Rockbridge Bird Club will head to Apple Orchard Mountain early Saturday morning, May 2, to welcome back wood warblers and other spring migrants. Retired VMI biology professor and nature photographer Dick Rowe will lead the half-day outing.
Birders will meet at the Lexington Food Lion parking lot at 6:30 a.m., then caravan to the Blue Ridge Parkway. Alternatively, participants may meet the group at 7:30 a.m. at the Sunset Fields pull-off (mile marker 78.4). From there, birders will follow a two- mile-long access road on foot to the top of Apple Orchard Mountain and back, returning to Lexington by mid-afternoon.
In addition to hearing a variety of wood warblers and catching glimpses of them as they flit through the trees, participants are likely to see returning Vireos, Tanagers, and Rose-breasted Grosbeaks.
The club will hold its monthly walk at Boxerwood on Saturday morning, May 9. Birders meet in the nature center parking lot at 8 a.m. for a two-hour stroll through the field and woodlands. Boxerwood walks take place on the second Saturday of each month from fall through spring. This will be the final walk for the season.
The Rockbridge Bird Club will also lead a special Family Bird Walk at Boxerwood that same morning from 9 to 11 a.m. Several club members will peel off the earlier walk to help Boxerwood educators guide families through the nature center’s bird-friendly habitats. Families are asked to RSVP at www.boxerwood.org/events and bring binoculars if they have them. If not, Boxerwood will have some to borrow.
All club outings are free and open to members and non-members alike, with or without birding experience. Walkers are reminded to wear sturdy footwear and bring binoculars. In the event of rain, walks will be canceled.
For more information or weather update, visit Rockbridge Bird Club on Facebook or www.rockbridgebirdclub. org.
