Bringing Life to the Cemetery

January 4, 2025January 4, 2025 / holstonriversmn

HRVMN Volunteers installed a Bluebird House in memory of beloved volunteer, Randy Smith. The bird house is very near Randy’s grave.

The “rewilding” of cemeteries is getting more attention these days, as is evidenced by this New York Times article. So when the Emory & Henry-Holston Conference cemetery started looking for a way to reduce mowing of unused space, there were clever plans that came together.

The E&H Cemetery Board voted unanimously to try to use that space for something more natural. A local Nature Conservancy staffer suggested a program championed by US Fish and Wildlife called their Partners program. Together with the Canaan Valley Institute, they help landowners rewild some of their property — creating native plant habitat that not only benefits wildlife but also water quality.

Almost 3 acres in the E&H-Holston Conference Cemetery have been turned into a native plant meadow. VMN volunteers dedicate hours of service to reducing invasive plants along the perimeter and planting native plants and trees. Cemetery bird walks are offered to the community. Educational articles have been shared in local news outlets. And letters that go out annually to folks with plots in the cemetery are filled with educational information about the work being done for the environment in this location.

So far, more than 100 hours have been clocked doing cemetery stewardship, and volunteers are excited about spring weather to get back to cutting privet. Well…maybe excited isn’t exactly the right word. 🙂

Bluebirds, Goldfinches, Field Sparrows, Song Sparrows and more are seen feeding on the winter stalks found in the cemetery meadow.

Four bluebird boxes have been added to the cemetery meadow so far, and each box was host to a family birds in the summer of 2024.

The cemetery Bluebird boxes were built by Gate City resident, Bucky Claybaugh.

The meadow project had a little set back when someone decided to be “helpful” and mowed the meadow down during the dormant season. Hard-working volunteers spent many hours removing the thick thatch created by this event so that new flowers could pop out in the spring — and they did! The meadow will be cut or burned with some regularity, but that is a decision that will be made in conjunction with the project managers, US Fish and Wildlife. Also, it’s important to remember that event those dormant stalks are providing food and shelter for native birds and small mammals like Fox Squirrels, Foxes, and Bunnies.

American Goldfinch eating the seats from dormant flower stalks.

Research is being conducted and data collected in the cemetery meadow by student interns like Mendy Bechtold, VMN volunteer Russ McDaniel, and E&H faculty member Dr. Mark Burnham. Evidence for an increase in biodiversity in the unmowed section is mounting up after only 2 seasons of growth. (photo, Mendy Bechtold)

When trees are trimmed in the cemetery, some are left as “snags” to provide support for cavity nesting birds, like these Northern Flickers found routinely in the cemetery. There was also a Flicker nest found there in the summer of 2024 during a cemetery bird walk.

Turns out, there’s a lot of life in the cemetery!

Salty Bird Success!

January 4, 2025January 4, 2025 / holstonriversmn

With more than 100 participants, HRVMN volunteers are calling the first Salty Bird Festival a hit!

Aimed at getting kids in the community excited about living in such an incredible biodiversity hot spot, the first ever Salty Bird Festival (September 22, 2024) had HRVMN volunteers lined up next to the famous Saltville Well Fields (DWR Bird and Wildlife Trail number MCM 02) to offer education about bird species, bird songs, bird habitat, bird bones, bird books, bird crafts, bird everything!

We were especially grateful for event partners that included the Saltville Public Library, Museum of the Middle Appalachians. and the Smyth County Chamber of Commerce.

Plans are underway for the second annual Salty Bird Festival on October 4, 2024. There is discussion of expanding the event to include a lecture for adults on Friday evening, and a community bird walk on Sunday morning. STAY TUNED FOR DETAILS!

Participants kept a running list of birds seen during the event. We were especially excited about a Yello-billed Cuckoo who posed in the parking lot for a good look!

Volunteer Jill Henderson had a fun game to help learn about bird songs. See that Blue Jay taped to her tent? Kids were encouraged to check off Bingo card squares with birds and if they checked off at least three, they could go to the Saltville Public Library booth for a free book and they could get a door prize from the Salty Bird welcome tent!

So many young families attended!

HRVMN volunteer Katie Cordle got to show some tiny birders how to use a spotting scope on a Great Egret who happily posed for the event!

Showing us his bird book, this little fella’s great grandmother is the namesake for the trail at the Well Fields: The Helen Barbrow Trail.

Cody Stevenson is an E&H grad working at the Museum of the Middle Appalachians. He used his amazing digital art skills to create a poster that shows how birds evolved from dinosaurs!

We were lucky to have area partners who would share information with visitors. Jeremy Stout from the Steele Creek Nature Center brought bones and fossils and cool information and the kids loved it! (So did the adults!)

