Continuing Education Programs
2023 Field Trips
Upcoming Events:
 Collapse breccia from the Staunton Fault Zone
THE ROCK AND MINERAL GARDEN
GEOLOGY AND MINERAL RESOURCES PROGRAM HEADQUARTERS, CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA Field Trip Leader: Dorothy “Tepp” Tepper Date: Friday, June 9 2023; rain date Wednesday, June 14, 2023 Location: 900 Natural Resources Drive, in UVA’s Fontaine Research Park in Charlottesville Time: 10:30 am – 3:00 pm. There will be a 1-hour break for lunch. You can bring your own lunch, snacks and drinks or have lunch at the restaurant onsite. There are several other restaurants nearby. Limit: 15 participants The outdoor Educational Rock and Mineral Garden showcases 49 selected rocks from all over Virginia. It includes igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rocks that represent the diversity in geologic terranes and geologic provinces across the state. Participants will receive a guidebook titled A Guide to the Educational Rock and Mineral Garden: Samples of Virginia’s Geological Diversity, which contains brief descriptions and pictures of all the rocks for reference. Participants will be able to closely examine and take photographs of these specimens. The group will also tour the library adjacent to the Rock and Mineral Garden where there are additional interesting geological specimens on display. Wendy Kelley, a geologist with the Geology and Mineral Resources Program, will give presentations to our group about the different fields of geology, and about geologic time and Earth’s geologic history. Registration is now CLOSED. Note: Additional information will be sent to the participants. |
REPTILE AND AMPHIBIAN NATURE WALK
Germanna's Red Trail at Siegen Forest, Locust Grove, VA Date: Saturday, June 10, 2023. Location: Germanna Foundation Visitor’s Center, 2062 Germanna Highway (Route 3), Locust Grove, VA 22508. Time: 9:00 - 12:00 noon Field Trip Leaders: FOWL member and Virginia Master Naturalist Deanne Lawrence and FOWL member and local snake expert Melissa Kovach will be leading the walk. (FOWL - Friends of Wildlife at the Lake) Limit: 12 participants. Registration is now closed. Attention fellow snake enthusiasts and anyone eager to learn more about our local native reptiles and amphibians! Join us at Germanna's Red Trail for an educational hike and discussion. We'll chat about Virginia’s native snakes, like the harmless rough green snakes, racers, and ratsnakes that all call Siegen Forest home. We will also touch on the other reptiles and amphibians we may encounter along the trail. This approximately 2.5 mile hike is suitable for children and adults ages 8 and up. There are no restroom facilities available on the trail. The trail also includes a few inclines (no climbing required). Discussion throughout the hike is encouraged, so bring questions, but out of respect for nature, there should be no shouting, roughhousing, littering, or destructive behavior on the trail. All animals encountered will be given space and respect. We should leave no trace of our presence in the forest! What to Bring: water, bug spray, hiking shoes (waterproof recommended) - trails can be muddy in spots after rain. Where to Meet: In front of Germanna Foundation Visitor’s Center, 2062 Germanna Highway (Route 3), Locust Grove, VA 22508. (The Fort Germanna Visitor Center is located on Route 3 next to the Germanna Community College/Locust Grove campus. Turn into the entrance of the college and make the first right at the “Fort Germanna Visitor Center” sign). The Visitor Center, with information and restrooms, will be open from 12-4 pm for the attendees' convenience. NO RAIN DATE: Walk will be cancelled in the event of inclement weather. Registrants will be notified by email the day before the planned walk. Walk leaders will also provide contact information for any communications on the morning of the hike. |
Past Events:
ORMN birding team at Stony Brook Farm on Global Big Day 2023; Credit: Sue Weis
Global Big Day (May 13, 2023)
This year’s Global Big Day was held at Stony Brook Farm in Madison County on May 13, 2023. Walk leader, Charlene Uhl, led a team that identified 44 distinct bird species on the farm's diverse habitats, including forest, meadows, streams, pastures, a pond, and a fruit tree orchard.
