Virginia Black Bear Tests Positive for Rabies

DGIF Virginia Outdoors Report shared:
Remember, if you live in Virginia, you live in bear country!

Virginia Black Bear Tests Positive for Rabies

Give wildlife space and report any strange behavior

Eastern Box Turtle Mapping

The Citizen Scientists of the Blue Ridge Foothills and Lakes Chapter are involved in another cool project!  
Jim & Denise Pilversack have contributed over 50 hours to Eastern Box Turtle Mapping in 2011.

One of the 182 Eastern Box Turtle sightings documented by the Pilversacks

Ribbit! Guide to the Frogs and Toads of Virginia

Guide to the Frogs and Toads of Virginia Now Available

A Guide to the Frogs and Toads of Virginia is a 44 page field guide that covers all 27 species of frogs and toads that inhabit Virginia. Species accounts, descriptions, biology, behavior, habitats and conservation issues are all described and illustrated through more than 80 photographs and drawings. Included is a complimentary CD of The Calls of Virginia Frogs and Toads. The price is $10.00 and is available through the VDGIF website.

Read the introduction to A Guide to the Frogs and Toads of Virginia »

Learn more about the Virginia Master Naturalist program here!  BRFAL Chapter of Virginia Master Naturalist wants you to get outside, explore and learn something new today. 

Get involved in something cool, our next basic training will be held at The Franklin Center in Downtown Rocky Mount beginning March 2012, feel free to email us for more details: contact@brfal.org

Virginia Birding and Wildlife Guides

DISCOVER OUR WILD SIDES!

Discovering Our Wild Side just got a lot easier!

With the entire state now in one book, you won't want to leave this on your coffee table. The new guide provides updated information on all sites, including updated maps and driving directions.

• Award-winning artist Spike Knuth created new artwork for the new heavier cover designed for better durability.
• Maps now provide page numbers to make it easier to find the loop you want to visit.
• Familiar features retained include contact information for each site, listings for local Chambers of Commerce and Visitor Centers, site descriptions, viewing tips and wildlife facts, and updated wildlife festival listings.

So grab your binoculars, guide, and go!

Order yours today online here from DGIF.

BRFAL Chapter of Virginia Master Naturalist wants you to get outside, explore and learn something new today. Get involved in something cool, learn more about the Virginia Master Naturalist program here! 

Feeding Deer is Illegal in Virginia

Reminder: Effective September 1, Feeding Deer is Illegal in Virginia

Effective September 1, it will be illegal to feed deer statewide in Virginia. The annual prohibition runs through the first Saturday in January. In addition, it is now illegal to feed deer year-round in Clarke, Frederick, Shenandoah, and Warren counties and in the city of Winchester as part of the Department's chronic wasting disease (CWD) management actions established in April 2010.

This regulation does not restrict the planting of crops such as corn and soybeans, wildlife food plots, and backyard or schoolyard habitats. It is intended to curb the artificial feeding of deer that leads to negative consequences.

Dead fish in Gills Creek being investigated

SHOULD WE BE CONCERNED?

Water quality is always a concern for Virginia Master Naturalists

Dead fish in Gills Creek being investigated
An investigation is under way by the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (DGIF) and Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to determine what killed a number of fish in the lower end of Gills Creek.
More than 100 dead fish were found in the creek over the weekend, according to Lt. Karl Martin with DGIF.  Martin said Tuesday morning that the source of pollution that killed the fish had not been identified.  ...Read the entire article in the Franklin News Post dated June 1, 2011 click here

Also, re an accidental manure spill last week in a creek that flows into the Blackwater River:
The Franklin County Health Department is warning people to avoid contact with water in these streams until further notice.
The The most common waterborne illnesses are gastrointestinal, resulting in vomiting, diarrhea or nausea, according to the health department. Less commonly, skin, ear and eye infections can result from contact with contaminated water.

BRFAL Chapter of Virginia Master Naturalist wants you to get outside and explore! Learn something new today.

*UPDATE from AP NEWS click here June 2, 2011