Tag: wildlife
Deer hunting season starts Sept. 10 in Fairfax County parks
A deer on the Cross County Trail in Accotink Stream Valley Park. Fairfax County’s deer management program begins Saturday, Sept. 10, and runs through, Feb. 25, 2017. The program is aimed at reducing the deer population in designated parks mainly through the use of archery. Bow hunting is allowed in several parks in the Annandale/Mason … Continued
Residents discuss options on future of Lake Accotink
About 100 people attend a meeting at Kings Glen Elementary School in Springfield on the future of Lake Accotink. Members of the public heard about five options for dealing with the silt build-up in Lake Accotink, including the possibility of severely limiting the size of the lake or even transforming it into wetlands. Dozens of … Continued
Lake Barcroft celebrates Earth Day
Kent Knowles, president of the Raptor Conservancy of Virginia, with a gyrfalcon. Lake Barcroft residents celebrated the community’s seventh annual Earth Day Sunday with a birds of prey demonstration, native plants and seeds, barge rides, and displays from organizations that promote sustainability and protect the environment. Lake Barcroft supports at least 22 fish species, including … Continued
Invasive insects destroying local ash trees
This pest is killing ash trees. [Emerald Ash Borer Network] If you have an ash tree, it’s most likely infected with the emerald ash borer, an invasive insect that has killed millions of ash trees in the United States since 2003. The Fairfax County Department of Public Works and Environmental Services is urging residents to … Continued
Scene around A-Town: Frogs!
I’ve walked along the Holmes Run Stream Valley trail several times a month for years and never saw anything like this: On Sunday, Feb. 28, a large puddle next to the trail was filled with hundreds of very loud frogs. This was on the part of the trail in Annandale near Round Tree Park. The … Continued
An upsurge in coyote sightings
A coyote pup seen last summer in Falls Church. [FCPD] There’s been an increase in coyote sightings in Fairfax County in recent months. The animals are now considered “established and widespread” in the county, states a post in the Fairfax County Police Department blog. Coyotes could prey on free-range cats and small dogs, so residents … Continued
Scene around A-Town: Nature in action
Eddie Haskell Carlstrom took this photo of what looks like a Cooper’s hawk feasting on a squirrel in his backyard in Broyhill Crest in Annandale on New Year’s Day. There has been a sighting of a bald eagle off Evergreen Lane. If anyone gets a photo please send it in.
Archers take 26 deer in local parks so far during 2015-16 hunting season
Since Fairfax County’s deer hunting season started Sept. 12, 26 deer have been “harvested” in parks in the Annandale/Mason area. According to data provided by Katherine Edwards, wildlife management specialist with the Fairfax County Police Department, archers certified by the county have reported the following results for local parks: Accotink Stream Valley Park: 5 deer … Continued
Scene around A-Town: a fox in the woods
Spotted this guy on the Glavis property off Sleepy Hollow Road.
Scene around A-Town: a big snapper
Snapping turtles bite. [Photo by Kristel Wilson] This large snapping turtle was sighted by Kristel Wilson by the footbridge on the Holmes Run trail near Valleycrest Drive in Annandale. She estimates it was about a foot and a-half long and at one point started chasing her with its mouth wide open. If you see it, … Continued
Deer sharpshooting approved for Annandale Community Park
Deer at Annandale Community Park. The Fairfax County deer hunting program is expanding again this year. Two new parks have been added in Mason District for bow hunting – Bren Mar Park and Turkey Cock Run, both in the Alexandra area – and for the first time sharpshooting will take place in Annandale Community Park. … Continued
Rabid raccoon attacks man
Fairfax County Animal Control officers distributed rabies information to residents of the Kings Park area today after a man was attacked by a rabid raccoon in the 5300 block of Kings Park Drive on Sunday, June 7. The man was working in his garden around 12:30 p.m. when a raccoon quietly approached him from behind … Continued
Get free milkwood seeds at Hidden Oaks to help save monarch butterflies
A monarch on milkweed. Have you seen a lot of monarch butterflies this spring? Probably not, because the monarch population is in serious decline. Milkweed plants, the only food monarch caterpillars eat, is fast disappearing due to loss of habitat as vacant land is developed. To help save monarchs, the Hidden Oaks Nature Center in … Continued
Eakin Park project raises concerns about threat to frogs
A frog in Eakin Park. [Photos by Gary Rubin] Preparation for a construction project near the pond in Eakin Park in Annandale has raised alarm bells that the frogs who breed in a vernal pool nearby might be danger. Gary Rubin, who lives near Eakin Park, says his children enjoy watching the frogs and tadpoles … Continued
Local resident bitten by copperhead
Zoya Melnichenko was watering her flowers when she was bit by a copperhead. [Photo by Steve Barrett] Getting bitten by a copperhead is rare in Fairfax County, but it happened a couple of weeks ago right here in Mason District. And that should serve as a warning to other residents who spend a lot of … Continued