Big Day is an annual event that celebrates the spring migration of birds around the world. ORMN’s earlier field trip as part of the Great Backyard Bird Count established a “baseline” of the birds that have been with us through the winter. Global Bird Day helps us recognize and record the birds that are starting to appear as part of the year’s spring migration. The bird observations were submitted to The Cornell Lab for Ornithology and support conservation worldwide.
This year’s Global Big Day was held at Stony Brook Farm in Madison County on May 13, 2023. Walk leader, Charlene Uhl, led a team that identified 44 distinct bird species on the farm's diverse habitats, including forest, meadows, streams, pastures, a pond, and a fruit tree orchard.
Big Day is an annual event that celebrates the spring migration of birds around the world. ORMN’s earlier field trip as part of the Great Backyard Bird Count established a “baseline” of the birds that have been with us through the winter. Global Bird Day helps us recognize and record the birds that are starting to appear as part of the year’s spring migration. The bird observations were submitted to The Cornell Lab for Ornithology and support conservation worldwide.
Rain, Rain, Stay in My Rain Garden (May 5, 2023)
Alex and Linda Bueno hosted a tour of their rain garden with Richard Jacobs, Professional Engineer, Urban Program Manager from the Culpeper Soil and Water Conservation District. In summer 2022, the Buenos worked with Richard to design a terraced rain garden with native pollinator plants. The program addressed the design and installation process for the rain garden and then followed with a tour of the completed project. The group also made a site visit to the bioretention pond at the Little Fork Fire Station near the house.
Alex and Linda Bueno hosted a tour of their rain garden with Richard Jacobs, Professional Engineer, Urban Program Manager from the Culpeper Soil and Water Conservation District. In summer 2022, the Buenos worked with Richard to design a terraced rain garden with native pollinator plants. The program addressed the design and installation process for the rain garden and then followed with a tour of the completed project. The group also made a site visit to the bioretention pond at the Little Fork Fire Station near the house.
Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis); Credit: Carolyn Smith
3rd Annual ORMN Wildflower Walks (April 13 and 19, 2023
The 3rd annual ORMN Wildflower Walks at the Smith family farm in Madison County were held on April 13 and 19, 2023. Walk leader, Carolyn Smith, highlighted a wide variety of early blooming natives, including bluebells, rue anemone, trillium, trout lily, toothwort, and wood poppies. Planting started over 50 years ago by the owner’s parents and has been continued since then. The walks also offered the opportunity to see a lodge built by the resident beaver on one of the farm’s ponds.
The 3rd annual ORMN Wildflower Walks at the Smith family farm in Madison County were held on April 13 and 19, 2023. Walk leader, Carolyn Smith, highlighted a wide variety of early blooming natives, including bluebells, rue anemone, trillium, trout lily, toothwort, and wood poppies. Planting started over 50 years ago by the owner’s parents and has been continued since then. The walks also offered the opportunity to see a lodge built by the resident beaver on one of the farm’s ponds.
 Swimming beaver; Credit: Human-Beaver Coexistence Fund
Beaver Habitat and Lodge at Clifton Institute (April 7, 2023) On April 7, 2023, we celebrated International Beaver Day with the Human-Beaver Coexistence Fund (HBCF) and The Clifton Institute. We partnered on an evening trail walk at Clifton Institute to explore the human-made ponds and adjacent wetlands created by the preserve’s resident beavers and to look for evidence of beaver activity. |
Siegen Forest Bluebell Walk (April 8, 2023)
 Bluebells at Siegen Forest (2022); Photo: Deanne Lawrence
The arrival of bluebells is a sign that spring has arrived! Virginia bluebells typically grow in moist woodlands and river floodplains, flowering in late March and throughout the spring. ORMN team leaders Deanne Lawrence and Phoebe Muenger led a bluebell walk in the 170-acre Siegen Forest. They followed the Red Trail along the Rapidan River to view bluebells, along with yellow trout lily and other spring ephemerals.
