Be a Habitat Partner© and share your passion for wildlife and wildlife habitat!
Volunteer Training Offered by the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries with assistance from the University of Virginia Department of Environmental Sciences
Thursday, August 17, 2017 • 9:30 am – 4:00 pm
Massanetta Springs Conference Center and Lake Shenandoah
This workshop brings together members of multiple volunteer organizations who are willing to collaborate on education outreach to the general public about the importance of pollinators and healthy wildlife habitats.
WHO’S INVITED: This workshop is being offered to volunteers and other community leaders interested in learning about pollinators and pollinator habitat and who will also plan and conduct subsequent pollinator habitat programs for the general public, either at Lake Shenandoah in Rockingham County, or in their own local community.
Volunteers from many organizations are encouraged to register, such as the following:
Master Naturalists • Master Gardeners • DGIF Complementary Work Force (CWF) Volunteers • Tree Stewards • Virginia Native Plant Society • Beekeepers Association leaders • Izaak Walton League • Youth Leaders (e.g. 4H, Scouts, Boys and Girls Clubs) • Garden Club leaders • and other conservation and community service leaders
WORKSHOP CONTENT: The training will begin at the Massanetta Springs Conference Center with an overview about pollinators. Then we’ll caravan to Lake Shenandoah (about 5 minutes from the Center).
During the visit to the Lake, we’ll conduct several field investigations to observe and identify pollinators, collect bee specimens, and learn about the native plants that form this biodiverse habitat.
In the afternoon, we’ll return to the Conference Center for lunch and additional instruction, including a “mini-lab” to look more closely at the specimens we collected.
During the last portion of the training, we’ll discuss how to target conservation messages to specific audiences, and participants will work in small groups to brainstorm and plan collaborative programming strategies. Our goal is to help you come away with several ideas for working together on subsequent pollinator programs for the public, such as for homeowners associations, school groups, etc.
BE PREPARED TO GO OUTSIDE: Workshop will be held RAIN OR SHINE.
NO CHARGE to attend. IN EXCHANGE FOR THE FREE TRAINING, WE ASK THAT YOU AGREE TO VOLUNTEER A MINIMUM OF 10 HOURS IN THE NEXT 12 MONTHS to help promote DGIF’s pollinator habitat project at Lake Shenandoah, and/or collaboratively plan and conduct public education outreach in your own community about the importance of pollinators and the value of native plants for pollinator habitat.
LUNCH WILL BE PROVIDED ON SITE, at no charge. This is a working lunch, and there won’t be enough time on the agenda to go out to eat.
WORKSHOP SPEAKERS and topics include the following:
- T’ai Roulston, bee expert and Research Associate Professor for University of Virginia Department of Environmental Sciences (also Curator of State Arboretum at Blandy): Importance of Pollinators; Bee Diversity; and Plant Ecology
- Jason Hallacher, Assistant Fisheries Biologist, DGIF: Pollinator Habitat at Lake Shenandoah
- Carol A. Heiser, Education Section Manager, Habitat Education Coordinator, DGIF: Key Messages for Habitat Education Outreach
WHAT YOU WILL RECEIVE:
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Native Plants for Wildlife Habitat and Conservation Landscaping booklet
- a packet of numerous pollinator resources
- other habitat education materials; and
- a certificate for 6 hours of instruction.
Details and registration information here:
https://www.register-ed.com/events/view/106239
Register by 5:00pm Sunday, August 13.
Massanetta Springs Conference Center is located at 712 Massanetta Springs Rd., Harrisonburg VA 22801 (approx. 3 ½ miles east on Rte. 33 from I-81 Exit 247-A). Please plan to arrive by 9:15 to check-in.
Lake Shenandoah is a 36-acre impoundment in Rockingham County, owned by the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. In 2015, agency staff converted about one-acre of a conventional field into a pollinator meadow.
The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries wants to help you help wildlife on your property. The Habitat Partners© program encourages corporate landowners, private landowners, schools, and homeowners to improve habitat in their community that will benefit Virginia’s songbirds, mammals, amphibians and other wildlife.
Above photo is of HMN Sandy Greene and others assisting project coordinator Jason Hallacher with invasives removal along the Lake Shenandoah Pollinator Trail, September 2015.
After parking the cars, a short hike up a logging road and a section of trail led to the cave entrance, which is at the top of steep climb. The opening is wide, with a scramble down into a fairly large room. Because of the size of the opening, there is a lot of light coming into this room. Consequently, some of the rocks are covered with bright emerald-green mold, something you rarely see in wild caves.
Having explored the big room, some of us chose to follow Daniel down into the lower section of the cave. This part was also quite dry, which made easier going, since the mud which covers most of the floor is not so slippery. We eventually worked our way down to a small stream. The cave continues in several directions at this point, but we decided not to explore any further, as the passages got quite tight. Instead, we all turned out our lights for a few minutes in order to experience total darkness.
