Many people delight in the ospreys’ spring return from their southern wintering grounds in Florida, the Caribbean and Central and South America to spots near water in Northern Virginia.
In June 2022, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (ACE) proposed a “tentatively selected plan” to build a floodwall and levee in the Belle Haven, New Alexandria, Belle View and River Towers areas of Fairfax County near the Dyke Marsh Wildlife Preserve.
On the January 16, 2023, Martin Luther King Day of Service, 131 enthusiastic volunteers clipped English ivy (Hedera helix) off trees in Dyke Marsh and collected 70 bags of trash weighing 446 pounds.
Winter brings several species of migratory waterfowl to the Potomac River and Dyke Marsh and many birds stand out as they perch on leafless tree limbs, search for prey and forage on the ground. Still some, like barred owls (Strix varia) are expert at camouflaging.
For at least 15 years, the Friends of Dyke Marsh have worked to control many species of invasive plants in the preserve. Invasive plants displace native plants and replace wildlife food sources with which native wildlife co-evolved.