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Features of karst hydrology can be observed in Dream Lake in Luray Caverns, VA; Photo: Dorothy Tepper
Hydrogeology, Flooding and Debris Flows (March 25, 2023)
ORMN's Dorothy "Tepp" Tepper provided a general introduction to groundwater and surface water concepts, including interactions between groundwater and surface water. Tepp worked for the US Geological Survey (USGS) for 30 years as a hydrogeologist. Her program addressed:
ORMN's Dorothy "Tepp" Tepper provided a general introduction to groundwater and surface water concepts, including interactions between groundwater and surface water. Tepp worked for the US Geological Survey (USGS) for 30 years as a hydrogeologist. Her program addressed:
- development of caves and other karst features produced by groundwater flow;
- landforms associated with streams, such as waterfalls, floodplains, and meanders;
- floods, including flash floods and areal floods; and
- historic debris flows caused by extreme weather events in Virginia's Nelson County (1969) and Madison County (1995).
Great Backyard Bird Count: ORMN Highlights (February 18, 2023)
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Our chapter was an active participant in the 26th Great Backyard Bird Count sponsored by the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, the Audubon Society and Birds Canada.
While one location canceled due to weather, the Siegen Forest team (cosponsored by the Central Rappahannock MN chapter) and the Sycamore Grove Farm team identified and reported a substantial number of species on eBird: 18 at Siegen and 24 at Sycamore Grove. Both sites had numerous woodpeckers, including pileated, hairy, and red-bellied woodpeckers. We also had bluebirds, titmice, chickadees, white-throated sparrows, dark-eyed juncos and nuthatches. The Siegen team spotted a bald eagle in its nest above the Rapidan River, while the Sycamore Grove team recorded Eastern Meadowlarks which are found in grasslands. If you didn’t get to participate this year, mark your calendar now: the 2024 GBBC starts on February 16! 
Sycamore Grove Farm team; GBBC 2/18/23; Credit: Scott Uhl
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Madison County: Sycamore Grove Farm -- Team leaders Charlene Uhl and Alan Edmunds (ORMN). Orange County: Siegen Forest –- Hosted by the Germanna Foundation and led by Joella Killian (Central Rappahannock MN chapter) and Deanne Lawrence (ORMN). 
Siegen Forest team, GBBC 2/18/23; Credit: Deanne Lawrence
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2022 Field Trips
Collapse breccia from the Staunton Fault Zone
THE ROCK AND MINERAL GARDEN (December 9, 2022)
GEOLOGY AND MINERAL RESOURCES PROGRAM HEADQUARTERS, CHARLOTTESVILLE
Dorothy Tepper led a field trip highlighting Virginia's rocks at the outdoor Educational Rock and Mineral Garden in Charlottesville, VA. The garden includes igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks that represent the diversity in geologic terrains and geologic provinces across the commonwealth. Participants received a guidebook titled A Guide to the Educational Rock and Mineral Garden: Samples of Virginia’s Geological Diversity, which contains brief descriptions and pictures of all the rocks for reference. The group also toured the library adjacent to the Rock and Mineral Garden where there are additional interesting geological specimens on display.
GEOLOGY AND MINERAL RESOURCES PROGRAM HEADQUARTERS, CHARLOTTESVILLE
Dorothy Tepper led a field trip highlighting Virginia's rocks at the outdoor Educational Rock and Mineral Garden in Charlottesville, VA. The garden includes igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks that represent the diversity in geologic terrains and geologic provinces across the commonwealth. Participants received a guidebook titled A Guide to the Educational Rock and Mineral Garden: Samples of Virginia’s Geological Diversity, which contains brief descriptions and pictures of all the rocks for reference. The group also toured the library adjacent to the Rock and Mineral Garden where there are additional interesting geological specimens on display.
GEOLOGY OF SHENANDOAH NATIONAL PARK (November 3, 2022)
This field trip included 6 stops at overlooks along Skyline Drive. At most of the stops, participants looked at outcrops in the overlook parking area. At others, they walked a short distance from the overlook to look at outcrops along Skyline Drive.
The viewing sites highlighted Precambrian igneous and metamorphic rocks that range from 1.2 billion years old to 570 million years old. Highlights of the field trip included examining well-developed columnar jointing, locating a feeder dike, finding garnets in a 1.2 billion-year-old gneiss, identifying different volcanic layers in the profile of Stony Man, and a discussion of the uniqueness of the Old Rag Granite.
