Welcome to the AUGUSTA BIRD CLUB
The AUGUSTA BIRD CLUB was founded in 1966 and currently has about 190 members from Augusta County, Staunton and Waynesboro, Virginia, as well as nearby areas. Monthly meetings are conducted Sep-May in Staunton that includes a Program by an invited speaker. Our members organize frequent field trips and other events throughout the year. We are also active in various educational programs and conservation efforts as well as a variety of citizen-science projects such as the Rockfish Gap Hawk Watch, Christmas Bird Counts, and Winter Raptor Surveys. Anyone interested in joining are welcome to attend one of our meetings! Contact us with any inquiries you may have.
Donations
$10.00 – $200.00Membership
$15.00 – $30.00
Remembering Bill Roberson
One of our long time club members, Bill Roberson, passed away on December 12, 2024 at Augusta Health after a brief illness. His obituary can be found HERE. Bill taught high school mathematics at Robert E. Lee High School (now Staunton High) for 37 years and later at area colleges. One of our club members remembers having “Mr. Roberson” for geometry and described him as being soft spoken and “a true Virginia Gentleman”. This writer happened upon a group of men from the Lee High class of 1967 celebrating the holidays in an area restaurant. Upon learning of Bills’ death, they said Bill taught all of them math and remembered him fondly. One of the things they remember most was his love and appreciation of the land and nature around him in Swoope, VA. Bill helped with our annual bird club holiday parties by cooking the turkey and after the party, you would find Bill and his wife Peggy, cleaning in the kitchen. After the bird club meeting in November, Bill said he was so excited to learn about Merlin and was looking forward to downloading the app and using it. Bill was a kind, thoughtful and gentle man and will be missed by all.
Conservation
We provide opportunities for members to get involved in a variety of hands-on projects and programs that focus on improving habitat, citizen science and conservation.
Nature Camp
Each year, we award several scholarships to Nature Camp, a non-profit, residential co-ed summer camp specializing in natural history and environmental science education.
Field Trips
We conduct many field trips/bird walks throughout the year, and all are welcome! Most field trips are local; lasting several hours. More distant field trips are also offered.
Recent Local Bird Sightings:
Red-shouldered Hawk, Fishersville, 12/16/2024 (Vic Laubach)
Northern Harrier, Bells Lane, 12/8/2024 (Andrew Clem)
Purple Finch, 12/13/2024 (Vic Laubach)
Red-bellied Woodpecker, 12/13/2024 (Vic Laubach)
Red-tailed Hawk, 12/2/2024 (Margaret Johnson)
Short-eared Owl, Bells Lane, 11/26/2024 (Ann Cline)
Wild Turkey, 11/28/2024 (Rich Wood)
Barred Owl, Bells Lane, 11/27/2024 (Cody Shifflett)
Bald Eagle, Swoope, 11/17/24 (Bonnie Hughes)
Snow Bunting, Shenandoah NP, Page County, 11/17/2024 (Cody Shifflett)
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, Springfield, VA (near Luray), 10/27/2024 (Andrew Clem)
Hermit Thrush, Verona, 10/24/2024 (Bill Benish)
Black-throated Blue Warbler, Shenandoah National Park, 9/15/2024 (Andrew Clem)
Kirtland’s Warbler, Coyner Springs Park, Waynesboro, 10/5/2024 (Lynne Parks). 1st record for Augusta Co.
