

In order to understand climate change’s impact on hurricanes, we must first understand the storms themselves. Hurricanes start as a tropical storm that forms over the ocean. As the storm travels, warm ocean air rises and cools, which forms more clouds and thunderstorms. As this air condenses into water droplets, heat is released, providing more energy to the storm. As the storm moves over warm tropical waters, it collects more heat and evaporated water from the ocean, increasing in strength.

But how is climate change affecting all of this? The simple answer: higher temperatures equals more energy for hurricanes. Higher temperatures lead to increased evaporation. An increase in evaporation means the storm is fueled with water at greater volumes, and faster. Hotter air temperatures also mean that greater amounts of moisture can be held in the atmosphere, allowing the storm to consume greater amounts of water.

Increased temperatures not only affect the air, but the ocean as well. The ocean’s surface layer has risen 1.5°F in temperature since 1901, and a hotter ocean only makes a hurricane stronger and more destructive. Along with an increase in temperature, sea levels have risen about 8 inches since the late 19th century. Higher sea levels leads to an increased flood risk. As hurricanes hit land, storm surges occur, causing water to be pushed inland by strong winds. As sea levels rise, this water is pushed further and further inland with each storm, leading to greater destruction and fatalities.

The encouraging news is that we still have the power to make a difference in the face of climate change. Countless scientists and dedicated organizations are tirelessly working to develop solutions that can minimize and even reverse its impacts. On an individual level, passionate volunteers—like our own Virginia Master Naturalists—are stepping up to protect and restore our precious natural resources.Volunteers in the Chesapeake Bay area are actively supporting the Virginia Oyster Shell Recycling Program, which helps restore oyster populations along the bay. This work not only improves water quality but also strengthens natural defenses against coastal erosion. Volunteers have also helped out with Catch the King, an annual event where community members collect flood data during the highest tides of the year. VMN volunteers also helped plant a riparian buffer demonstration garden along the Chickahominy River, intended to improve water quality, create wildlife habitat, and provide erosion control.

With dedicated efforts from groups like the Virginia Master Naturalists, who are restoring ecosystems and building natural defenses, we have the opportunity to protect our communities and create a more resilient future in the face of climate change.

<<Previous

A Community-Based Natural Resources Volunteer﻿ Program

A Multitude of Moths - VMN 2025 Recertification Artwork

Laurels - Fall 2024

Seeking Nominations for the 2024 VMN Statewide Program Awards

From Our Sponsors - Fall 2024

Hurricane Helene and Climate Change

A Community-Based Natural Resources Volunteer Program