This field trip included 6 stops at overlooks along Skyline Drive. At most of the stops, participants looked at outcrops in the overlook parking area. At others, they walked a short distance from the overlook to look at outcrops along Skyline Drive.
The viewing sites highlighted Precambrian igneous and metamorphic rocks that range from 1.2 billion years old to 570 million years old. Highlights of the field trip included examining well-developed columnar jointing, locating a feeder dike, finding garnets in a 1.2 billion-year-old gneiss, identifying different volcanic layers in the profile of Stony Man, and a discussion of the uniqueness of the Old Rag Granite.
FOWL Fest (October 22, 2022)
Friends of Wildlife at the Lake (FOWL) hosted its first Wildlife Education Festival at the Lake of the Woods Community Center in Locust Grove, VA. This free event featured state and non-profit professionals who lead wildlife conservation and inspiring people to value the outdoors and their role in nature, caring for sick, injured and orphaned wildlife, and providing educational opportunities and resources to the public.
Festival guests included a Department of Wildlife Resources Conservation Officer; Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources Conservation Wildlife Biologist; Rockfish Wildlife Sanctuary, Interim Director; Chief Ranger from Lake Anna State Park;
Orange County Animal Control Officer; Dispatches from the Forest nature-based education; and Virginia Native Plant Society
Friends of Wildlife at the Lake (FOWL) hosted its first Wildlife Education Festival at the Lake of the Woods Community Center in Locust Grove, VA. This free event featured state and non-profit professionals who lead wildlife conservation and inspiring people to value the outdoors and their role in nature, caring for sick, injured and orphaned wildlife, and providing educational opportunities and resources to the public.
Festival guests included a Department of Wildlife Resources Conservation Officer; Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources Conservation Wildlife Biologist; Rockfish Wildlife Sanctuary, Interim Director; Chief Ranger from Lake Anna State Park;
Orange County Animal Control Officer; Dispatches from the Forest nature-based education; and Virginia Native Plant Society
Monarchs and Milkweed (August 23, 2022)
On August 23, a CE Field Trip was conducted at Carolyn Smith's farm on the Monarch larva monitoring project. Milkweed is the exclusive plant on which monarch butterflies lay their eggs. The iconic and endangered monarch butterfly makes an amazing journey from its summer breeding grounds to its overwintering grounds in the mountains of Mexico. Our area of the Piedmont is on the southbound flyway and in August, thousands of monarchs will be lay eggs all around us, which will hatch, metamorphose and fly to Mexico.
This 130-acre farm had sites open for observation. Participants examined milkweed for eggs and caterpillars and learned how data are compiled for a national database that has been active since 1997. The monarch nursery was also open.
This 130-acre farm had sites open for observation. Participants examined milkweed for eggs and caterpillars and learned how data are compiled for a national database that has been active since 1997. The monarch nursery was also open.
iNaturalist Basics and Skill Building (July 29, 2022)
This field trip combined “classroom instruction” and field application of the iNaturalist app. ORMN member Rebeca Sanchez-Burr discussed the major functions of iNaturalist, including taking and uploading photographs, recording sounds, connecting with experts who can identify organisms and how to connect with other naturalists. Held at the home of ORMN member Jere Willis in Culpeper, the group explored the different habitats on the property, including cultivated areas and natural areas, forest and waterfront habitats.
Global Big Day: ORMN Field Trip Highlights (May 14, 2022)
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The annual Global Big Day recognizes World Migratory Bird Day by inviting people, individually or in groups, to report citizen science bird observation data for scientists at the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology and other organizations.
