November Newsletter

November Newsletter

Welcome to the November 2025 CHAS newsletter.  As always, send your favorite wildlife pictures to me to be added to the newsletter.  If you have newsworthy information about birds, the environment, conservation, or government action items related to our club's mission, please forward the information to capehenryaudubonsociety@gmail.com who will include it in the next letter or pass it along to the board of directors for consideration in future newsletters.

PLEASE RENEW YOUR MEMBERSHIP WITH THE NATIONAL AUDUBON SOCIETY.  Each club receives funds from the National society based on renewal funds.

VOTE!  Election Day is November 4th.  Make your voice heard in this important Virginia Election for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Delegates, and many local offices.

RECURRING MONTHLY EVENTS WEYANOKE The November monthly Weyanoke bird walk is scheduled for November 15th (3rd Saturday) at 8am, lasting about an hour. We meet at the entrance to the Weyanoke Sanctuary at 1501 Armistead Bridge Road in the West Ghent neighborhood in Norfolk. Wintering bird species will be the focus of this walk. The December monthly Weyanoke bird walk is scheduled for December 20th (3rd Saturday) at 8am, lasting about an hour. We meet at the entrance to the Weyanoke Sanctuary at 1501 Armistead Bridge Road in the West Ghent neighborhood in Norfolk.  Wintering bird species will be the focus of this walk. HOFFLER CREEK There is a monthly walk on the second Saturday of the month, led by Dave Brown, a local birding leader. Each month, the walk is at 4510 Twins Pines Rd, Portsmouth, Virginia.  The gates open at 7:45am and  sometimes close at 8am (closing time varies, best to be there at 7:45am).

Peregrine falcon eating on south side of Battery Arts and Letters Building.  Photograph courtesy of Laura Mae.

Our November meeting will be at St. Pauls Episcopal Church, 201 St Pauls Blvd, Norfolk, VA 23510 on Wednesday, November 19th 7:30 PM. Our speaker is Will Poston from the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. Will is a lifelong fisherman, hunter, and conservationist, who has leveraged these passions for a career in conservation and fisheries policy. Currently, he works for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation as its Forage Campaign Manager, primarily working on menhaden issues in the Bay. In this role, Will serves as CBF's point contact on menhaden, coordinating the organization's advocacy, policy, and education efforts around this critical forage fish. Will's background as an avid outdoorsman and experience in fisheries management assists his work to build a broader group of effective and passionate advocates to promote much-needed menhaden conservation here in Virginia. Will can be reached at wposton@cbf.org.   Will will be speaking on the menhaden's critical role in the Chesapeake Bay and the challenges and opportunities ahead for this important food source for osprey and other Bay inhabitants.

Say's Phoebe photographed on 10/26/2025 in North Hampton County.  Photograph courtesy of David Clark

PREVIOUS FIELD TRIP: Merchants Millpond State Park 18 Oct 2025 A small group of birders enjoyed a beautiful morning, with sunny skies, no wind, mild temperatures and beautiful scenery. Although it wasn't particularly birdy, it was a pleasant day to walk the trails of a park we don't get to very often. A good variety of woodpeckers were present, with 5 species heard and/or seen. The only warbler species we had was Yellow-rumped, which were present in good numbers. We encountered newly-arrived Winter Wrens on both of the trails we walked. The first bird was behaving as they usually do - hiding in the underbrush and trying its best not to be seen. The second bird, however, popped up on a log for long enough to give us satisfying views. In all, we had a modest 25 species for the morning. In addition to the birds, we were treated to sightings of several white-tailed deer including a buck with a nice set of antlers and a doe bounding through the water between the cypress trees.  A complete checklist can be found at  CHAS/VBAS Merchants Millpond State Park field trip October 2025 - eBird Trip Report.

Bachman's Sparrow photographed at Wekiwa Springs State Park, Florida.  Photograph courtesy of Saundra Winstead.