Orange-crowned Warbler, Cowbane Preserve, 10/25/2024 (Scott Priebe)
Palm Warbler, 10/4/2024 (Antonio Martinez)
Turkey Vulture kettle, 10/17/2024 (Bonnie Hughes)
Nashville Warbler, 10/8/2024 (Scott Priebe)
Belted Kingfisher, 10/7/2024 (Matt Diley)
Wilson’s Warbler, Augusta Springs, 9/24/2024 (Vic Laubach)
Yellow-billed Cuckoo, 9/23/2024 (Antonio Martinez)
Cape May Warbler, 9/22/2024 (Tom Roberts)
American Goldfinch, 9/14/2024 (Margaret Johnson)
Chestnut-sided Warbler, 9/11/2024 (Rich Wood)
White-eyed Vireo, 9/11/2024 (Vic Laubach)
Great-crested Flycatcher, 8/31/2024 (Ann Cline)
Eastern Wood Pewee, 9/16/2024 (Margaret Johnson)
Solitary Sandpiper, 8/28/2024, McCormick Farm (Ann Cline)
Great Blue Heron, 9/11/2024 (Bonnie Hughes)
Grey Catbird, July 30, 2024 (Rich Wood)
Barn Swallow, 7/25/2024 (Bonnie Hughes)
Ruby-throated Hummingbird, 7/21/2024 (Matt Diley)
Northern Mockingbird, 7/7/2024 (Eric Pritchet)
Ruffed Grouse, 7/2/2024 (Ann Cline)
Wild Turkey, 7/2/2024 (Lynne Parks)
Barn Swallow, 7/25/2024 (Bonnie Hughes)
Red-shouldered Hawk eating frog (video frame), Dooms, VA, 6/2/24 (Rich Wood)
Tree Swallow babies, Frontier Culture Museum, 5/30/2024 (Jim Hill)
Snowy Egret young, South Carolina, 6/1/2024 (Matt Diley)
Blue Grosbeak, Swoope, Craig Shop Rd, 6/1/2024 (Rich Wood)
Northern Parula, Ramsey’s Draft, 5/25/2024 (Andrew Clem)
Blackburnian Warbler, Ramsey’s Draft, 5/25/2024 (Andrew Clem)
Cattle Egret, Starts Draft, 5/18/2024 (John Shea)
Willow Flycatcher, Middlebrook, 5/21/2024 (Vic Laubach)
Pileated Woodpecker, Swoope, 5/21/2024 (Vic Laubach)
House Finch pair, 5/14/2024 (Warren Faught)
Indigo Bunting, 5/14/2024 (Rich Wood)
Canada Goose family, 5/12/2024 (Bonnie Hughes)
Magnolia Warbler, Heathsville VA, 5/9/2024 (Ann Cline)
Scarlet Tanager, 5/9/2024 (Jim Hill)
Yellow-breasted Chat, 5/2/2024 (Kristin Fuoco)
Baltimore Oriole, 5/8/2024 (Ann Cline)
Kentucky Warbler, 5/1/2024 (Vic Laubach)
Northern Waterthrush, 5/1/2024 (Vic Laubach)
Common Merganser, 5/2/2024 (Bonnie Hughes)
Black-throated Green Warbler, 5/2/2024 (Jim Hill)
Rose-breasted Grosbeak, 4/30/2024 (Matt Diley)
Spotted Sandpiper, 4/29/2024 (Antonio Martinez)
American Redstart, Staunton, 4/29/2024 (Barbara Brothers)
Barred Owl, Troxel Gap Rd, 3/26/2024 (Vic Laubach)
Brown Creeper, 3/2024 (Antonio Martinez)
Purple Finch (female), 3/2024 (Warren Faught)
Great Horned Owl nest (adult w/ young), JMU Arboretum, 3/2024 (Ann Cline)
Fox Sparrow, Piney Grove nature preserve, 3/2024 (Andrew Clem)
Gray-crowned Rosy Finch, Mount Pleasant, Amherst County Feb 2024. First Virginia record! (Mark Kosiewski)
Gadwall, McCormick Farm, 2/2024 (Ann Cline)
Tundra Swan, Swoope, 2/2024 (Vic Laubach)
American Black Duck, Swoope, 2/2024 (Vic Laubach)
Red-phase Eastern Screech Owl, Verona, 2/2024 (Antonio Martinez)
Pileated Woodpecker, 2/2024 (Matt Diley)