Two field trips celebrated this year’s Global Big Day in Central Virginia. Sycamore Grove Farm offered birders the opportunity to observe grassland birds as well as bird species that live on the margin of woods. Siegen Forest provided birders a mature forest habitat that runs along the Rapidan River. The two groups logged more than six hours in the field and reported a combined total of 67 species and 321 total birds. Both field trips were sponsored by Old Rag Master Naturalists, Central Rappahannock Master Naturalists and the Germanna Foundation. Orange County: Siegen Forest –- Hosted by the Germanna Foundation and led by Joella Killian (Central Rappahannock MN chapter) and Deanne Lawrence (ORMN Class XI). Madison County: Sycamore Grove Farm -- Hosted and led by Charlene Uhl (ORMN chapter). |
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Photo Highlights: Smith Farm Wildflower Walk (May 10, 2022)
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Hydrology, Floods and Debris Flows (April 9, 2022)
ORMN's Dorothy Tepper will provide a general introduction to concepts on groundwater, surface water and their interactions. She will also address:
Hydrology, Floods and Debris Flows (April 9, 2022)
ORMN's Dorothy Tepper will provide a general introduction to concepts on groundwater, surface water and their interactions. She will also address:
- development of caves and other karst features produced by groundwater flow;
- landforms associated with streams, such as waterfalls, floodplains, and meanders;
- floods, including flash floods and catastrophic flooding that can produce debris flows; and
- historic debris flows caused by extreme weather events in Virginia's Nelson County (1969) and Madison County (1995).
Great Backyard Bird Count (February 18, 19, 20, 21, 2022)
The Great Backyard Bird Count is an annual international event sponsored by The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, the National Audubon Society, and Birds Canada. Volunteers spend time in their favorite places watching and counting as many birds as they can and reporting them. These observations help scientists to better understand global bird populations before one of their annual migrations. ORMN groups conducted bird counts at single locations in Rappahannock, Culpeper, Fauquier, Orange and Madison counties.
The Great Backyard Bird Count is an annual international event sponsored by The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, the National Audubon Society, and Birds Canada. Volunteers spend time in their favorite places watching and counting as many birds as they can and reporting them. These observations help scientists to better understand global bird populations before one of their annual migrations. ORMN groups conducted bird counts at single locations in Rappahannock, Culpeper, Fauquier, Orange and Madison counties.
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ORMN sponsored birding groups across five of our chapter counties, with a total of thirty-seven volunteers. The participants included ORMN members, Class XI students and others from the northern Piedmont area. Even on the days that were blustery and cold, the participants were enthusiastic and excited by the birds they observed and the natural environment through which they traversed. Below is the summary of their observations:
Lenn Park/Culpeper County Leaders: Alex & Linda Bueno
Sycamore Grove Farm/Madison County Leader: Charlene Uhl
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Buzz Van Santvoord farm/Orange County
Leader: Buzz Van Santvoord
Eldon Farms/Rappahannock County Leaders: Patty Lane & Sara Lawrey
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Sky Meadows State Park/Fauquier County
Leaders: Lynne Leeper & Linda Lowery
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2021 Field Trips
Audubon at Home Wildlife Sanctuary–Certified Properties. (November 13, 2021)
On November 13, seven certified properties were on the ORMN Audubon at Home Wildlife Sanctuary tour. The field trip sites offered differing habitats, sizes, and goals of the sanctuary. Properties included:
On November 13, seven certified properties were on the ORMN Audubon at Home Wildlife Sanctuary tour. The field trip sites offered differing habitats, sizes, and goals of the sanctuary. Properties included:
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FAUQUIER COUNTY
Renee Witt Suburban: 0.66 acres (no HOA); 18 year old habitat. Most of the property is an example of restoring understory and shaded areas. MADISON COUNTY Charlene Uhl Rural: 24 acres; 10 year old habitat. Originally a hay field surrounded with woods on three sides. Invasive removal, plantings of native trees and plants; adding pollinator plants/shrubs in hedgerows; planned pond . RAPPAHANNOCK COUNTY Gail Swift Suburban: 2 acres; 4 year old habitat Following removal of 100 box woods and continued reduction of lawn to include a wildflower meadow and trees. |
RAPPAHANNOCK COUNTY PARK
