Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy

Please Take Action by Attending this Public Input Session: On Wednesday, July 29 at 7pm, Supervisor Kurtz, along with other members of the county, will hold a public meeting to hear the county’s plans to realign the Woods Road. This is a serious threat to the Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve. The location for the meeting is 215 Depot Court in Leesburg. Please come out to show your support for Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve!

Loudoun County claims that the landfill’s expansion requires that The Woods Road be shifted from its current location into the preserve itself. If this occurs it could seriously harm the preserve’s natural values and destroy a rare natural habitat.

First we need to ask if this relocation is necessary at all. The county claims it is necessary based on a special exception that was passed over 15 years ago.

Lots has changed since then and it is hard to believe that this still the case especially when one considers how valuable and special the Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve is.

1) Seriously degrade, if not destroy, a rare natural habitat, a Mountain/Piedmont Basic Seepage Swamp, of which there are only 12 examples known in Virginia.

2) Seriously impair the integrity of the entire natural preserve which is a mix various different kinds of habitats including the large, intact upland forest that The Woods Road would bisect. It will disrupt wildlife habitat, destroy wetlands and other sensitive areas.

3) Create a paved road with a minimum speed limit of 35/mph right next to a natural area and result in excessive and unnecessary amounts of roadkill.

4) Destroy an historic road that has existed for over two centuries and linked the Carolina Road to Oatlands Plantation.

5) Possibly destroy other archaeological treasures along this historic road.

6) Violate an existing Virginia Outdoor Foundation conservation easement.

At the March 2008 meeting on The Woods Road, in response to concerns raised by its citizens, the county indicated they would create a transparent process and involve various stakeholders in the development of their plans for The Woods Road. Inexcusably this has not happened. To our knowledge the public has not been involved in any of the deliberations that have occurred since March 2008. This is not a transparent process and is indicative of a county handling business as they always have and ignoring citizens and their concerns for the environment.

The Woods Road as it exists today is an historic dirt road steeped in both natural and cultural history that forces people who drive on it to slow down; to protect the treasure that is Banshee Reeks, it should stay the same.

Please attend this meeting! Let’s fill the room and show our support for Banshee Reeks! In addition, email your Supervisor bos@loudoun.gov and let them know how much you value Banshee Reeks and keeping it as it is!

So we held our first evening amphibian foray into the woods last night.  The plan was to enjoy the Gray Tree Frog chorus at the Blue Ridge Center, since in past years, the chorus was in full swing this time of year. The Gray Tree Frogs, however, must have missed the note because they stayed quiet all evening.

That was ok though, since lots and lots of American Toads and Green Frogs, as well as one Bullfrog, were out and about.

We started the evening with a short talk about amphibians and Gray Tree Frogs in particular, looked at photos of the frogs (including the egg and tadpole stages as well as frog scat!) and listened to a recording of the Gray Tree Frogs calling so we all knew what to listen for. 

We had 18 people on the walk with us, three of whom were burgeoning (6-8 year old) herpetologists. As we headed out along the trail, it didn’t take long to find our first American Toad crossing the path.  The three young boys hopped into action and caught it so we all could see.

We stayed at the pond near the visitors center for a bit as we listened to the Green Frogs calling and swimming through the green duckweed. We then headed down to Piney Run stream to see if we could hear some other species….like our elusive Gray Tree Frogs. Along the walk, we must have encountered at least 15 more American Toads – of all shapes and sizes. We had just had a light rain and it was humid so they were no doubt out hunting for their dinners.

Along Piney Run, we listened for a bit, observed some bats feeding just over the tree tops, and scanned the trees for any eyes watching us. After a pause here, we headed back to the pond. By this time, it was dark and the Green Frogs, with their banjo twang, were in full song. We used our headlamps and flashlights to scan the pond and saw lots of eyes reflecting back. It was great to see so many of them.

We wrapped up a little past 9pm and headed back to the visitor center where we found another toad hunting around the house. It was fun doing a nightime nature walk and we look forward to doing it again. Keep an eye on the Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy Programs Calendar for more events like this.

Ten people, including a couple celebrating their 27th wedding anniversary, participated in the Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy’s free monthly bird walk, led by Joe Coleman & Larry Meade, at the Blue Ridge Center this morning and found 56 species in the fields and woods there. 

After listening to a couple of Grasshopper Sparrows and the first of many (maybe 30) Indigo Buntings we carpooled to the southern edge of the center at the end of Sawmill Rd.  From there we walked along the western edge of the field where we heard and saw a variety of birds including a couple of White-eyed Vireos but missed on the Blue-winged Warblers and Chats that nest in that area. 

We then followed Butterfly Alley to Sweet Run & into the dense forest along the stream to the Arnold Rd Trail.  Within 200 yds of entering the woods we started hearing numerous Acadian Flycatchers (about one every 100 yards or so) and a few Wood Thrushes, but not a single Kentucky Warbler or Ovenbird, both of which were common in this area just a few weeks ago.  However, we did start hearing and then finally got great looks at several Scarlet Tanagers, a few of which were beginning to molt.

We took a side trip to Gordon Pond where we heard and saw a number of the same forest species as before and added a few more including several Blue-gray Gnatcatchers.  After visiting the Gordon Pond we returned to the Little Turtle Trail where a few of us heard a Worm-eating Warbler. 

After crossing Piney Run we took the Farmstead Loop back to the Visitor Center, arriving there about 12:15.  There was a flurry of activity around the small pond near the Visitor Center, including a very cooperative Louisiana Waterthrush which posed for photos.  We added a couple more species, including a Raven, while tallying on the porch. 
 
When we drove back to Sawmill Rd to pick up our cars about 12:30 there was a Blue-winged Warbler in the hedgerow next to the parking area.
 
In addition to a lot of different butterflies, we also saw two large Black Snakes, one high in the trees where there was a lot of bird activity and one high on the side of one of the old stone houses on the center. There were also American Toads all along the trail and numerous green frogs at the pond. It was a great day for exploring Loudoun nature!

Al Eddy caught some great nature and wildlife photos during the walk and a few are included here in this post. 

Number of species:     56

Green Heron, Black Vulture, Turkey Vulture, Red-shouldered Hawk, Mourning Dove, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, ChimneySwift, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Belted Kingfisher, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Hairy Woodpecker, Pileated Woodpecker, Eastern Wood-Pewee, Acadian Flycatcher, Eastern Phoebe, Great Crested Flycatcher, Eastern Kingbird, White-eyed Vireo, Red-eyed Vireo, Blue Jay, American Crow, Fish Crow, Common Raven, Barn Swallow, Carolina Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, White-breasted Nuthatch, Carolina Wren, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Eastern Bluebird, Wood Thrush, American Robin, Gray Catbird, Northern Mockingbird, Brown Thrasher, European Starling, Cedar Waxwing, Blue-winged Warbler, Worm-eating Warbler, Louisiana Waterthrush, Common Yellowthroat, Scarlet Tanager, Eastern Towhee, Chipping Sparrow, Field Sparrow, Grasshopper Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Northern Cardinal, Blue Grosbeak, Indigo Bunting, Common Grackle, Orchard Oriole, House Finch, American Goldfinch, House Sparrow