Cooper’s hawk cools off at a Virginia Beach birdbath – The Virginian-Pilot

Kathryn Bateman photographed a cooper’s hawk hanging out at his birdbath at Lago Mar in Virginia Beach. “When the songbirds go quiet in my backyard, there’s usually a good reason,” Bateman wrote. “Even birds of prey enjoy a nice swim on a hot summer day.”

Karen Harkins photographed a Bald eagle on the beach at the north end of Virginia Beach. The “bald eagle was ignoring us and the ravens were flying,” Harkins wrote. “Fully focused for at least five minutes on the breaking wave until just the right moment, when he took off and hooked a fish out of the wave, leaving the crows in the way.”

Denny Cobb photographed a fishing eagle with a fish at Croatan in Virginia Beach.

Joe DiGeronimo captured a beautiful sighting of a great blue heron in flight with the July full moon behind, just west of First Landing State Park in Virginia Beach.

Benjamin Gerber sent a photo of two minors ring-billed gulls at Buckroe Beach in Hampton.

Connie Owens has been lucky enough to see quite a few green herons in Cape Charles on the east coast.

Tanya Baggio sent photos of a yellow-crowned night heron who spent quite a bit of time grooming himself on the fence of his Chesapeake Beach deck in Virginia Beach.

Thomas Durst photographed a barred owl at the Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge in North Carolina.

Cindy Morrison photographed a man cardinal at his feeder in the Ridgley Manor section of Virginia Beach. “This kid is normally camera shy,” Morrison wrote.

Margaret Padilla photographed a minor mockingbird at Park Manor in Portsmouth.

Jane Hughey sent photos of a sparrow family enjoying the bird feeders in the Indian River area of ​​the Chesapeake. “Dad stands guard and watches the mom and kids eat,” Hughey wrote.

Jonathan Snyder photographed a giant swallowtail at the Butterfly House, now open, at the Norfolk Botanic Garden in Norfolk.

Joseph Robbins sent a photo of a paper wasp foraging for nectar in the Rose Hall neighborhood of Virginia Beach.

Mickie Nance photographed a green lynx spiderknown for its bright green color, at Paradise Creek Nature Park in Portsmouth.

Michael Poirier photographed a fiddler crab in the Riverwalk neighborhood of Chesapeake, displaying his violin-shaped claw that he waves in the air to attract a woman.

Laura Joksaite saw a camouflaged cotton mouth while biking at Sandbridge in Virginia Beach. The “cottonmouth was in a very dangerous place where people can come to see birds,” Joksaite wrote.

Walter Jenkins sent wear Y Red Wolf photos he saw at the Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge in North Carolina. The “red wolf is a critically endangered species, which is why they wear tracking collars,” Jenkins wrote. “There are only 15 red wolves in the wild that were part of the federal reintroduction program after they became extinct in the wild. They seem to get along with the bears as they occasionally roam close to each other and don’t seem to mind each other’s presence.”

Nancy Barham received a photo from a deer which has been a frequent visitor to his birdbath in Suffolk during the hot, dry days of summer.

Rich Thiesfeld got a unique view of a Atlantic bottlenose dolphin while swimming alongside his boat in Norfolk Canyon off the coast of Virginia Beach. “You can see both the dorsal fin and the nostril well,” Thiesfeld wrote.

Vicki Shuffer, [email protected]

To submit articles, please email no more than two photos and/or nature sightings each week for possible publication on Close Encounters. Don’t forget your full name and neighborhood. Email photos as .jpg attachments to [email protected]. If you have injured wildlife, call Tidewater Wildlife Rescue, 255-8710. Wildlife Response can be reached at 543-7000.