Park: 7.3 acres; Overseen by Park Authority since 1978. Wildlife sanctuary work began in 2018, with removal of invasive growth, restoring the forest canopy, creating a Virginia bluebell trail, two pollinator gardens. Now planting native low growth understory trees/shrubs in REC right-ofway. RAPPAHANNOCK COUNTY Bonnie Beers Rural: 56 acres; 3.5 year old habitat. Converting 20 acres of former hay fields into forestland, managing a low-growth grass-pollinator meadow, planting native understory trees, shrubs and forbs to reduce mowed areas and provide wildlife habitat /food sources. Invasive plant removal ongoing. |
CULPEPER COUNTY
Barry Buschow Boston; Rural: 4 acres; 3 year old habitat A wildlife sanctuary with plans to create a sanctuary by planting pollinator mini meadows that will eventually connect and replace the current fescue lawn. Cindy Colson Suburban: 4 acres; 18 month old habitat Creating and expanding wildlife sanctuary by reducing lawn, preserving wooded areas, and enhancing established habitat. Includes garden rooms and outdoor sculpture gallery. Future plans include converting an adjacent one acre lot into a woodland park to be enjoyed by the neighborhood. |
EDDMapS training (September 20, 2021)
EDDMapS is an internet based web application for reporting, mapping and managing data on invasive species designed for easy use in the field by citizen-scientists with a smartphone equipped with a working camera. The EDDmapS application is widely used across the country by community scientists, conservation organizations, and land managers for determining where to direct resources for the control of invasive plants, insects and animals as well as diseases and pathogens that threaten the health of our ecosystems. ORMN member Rebeca Sanchez Burr completed the statewide training on EDDMapS and was the instructor for this training. For more information about EDDMaps, click here.
EDDMapS is an internet based web application for reporting, mapping and managing data on invasive species designed for easy use in the field by citizen-scientists with a smartphone equipped with a working camera. The EDDmapS application is widely used across the country by community scientists, conservation organizations, and land managers for determining where to direct resources for the control of invasive plants, insects and animals as well as diseases and pathogens that threaten the health of our ecosystems. ORMN member Rebeca Sanchez Burr completed the statewide training on EDDMapS and was the instructor for this training. For more information about EDDMaps, click here.
Pollinator/wildflower walk (July/August/September, 2021)
Dana Squire hosted three separate walks through her 5-acre pollinator meadow located outside the town of Madison: July 29th, August 30th, and September 10th. The land was converted from a fescue hayfield to a native warm season grass and wildflower meadow 8 years ago. Dana co-led the walks with experts on pollinators. The July and August walks were led by Alex Newhart, an entomologist and biochemist who is a member of the Shenandoah Chapter of the Virginia Master Naturalists. The September walk was led by Celia Vuocolo, Private Lands Biologist with the Natural Resource Conservation Service and Quail Forever. The walks held in July and August featured a colorful diversity of flowering plants and butterflies, while the September walk was ablaze with sunflower and goldenrod blooms covered with bumblebees and other pollinators.
Click here to see the slide show.
Dana Squire hosted three separate walks through her 5-acre pollinator meadow located outside the town of Madison: July 29th, August 30th, and September 10th. The land was converted from a fescue hayfield to a native warm season grass and wildflower meadow 8 years ago. Dana co-led the walks with experts on pollinators. The July and August walks were led by Alex Newhart, an entomologist and biochemist who is a member of the Shenandoah Chapter of the Virginia Master Naturalists. The September walk was led by Celia Vuocolo, Private Lands Biologist with the Natural Resource Conservation Service and Quail Forever. The walks held in July and August featured a colorful diversity of flowering plants and butterflies, while the September walk was ablaze with sunflower and goldenrod blooms covered with bumblebees and other pollinators.
Click here to see the slide show.
Monarch Larva Monitoring – field data collection and larva nursery (August 25, 2021)
On August 25, a CE Field Trip was conducted at Carolyn Smith's farm on the Monarch larva monitoring project. Milkweed is the exclusive plant on which monarch butterflies lay their eggs. This 130-acre farm ha two sites open for observation: a wild site with established common milkweed plants that is mowed only once a year; and a cultivated garden patch that has five native milkweed species as well as a wide variety of nectar plants for monarchs. Participants examined milkweed for eggs and caterpillars and learned how data are compiled for a national database that has been active since 1997. The monarch nursery was also open. |
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