The Augusta Bird Club was founded in 1966 by Dr. John Mehner, retired professor of biology at Mary Baldwin College. The club has been very active in local and statewide ornithological activities ever since. Many of its members have served or are serving on the board of the Virginia Society of Ornithology. The club last hosted the annual meeting of the Virginia Society of Ornithology (VSO) in May 2000.
From an initial membership of 30 the club has grown to nearly 200 members today. Over the years, club members have enthusiastically participated in the Breeding Bird Surveys, countless hours of fall hawk watching at Rockfish Gap and the Virginia Atlas Project (1984-1989) where members contributed over one thousand records of 131 species in 20 atlas blocks.
Augusta Bird Club sponsors two Christmas Bird Counts each December. Field trips within Augusta County, to other parts of Virginia, and further abroad are regular and well attended activities throughout the year.
In the spring and early summer of 1998 many club members and others within the state participated in a "Breeding Bird Blitz." This was organized by YuLee Larner in order to gather additional data for the second edition of "Birds of Augusta County" which she also edited. This publication includes 292 species and follows guidelines established by the Virginia Avian Record Committee. It is a model of annotated checklists and a valued ornithological resource.
The Augusta Bird Club promotes avian education and information through regular monthly meeting programs as well as programs to local groups, schools and organizations by club volunteers. Recently scheduled didactic "birding classes" have been offered and well attended. For many years the club has sponsored area youth to attend Nature Camp in nearby Vesuvius, Va.
Augusta Bird Club membership is open to all.
Meetings are held the second Monday of the month, September through April, with occasional exceptions.
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