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Virginia

Bald eagle
Bald eagle
©Janet Haas
Event: Bald Eagle Viewing
Where: Voorhees Nature Preserve
When: Late April through August
This 729-acre preserve is home to a pair of bald eagles that produce hatchlings in early spring. Eagles can be seen soaring over the Rappahannock River and carrying food to their young. The footbridge across Owl Hollow Marsh provides an ideal viewing point.

Open to the public. Facilities available: Westmoreland Berry Farm has food, restroom, trail maps.
Large-flowered trillium
Large-flowered trillium
©Harold E. Malde
Event: Wildflowers Blooming
Where: Bottom Creek Gorge Preserve
When: Mid- to late May
This 1,700-acre preserve in the Blue Ridge Mountains has scenic trails winding through woods full of wildflowers and giant rhododendrons exploding with color. One of the trails leads to a dramatic gorge overlooking Virginia's second-highest waterfall.

Open to the public. Facilities available: interpretive kiosk with trail maps.
Cumberland Marsh
Cumberland Marsh
©Mary Porter
Event: Waterfowl Congregating
Where: Cumberland Marsh Preserve
When: October through March
Observe the grand spectacle and tradition of migratory waterfowl at this marsh on the Pamunkey River, a Chesapeake Bay tributary. Dabbling and diving ducks arrive from the prairie states to overwinter and feed in the rich marsh. Great blue herons, osprey and egrets also can be viewed from boat or blind.

Open to the public. Facilities available: observation deck overlooking the marsh.
Snow geese
Snow geese
©Curtis Badger
Event: Waterfowl Populations Peaking
Where: Virginia Coast Reserve
When: February
The coldest weather of the year generally finds the barrier islands of the Virginia Coast Reserve playing host to the highest numbers of wintering waterfowl. Important wintering species include thousands of greater snow geese, American black ducks and Atlantic brant. Numerous species of sea ducks, including oldsquaws, buffleheads and scaup also winter in the region's coastal bays.
Piping plover
Piping plover
©Betty Cottrille
Event: Piping Plovers Returning
Where: Virginia Coast Reserve
When: Late March through early April
Piping plovers, listed federally as a threatened shorebird, return to the barrier islands of the Virginia Coast Reserve in late March to establish breeding territories and initiate nesting for the season. The Virginia barrier islands host more than 100 breeding pairs of plovers each year, more than 10 percent of the Atlantic Coast population.
Shorebirds
Shorebirds
©John M. Hall/The Nature Conservancy
Event: Posting Boundaries of Bird Colonies
Where: Virginia Coast Reserve
When: Late May
Volunteers assist the staff of the Virginia Coast Reserve in posting the boundaries of colonies of colonial beach nesting shorebirds each spring on the beaches of the Virginia barrier islands. The bird colonies are extremely sensitive to human disturbance, and island visitors are requested to avoid posted areas.
Shorebirds migrating
Shorebirds migrating
©John M. Hall/The Nature Conservancy
Event: Shorebirds Migrating
Where: Virginia Coast Reserve
When: May
The passage of migrant shorebirds, on their way to the Arctic to nest, will peak during the third week of May along the Virginia barrier islands. The islands have been designated an ""International Shorebird Reserve"" because of their hemispheric importance as a rest stop and feeding station. During peak spring migration days, more than 250,000 shorebirds have been estimated on the seaside's extensive beaches and mudflats.
Song birds
Song birds
©Curtis Badger
Event: Songbirds and Raptors Migrating
Where: Virginia Coast Reserve
When: Late August through September
Fall migration of neotropical songbirds and raptors along the Eastern Shore of Virginia begins in late August and peaks in late September. Because of the ""peninsula effect"" funneling the birds to the Cape Charles area, counts of songbirds and raptors here among the highest on the Atlantic Coast. Both the Eastern Shore of Virginia National Wildlife Refuge and kiptopeke State Park offer excellent viewing opportunities to witness the phenomenon.

For additional information on a particular location, click on the name of the preserve associated with the event or visit the Virginia site.