Featuring the American Chestnut: 2019 Recertification Pin Artwork
The artwork for the 2019 Virginia Master Naturalist recertification pin is by Linda Duncan, VMN member in the Old Rag Chapter. It features a chestnut branch with leaves, burr, and…
Not Your Everyday Snake Encounter
Black rat snakes mating in the laundry room. Image by Sheila Barnett, VMN-Riverine Chapter. By Sheila Barnett, VMN-Riverine Chapter Spring is mating season. Earlier this month we found three black…
Virginia Master Naturalist volunteers publish guide to Virginia’s poisonous plants
Pokeweed (Phytolacca americana) is one of the poisonous plants highlighted in the new guidebook. Photo by Brenda Clements Jones, VMN-Old Rag Chapter. Originally published as press release by Krista Timney,…
“Eye” Want You To Know
Marie Majarov, sporting her hat for sun protection! Photo by Milan Majarov. –By Marie Majarov, VMN-Shenandoah Chapter Editor’s Note: The subject of this article is unusual for The Pollinator, but…
Discovering Plants in New Places
Plant press with golden ragwort (Packera aurea) sample. Photo by Ashley DeCarme. Southern twayblade (Listera australis), a native orchid. Photo by Ashley DeCarme, VMN – Peninsula Chapter –By Ashley DeCarme,…
Virginia Master Naturalists in 2017 – An Infographic
Virginia Master Naturalists continued to increase their service again in 2017 for the benefit of Virginia’s natural resources! Download our 2017 infographic as a PDFDownload our 2017 infographic as a…
“Digitizing Virginia’s Herbaria for Research and Education” celebrates successful first year with Virginia Master Naturalists
The online herbarium transcription page for VMN volunteers at www.notesfromnature.org. By Andrea Weeks, Associate Professor and Director of the Ted R. Bradley Herbarium, George Mason University In Fall 2016, a…
The Tsar of BRFAL
By Rich Brager, VMN-Blue Ridge Foothills and Lakes Chapter The Blue Ridge Foothills and Lakes Chapter (BRFAL) of the Virginia Master Naturalists is extremely lucky to have our own Tsar. …
Firefly Roadtrip!: One scientist’s epic, chronically under-caffeinated quest to count fireflies across the Commonwealth
This stuffed firefly friend accompanied me on my firefly roadtrip this summer, starting with Blandy Experimental Farm, a UVA biological research station near Winchester, VA. Night-time field work poses it’s…
“Rules-of-Thumb” for Poison Ivy Identification by the ITCHY Project
Text by Dr. John G. Jelesko, Virginia Tech facultyImages by Andrew Huang, Virginia Tech student Summer is in full swing, and so is the risk of poison ivy…