|
|
Dates
for Your Calendar
|
May 19 2-4
pm Historic Huntley Grand Opening. More
information...
May 19 7-9
pm FOHMP annual meeting - Annual report and then a walk
in the park.
|
|
Park
Manager Walk & Talk
|
 |
Park
Manager Walk & Talk
and Wetland Project Update
- One Saturday each month -
Meet in the Huntley Meadows Park visitor center
(off Lockhead Blvd.)
June 16 5:30-7:30 pm
July 21 5:30-7:30 pm
Join park manager Kevin Munroe on a walk.
Share questions and concerns about the park, find out
about the wetlands restoration project and look for the
wildlife for which the park is well known.
Reservations required.
FREE
Visit the county website,
www.fairfaxcounty.gov/parks/huntley/restorationproject.htm
to view the following information:
Arial Photography, Topography Map, Site
Succession Time-line, May 30th Public Forum: Power Points
and Public Comments, Project Guidelines and Components,
Conceptual Drawing, Site Plan Rough Draft - viewing info.
& discussion meetings, Program Dates and Descriptions
For more information,
please call Huntley Meadows Park at 703-768-2525, email
the park manager at
kevin.munroe@fairfaxcounty.gov or stop by and visit
us.
|
|
|
Who
We Are
|
Founded
in 1985, Friends of Huntley Meadows Park is a nonprofit organization
of individuals dedicated to the protection of Fairfax County's
premier wetland wildlife sanctuary. The more than 400 members
represent an active influential voice for the Park and for
open space throughout the county.
Officers:
President: Kathi McNeil
Vice President: Sarah Stromayer
Secretary: Karla Jamir
Treasurer: Suzanne Lepple |
|
Monday
Morning Birdwalk
|
The Monday Birdwalk takes place every
week, rain or shine, at 7 AM, is free of charge,
requires no reservation, and is open to all.
Birders meet in the parking lot at the Park's entrance
at 3701 Lockheed Blvd,
Alexandria, VA.
Questions should be directed to Park staff during normal
business hours at
(703) 768-2525.
|
|
Resource
Management Volunteers
|
The volunteer run RMV Program at Huntley
Meadows park is hosting the following upcoming workday events.
All are welcome, but must RSVP for meeting location and
anyone under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.
None scheduled at the moment
Keep checking back!
Please RSVP to HuntleyRMV@gmail.com
to let us know if you can attend or if you have any questions.
Hope to see you there!
More
Information About the RMV Program (PDF)
|
|
|
|
|
Wood
Ducks 2012
|
|
It's a new year and the Wood ducks and Hooded mergansers
are back! Here are some of the latest Nest Box Monitor's
reports from the field :
April 6:
Busy, busy, busy. We are up to 11 active boxes out
of 16: 6 with
(predominantly) Wood Duck eggs and 5 with Hooded Merganser.
2 of
the boxes are mixed species.
We'll take a break for the rest of April and reconvene
on Wetlands Awareness
Day, 6 May. I expect that several of the boxes will be
hatched out at that time.
Other sightings:
25 March: Green-winged Teal, Am. Coot, Northern Rough-winged
Swallow, Tree Swallow
1 April: Green Treefrog in a warbler box
March 18:
The Wood Ducks have made their appearance, catching up to
the early-arriving Hooded Mergansers in nesting activity.
As of this past weekend, we have 4 active WD nests and 4
active HM nests. Two of these are in the two new boxes that
we installed in February.
Other sightings of note:
4 March: Green-winged Teal, Am. Wigeon, N. Shoveler,
Am. Pintail, Black Duck
11 March: E. Phoebe, Tree Swallow, 7 N. Shovelers
18 March: Tree Swallow, 6 Am. Coot
From the invasives desk: On 18 March, we noticed
a patch of freshwater snails in the shallow open water near
the water gauge. We had not noticed these before. They appear
to be Chinese Mystery Snails (Cipangopaludina chinensis).
Pictures and links at http://www.ahoneyofananklet.com/2012/03/18/at-the-park-49/.
More on the snail here: http://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/factsheet.aspx?SpeciesID=1045
February 26:
With handy-dandy notebooks in hand we set forth into the
wetland once again. There was a bit of ice to chop through.
It's February, ya know.
Box #13 has 4 Hooded Merganser eggs already. Even more gratifying,
box #4 (which we installed on the 11th) had a female HM
sitting in the entrance hole. All the other boxes are reloaded
with chips and shipshape.
2011 Final Report
The Wood Ducks didn't do so well in 2011, and the Hooded
Merganser numbers are down, too.
Egg totals:
51 hatched/76 laid Hooded Merganser,
37 hatched/82 laid Wood Duck.
We had five nest with mixed clutches, as best we can tell,
as well as three HM nests and 5 WD nests.
That said, our relatively infrequent checks in April and
May did not appear to have adverse effects, other than some
uncertainty
about laying and hatch dates for some of the boxes.
Click
here for a PDF summary of 2011
Click
here for historical data from 1982 through 2011
|
|
(Early) Spring
scenes at Huntley Meadows
|
Hooded Merganser (f) |
|
|
|
The
Park
|
3701 Lockheed Blvd.
Alexandria, Va. 22306
703-768-2525
Nestled
in Fairfax County's Hybla Valley, Huntley
Meadows Park is a rich,
natural island in the vast suburban sea of Northern
Virginia. Its 1,424 acres harbor majestic mature forests,
wildflower speckled meadows and acres of wetlands bursting
with life. It is ideal wildlife habitat for beaver,
otter, heron, ducks, deer, many songbird and butterfly
varieties, as well as a host of other animals.
Operated
by the Fairfax
County Park Authority , Huntley Meadows is
forever preserved in a natural state for hiking, biking,
wildlife watching, relaxing and discovering.
Facilities
include a Visitor Center with exhibits and auditorium,
a 1/2 mile boardwalk wetland trail, 2-mile interpretive
trail system and wildlife observation tower
Click
Here for Visitor Center Hours and Directions to the Park
.
|
|
|