The festival was truly a family affair! And visitors included community members wishing to learn more and even well-known experts in the bird and environmental studies community.

A budding birder!

HRVMN volunteer Sandy Chambers got into the fun by creating her own bird costume for the event! We’re not sure what species she is…maybe a Yellow-billed Fringed Pipit. Dr. Vernon Hicks drove down from Kentucky to enjoy the event!

E&H Student Anna Woodall got the joy of wrapping up the day by showing us the clicker that proved we had more than 100 participants over the course of the morning!

Holston Rivers Volunteer Helps Discover Flower Flies on the Blue Ridge Parkway

June 30, 2023January 11, 2024 / holstonriversmn

VMN volunteers have been participating in several biodiversity surveys on the Blue Ridge Parkway, organized by the National Park Service’s Appalachian Highlands Science Learning Center. The most recent effort has been a survey of flower flies (family Syrphidae), which are important pollinators of native plants. A significant section of the parkway remained unstudied, however, until this year, when Russ McDaniel of the Holston Rivers Chapter stepped up to the task. He visited the Fisher’s Peak Meadows and Groundhog Mountain areas of the parkway over the summer, collected flower flies (under an NPS collection permit), and delivered them to NPS scientist Paul Super for identification. Paul recently reported that Russ found twelve different flower fly species at his sites, including at least one species not previously identified for the Virginia section of the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Oblique Stripetail (Allograpta obliqua)
Common Drone Fly (Eristalis tenax)
Transverse-banded Drone Fly (Eristalis transversa)
aphideater (Eupeodes americanus or pomus)–female; cannot be told apart
Variable Duskyface (Melanostoma mellinum)
ant fly (Microdon sp.)
Black-striped Globetail (Sphaerophoria novaeangliae)
Eastern Calligrapher (Toxomerus geminatus)
Margined Calligrapher (Toxomerus marginatus)
Maize Calligrapher (Toxomerus politus)
Yellow-faced Swiftwing (Volucella facialis)–new for VA section of Parkway
American Harlequin (Xanthogramma flavipes)

Congratulations to Russ, and well done on this citizen science effort!

Volunteer Jill Henderson Helps Young Community Members Learn About Birds

June 30, 2023January 11, 2024 / holstonriversmn

“Backyard Birds with Jill”, led by Jill Henderson (VMN-Holston Rivers Chapter) hosted a learning exhibit for the Meadowview Elementary School community at their annual Fall Festival held at the school on Saturday, November 5. Approximately 250 students, family members, and teachers from the Meadowview community in rural Washington County participated in the interactive display. Students spun the bird wheel and were asked to identify the bird name on the wheel by using The Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Backyard Birds Flash Cards. The activity provided an opportunity to help students learn bird characteristics including size, shape, color pattern, habitat, behavior and range so they can identify the bird when they see them in their own backyard. Using the bird sound app feature on the flash cards, participants were able to hear the bird’s sound to also aid in identification. Each student received a really cool bird sticker for their backpack (or shirt!) To add to someone’s post-event backyard bird fun, “Backyard Birds with Jill” donated a gift basket for the silent auction that included a bird feeder, 8 pounds of bird seed, and a set of flash cards.

Holston Rivers Volunteers Use Birds to Connect with Community

June 29, 2023 / holstonriversmn

The Holston Rivers chapter has been doing a lot of observations at DWR Bird and Wildlife site MCM02 — The Well Fields in Saltville. During Covid, volunteers logged many hours of observations in iNaturalist and eBird at that location in order to work together while staying physically apart. Now that restrictions are over, they are inviting the public, especially members of the Saltville community, to join them in enjoying the marvels of this fascinating DWRBWT area.

Details

Leola Griffin and Katie Cordle were among the volunteers at this popular event.

In February 2023, Holston Rivers members teamed up with the Emory & Henry Lifelong Learning program to offer a Sunday afternoon of birding information and observation. With 30 attendees for this very first event, program organizers were thrilled.

Saltville’s unique geography makes it a fascinating location for plants and geology, and even though these well fields are basically right in the middle of town the diversity of birds and other wildlife is remarkable. eBird lists 189 recorded bird species just in the well fields area, and there were some unique birds in attendance at this first event. The afternoon viewing revealed Northern Shovelers, Lesser Scaups, American Coots, Gadwalls, American Wigeons, Killdeer, and a Red-tailed Hawk among others. The crowd ranged in age from retirement to third grade, and participants were delighted. Most were new birders who were thrilled to see animals they had never noticed before, and they repeatedly asked for another opportunity soon.

The Smyth County Chamber of Commerce has invited HRVMN volunteers to repeat the event quarterly, and volunteers are excited to share more about what makes this spot so special.