Spring is just around the corner, but it will feel like it’s already here at the Margaret Watson Bird Club’s February program.

The speaker, Bob Schamerhorn, will take the group to the edge of the river for a peek into the fascinating flora and fauna that are just waiting for the days to get longer. The meeting will be Feb. 6 in the Barbara Rose Johns Farmville-Prince Edward Community Library meeting room at 6 p.m. for refreshments and 6:30 p.m. when the program begins.

Discover the amazing diversity of wildlife living along the banks of the commonwealth’s watershed system. Designed to inform and entertain, the multimedia program is based on extensive observation and riverside encounters with flora and fauna by nature photographer, Schamerhorn.

His program includes riverine birds, as well as some of the other creatures that frequent Virginia’s river valleys from Eagle Rock to the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay. He features a lengthy segment on Great Blue Heron rookeries (nesting colony), as well as information about resident riverbank species, and other avian delights that migrate along the riverine ecosystems. Bob’s program is presented in colorful award-winning photography and is supplemented with bird calls and an occasional HD video.Schamerhorn has had a life-long passion for birds, nature and art since childhood. Advancements in digital-imaging technology enticed a reconnection with photography just after the turn of the last century.

Since then, he has been blessed with many opportunities to capture and share nature’s beauty. His national award-winning photography has been utilized by numerous nature and conservation publications, including the current cover shot of the 2020 Virginia Wildlife Calendar. His work is frequently shown at various fine art shows throughout the mid-Atlantic region each year.

His hope is to educate and to inspire the conservation of nature, by capturing and sharing its beauty.