Bird Club Plans Morning Walks
September is the peak of the fall migration along the Blue Ridge, and Rockbridge Bird Club has walks planned to greet catch sight of birds coming and going through the region.
Birding at Boxerwood, scheduled for the second Saturday of each month, will resume on Sept. 12. These member-led walks are a great introduction for beginning birders, and an opportunity for experienced birders to track the local phenology – the seasonal changes in nature relating to weather and climate, including bird migration. Walks begin in the nature center parking lot at 8 a.m. and run approximately two hours.
Club members have also scheduled an outing on Sept. 26 to Harvey’s Knob Overlook, a popular hawk-watch site located south of Buchanan on the Blue Ridge Parkway (mile marker 95.3). In addition to large numbers of Broad-winged Hawks, Osprey and Bald Eagles are also in flight over the ridges in mid-September.
Birders can join Rockbridge Club members at the hawk watch at 10 a.m. Expert educators and committed Hawk Watch counters are at the site daily from mid-August to early November.
All Bird Club outings are free and open to members and nonmembers alike, with or without birding experience. Walkers are reminded to wear sturdy footwear and bring binoculars. In the event of rain, walks and outings will be canceled. For more information or weather update, visit Rockbridge Bird Club on Facebook or www.rockbridgebirdclub.org.
