A Good Host knows who gathers at their table. Some neighbors arrive with groceries. Others arrive on silent wings. Some paddle through our ponds. Some bloom for only a few weeks each year before disappearing back into the forest. We’ve already confirmed River Otters, Bald Eagles, and Scarlet Tanagers right here in Kirkpatrick Farms. That makes us wonder… Who else is living among us?
We’re asking the community to help us find out. If you see one of the species below, we’d love your help. Snap a photograph, note roughly where you found it, and send it to the Open Space Committee. You don’t need to identify it perfectly; we’re simply looking for good evidence that these remarkable neighbors share our community.
Bald Eagle – We’ve had several sightings over the years. Are they simply passing through, or are they regular visitors to our ponds and streams?
River Otter – One of our most remarkable long-time residents. If you spot an otter—or evidence such as tracks or scat—we’d love to better understand where they’re traveling.
Scarlet Tanager – Among Virginia’s most spectacular songbirds, yet many people never notice them because they spend so much time high in the forest canopy. Their presence is a sign of healthy woodland.
Bats – Watch for bats at dusk over our ponds and trails, and let us know about large hollow trees, standing dead trees, or shagbark hickories that may provide roosting habitat.
Coming soon: We’re planning acoustic bat surveys that identify species by their echolocation calls. These surveys can detect species that are nearly impossible to identify by sight, including bats that receive special state and federal protection.
Freshwater Mussels – This one is easy to help with. We’re interested in any mussel shells you find, even old, weathered, or broken ones. Every shell is a clue to the health and history of our streams.
Eastern Box Turtle – Some spend their entire lives within just a few acres. Every sighting helps us understand how they’re using our neighborhood.
Belted Kingfisher – Listen for its unmistakable rattling call before you see it. If one is fishing our ponds or streams, we’d love to know when and where. Kingfishers are excellent indicators of healthy aquatic habitat.
Monarch Butterflies – Adults are wonderful—but caterpillars, eggs, and milkweed patches are even more exciting because they show Monarchs are breeding here.
Native Bumble Bees – Photograph them on flowers if you can. You don’t need to know the species—we’ll sort that out together.
Native Orchids & Unusual Wildflowers – Virginia is home to several remarkable native orchids, including the federally threatened Small Whorled Pogonia (Isotria medeoloides). While finding one would be extraordinarily rare, unusual woodland flowers are always worth photographing.
Red Fox – Red foxes are common throughout Northern Virginia and have adapted remarkably well to suburban landscapes like ours, where patches of woods, stream corridors, ponds, and open space provide both habitat and travel routes. Despite their reputation as hunters, foxes are opportunistic omnivores. They help control mice, voles, rats, and other small animals, while also eating insects, fruit, and berries. Seeing one during daylight isn’t automatically cause for concern—foxes can be active at any hour, particularly when feeding young or moving through an area. For the most part, the best response is simply to enjoy the sighting and give the fox some room. Don’t feed it, secure trash and pet food, and supervise very small pets outdoors. Healthy foxes generally want nothing to do with us. They’re also a nice reminder that KPF isn’t just landscaped open space it’s functioning habitat. Even among sidewalks, houses, and playgrounds, a little piece of wild Virginia is still going about its business.
Even if it isn’t a rare orchid, your observation could help us better understand the remarkable plant life growing in Kirkpatrick Farms.
Have You Seen Someone We Haven’t Met Yet? Maybe it’s a bird you’ve never noticed. Maybe it’s an unfamiliar flower beside the trail. Maybe it’s a turtle, a butterfly, or something that leaves you saying… What is this?” Take a picture and send it our way. The best discoveries often begin with simple curiosity.