By Daniel Barringer, Preserve Manager. This beautiful black rat snake (Pantherophis alleghaniensis) was resting on a stump in the back yard. A few hours before…

By Daniel Barringer, Preserve Manager. This garter snake was hanging out in the kids’ play area yesterday and was obliged to pose for a photo.…

By Daniel Barringer, Preserve Manager. In May our family camped in southwestern Virginia, went to Trail Days in Damascus, and volunteered for a couple days…

I’m just going to put this out there without byline: a stunning photo of a Red-eye Vireo taken by volunteer Jim Moffett on our Deep…

By Daniel Barringer, Preserve Manager Yes, we’ve “spotted” them now, the larvae of spotted lanternflies of which we first saw adults last September. They’re tiny—I…

By Daniel Barringer, Preserve Manager. This week trailing arbutus (Epigaea repens) is in bloom. It’s a tiny, dainty flower that you can see if you look…

By Daniel Barringer, Preserve Manager. Sure, we’ve still had snow flurries in what should be mid-spring the last two days. But each season has its…

By Daniel Barringer, Preserve Manager. Spring is unfolding before us now, a little late but all the more worth it for that. On sunny days…