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** The Weekly Bird Word
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05/26/25

This week’s Bird Word is:
Excavator

According to the Cornell Lab Bird Academy ([link removed]) , in avian biology, excavators are bird species that dig their own nest cavities or tunnels, either in sandy soil (such as Belted Kingfishers, Bank Swallows, bee-eaters, mot-mots, and Crab Plovers) or in wood (woodpeckers).
Belted Kingfisher painting, Ronna Fujisawa


** More in local bird and nature news:
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* Paint your own Belted Kingfisher: A kingfisher is a type of excavator - they dig 6-foot-deep burrows into riverbanks to protect their nests from predators! Join us on June 4 and take the time to study this beautiful bird in our online watercolor class - you will be surprised by what you can paint with step-by-step instruction from Ronna! Register here ([link removed]) .
* Invasive pulls in Arlington: This Wednesday, join friends at Powhatan Springs skatepark to remove invasives from 3:00 - 5:00 PM. Sign up here. ([link removed])
* Ornithology 101 begins tonight! Sign up by 7:00 PM to join this 5-week virtual program and dive deeper into the world of avian biology. The first field trip is on Saturday, 5/31 and will include seeing baby bluebirds up close! Don’t miss out. Learning about birds helps us all be better advocates and ambassadors for nature! Register here. ([link removed])
* “Younger” Birders Event June 1: Our Nextgen Birders group will be doing a birdwalk at Four Mile Run on June 1. This group targets birders under 45 but all are welcome. A few spots are left - sign up here. ([link removed])
* Let’s Make Birdathon a Big Success! Big thank you to all the teams who participated. If you haven’t yet made a donation to one of our inspiring teams, please take a moment to cheer on your favorite team by 5/31. See the full team list here ([link removed]) . Many of our teams have posted their ebird list and big day reports. It’s wonderful to see all the enthusiasm from our record 29 teams this year!
See you out there,
-Northern Virginia Bird Alliance

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