UPCOMING FIELD TRIPS:   Sunday, November 16 - Grandview Nature Preserve, Hampton Meet at 8:00 at the preserve entrance at the end of State Park Drive, Hampton.  Trip Leader: David Clark The walk to the beach is about 0.6 miles along a dirt and gravel path. The path passes through several habitat types, including salt marsh, tidal creeks and ponds, and a couple of very short, wooded stretches. During this portion of the outing, we’ll be on the lookout for sparrows, wrens, woodpeckers, and other passerines, as well as ducks and herons. Marsh Wren and (less often) Sedge Wren are found in the marshes along here, as are Clapper Rail and (less often) Virginia Rail. The dirt and gravel path ends at a beachfront overlooking the Chesapeake Bay, facing east. Here, we’ll walk northward along the shoreline checking for loons, grebes, sea ducks, gulls, shorebirds, and others.  In past years, this has been a good place to see Brant. We could also get lucky and find something rarer like Harlequin Duck or Snow Bunting. Logistics: There is only street parking, which is along the right-hand side of State Park Drive. We will walk at a leisurely pace. How far we walk on the beach will depend on the weather (i.e., if it’s very cold and windy, we probably won’t go too far), how active the birds are, and how energetic the group feels. Plan for the entire outing to last around 2 to 3 hours. There are no restroom facilities at the preserve! Sunscreen is recommended, as there is very little cover along this route. Mosquitoes are not typically a problem here in November, but if it is warm they might be present along the very short wooded sections of the walk, so you may want to have bug repellant available just in case. The beach can be very uneven. At low tide there may be a few old tree stumps sticking out of the sand in places, and other obstacles such as half-buried crab pots present, so please be mindful of where you step and wear appropriate shoes. Directions from Virginia Beach-Norfolk area.  Approximate drive time is between 40 and 60 minutes - however be aware of the HRBT construction.  Take I-64 West.  Once through the tunnel take a right at Woodland Rd. (Exit #267), go approximately 1 mile and turn right on Pembroke Ave.  Then go approximately 1 1/2 miles and turn left on Old Buckroe Road to Fox Hill Rd.  Turn right and then immediately turn left on Beach Rd and follow all the way to State Park Dr.  Turn left and park on right side of the road.  Entrance is at the end of the road. Baltimore Oriole at David Clark's feeder in Norfolk. Photograph courtesy of David Clark. ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS YOU CAN USE Lights Out: The fall "Lights Out" campaign started on August 15 and runs through November 15.  As part of this voluntary program, we urge property managers, businesses, tenants, government agencies, and residents to join us in helping to prevent night-time bird collisions with building by turning off and/or blocking as many external and internal building lights at workplaces as possible at night to help prevent injury and death of migrating birds, especially from 11 pm to sunrise.   Visit https://www.birdsafehr.org/ to learn how you can get involved. Osprey nest failures: Researchers at William & Mary’s Center for Conservation Biology report that osprey are seeing reducing nesting success across many areas in the Chesapeake Bay.  The problem is being particularly felt in the saltier areas of the Chesapeake Bay, such as around Hampton Roads.  Osprey nests tracked along the Elizabeth River, Lynnhaven River, and the Lower James were averaging less than 0.8 chicks per nesting pair, below the reproduction rate to maintain a stable population.  While the causes have not been definitely identified, falling fish population. often tied to potential overfishing of menhaden at the base of the food chain, is an oft quoted concern.  In the past few days, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission voted, as a precautionary measure, to reduce the coastwide catch limit for menhaden  by 20% for next year’s season.   The catch limit set within the Chesapeake Bay will ultimately set by the Virginia Marine Resources Commission (VMRC).  Ocean Harvesters, the fishing fleet that supplies Omega Protein with menhaden to produce fishmeal and fish oil in Reedville, Virginia, maintains that menhaden are not overfished and excessive cuts in catch limits would devastate the business and result in the loss of jobs in the rural Northern Neck.  Advocates will be asking for funding at the next General Assembly for better studies of the fish population.  Read more at  https://www.whro.org/environment/2025-10-02/massive-new-study-says-ospreys-are-thriving-in-some-parts-of-the-chesapeake-bay-but-not-enough and https://www.whro.org/environment/2025-10-29/menhaden-board-cuts-amount-harvesters-can-catch-along-the-atlantic-next-year or come to our November meeting to learn more.   Suspected Avian Flu increasing: The Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources (DWR) is asking the public to report sighting of dead birds after an increase of suspected cases of avian flu.  DWR has recently received reports of groups of dead black vultures across the state including several counties in Southwest Virginia. Preliminary testing indicates that the likely cause is H5N1 highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI). Although disease activity is currently centered in black vultures, with migration season beginning, it is likely there will be mortalities in other bird species as well.  DWR asks that if you observe any of the following, please notify the Department by calling the Virginia Wildlife Conflict Helpline at 1-855-571-9003 or emailing wildlifehealth@dwr.virginia.gov. 💔 Five or more dead vultures, waterfowl, shorebirds, or seabirds in the same area within five days 💔 Sick or dead eagles, hawks, owls, or turkeys, excluding ones found on the road 💔 Ten or more dead wild birds of any species in the same area within five days Learn more and read about safety precautions if you absolutely need to handle a dead bird at https://dwr.virginia.gov/wildlife/diseases/avian-influenza/ Climate Lecture Series The final installment of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation Climate Lecture Series will be held at the Brock Environmental Center on Wednesday, November12, 6:30 pm.  Dr. Jeremy Hoffman, a leading climate scientist and expert in urban microclimatology, equity, and science communication will explore how climate change intensifies challenges in cities—especially for vulnerable communities—and share community-driven solutions for a more just and resilient future.  Register at https://events.cbf.org/climateimpacts-111225