Be sure to check the Bull’s Run Events Calendar, now updated with all of the new events for Spring 2013.

View the results of the 2012 Annual Christmas Bird Count.

Another season of Nature Tots begins on January 12, 2013. Reserve your space now for a 5-week program of child-centered hands-on exploration for preschoolers (ages 6 months to 6 years) and caregivers. See the flyer for dates, times, and information on how to register.

Sunday, January 20, from 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. — HEY, WINTER TREE NUTS! “LET’S GRAB SOME BUDS AND GET OUR BOTANY ON!”
Beginner or refresher, our entertaining second annual 3-hour workshop will give you the basics and some tricks to identify a dozen or more winter trees at Bull’s Run. Your new skills will work in any woodland. All materials are provided. Dress for the weather. The class is free to Bull’s Run members; $15 for non-members. For more info and to register, call Barb Reuss at 422-5063 or John Whittington at 423-1300, preferably by Tuesday, January 15 to allow us to have enough materials on hand. We will begin in the Little Hall at the Episcopal Church of the Ascension then proceed to Bull’s Run for field study.

Saturday, December 22, from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. — The Christmas Bird Count will be held at Bull’s Run Nature Sanctuary and Arboretum. New bird watchers are welcome to join seasoned birders as they hike the arboretum trails recording the winter visitors to the woods. The hike usually lasts an hour, sometimes a little longer if the feathered friends and weather are cooperating. Expect to see the species commonly observed over the past thirty-plus years: the cardinals, chickadees, nuthatches, sparrows, and woodpeckers. With quiet patience, you may be fortunate enough to glimpse a brown creeper or a yellow-bellied sapsucker that we spotted last year. Dress for the weather, bring a bird identification book and binoculars if you have them (but not required), and join us for a closer look at the birds at Bull’s Run. We will post the results of the walk on the website and Facebook page. We would enjoy comments on what you are seeing in your yard.

Another season of Nature Tots begins on October 3, 2012. Reserve your space now for a 5-week program of child-centered hands-on exploration for preschoolers (ages 6 months to 6 years) and caregivers. Choose Wednesdays from 10 to 11 or from 12:30 to 1:30. Register by sending an email to naturalist@bullsrun.org.

We would love to have you join us for one of our volunteer workdays! Picking up litter, painting tables, removing invasive plants, spreading mulch, planting seeds; we’ll find a job for you!

All workdays are on Saturdays and last from 9:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Upcoming dates are:

• September 15
• September 29
• October 13
• October 27
• November 10