Close Encounters: Bald eagles spotted in Surry County

Joe DiGeronimo spotted “a beautiful pair of bald eagles in flight hovering over their tree top nest on a cliff’s edge overlooking the banks of the James River in Surry County in the river beach area of Camp Chanco.”

Michael Schimmel got a shot of a female osprey as she was calling to her mate from her nest at First Landing State Park in Virginia Beach. “She got down in the nest when a couple gulls were checking it out,” wrote Schimmel, “so I would imagine the eggs haven’t yet hatched.”

A female osprey calls to her mate from her nest at First Landing State Park in Virginia Beach. (Courtesy of Michael Schimmel)

William Welch Jr. photographed a pair of bald eagles at the top of a tower at the Battlefield Golf Club in Chesapeake.

Linda Glasson photographed a group of great blue herons and great egrets checking out the food supply at Lotus Garden Park in Virginia Beach.

Connie Owen sent a photo of a black vulture in the Robinhood Forest area of Virginia Beach. “An opossum died in the ivy; I could smell it, but not find it,” wrote Owen. “The vulture crew arrived and over 48 hours managed to totally clean up the carcass.”

Charlie Hurd spotted a mourning dove with bright white tail feathers at Aeries on the Bay in Virginia Beach. White tail feathers usually signify a lack of pigment whether genetic or otherwise.

Ed Obermeyer photographed a brilliant blue male bluebird perched on a feeder in his backyard in the Castleton neighborhood of Virginia Beach.

Mike Weirich sent photos of bluebirds in his yard in Great Neck Estates in Virginia Beach. “Our bluebird eggs have hatched and Mom and Dad are busy all day bringing in food and chasing away the squirrels,” Weirich wrote.

Jane Hughey sent photos of a family of bluebirds in the Indian River area of Chesapeake. “Baby bluebirds that fledged last week returned today and were fed by the parents,” wrote Hughey. “Dad kept demonstrating how to land on the feeders and get food.”

A family of bluebirds visits a backyard in the Indian River area in Chesapeake. (Courtesy of Jane Hughey)

Jane Quesenberry sent a photo of a male bluebird on a nest in a nesting box in Baylake Pines in Virginia Beach.

Cindy Hamilton photographed a prothonotary warbler singing his song at the Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge in Suffolk. “Spring migrants are beginning to arrive in Hampton Roads and are filling the air with birdsong,” wrote Hamilton. “Some warblers will continue flying north, but this prothonotary warbler is one of the warblers that spends the summer in Hampton Roads.”

A prothonotary warbler sings its song at the Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge in Suffolk. (Courtesy of Cindy Hamilton)

Jonathan Snyder sent a photo of a prairie warbler perched in a sweetgum tree at the Great Dismal Swamp in Suffolk.

A prairie warbler perches in a sweetgum tree at the Great Dismal Swamp in Suffolk. (Courtesy of Jonathan Snyder)

Weekend Scoop

Weekly

Check out the latest entertainment and arts news, then plan your weekend with a look ahead at what's happening around Hampton Roads.

Janet Kerns came upon a group of zebra butterflies that were “puddling” while biking on the Dismal Swamp Trail in Chesapeake. “There were also plenty flitting around in the air, along with a few palamedes and eastern tiger swallowtails,” Kern wrote. “Butterflies always brighten my day!”

Steve Daniel got a photo of a pair of damselflies in the mating act at Stumpy Lake in Virginia Beach.

A pair of damselflies engage in the mating act at Stumpy Lake in Virginia Beach. (Courtesy of Steve Daniel)

Richard Olivieri photographed a green tree frog in the Linkhorn Park area of Virginia Beach. “They like our outdoor shower for shelter during the day,” Olivieri wrote.

Rich Thiesfeld caught sight of an alligator sunning itself at the Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge in North Carolina.

An alligator suns itself at the Alligator National Wildlife Refuge in North Carolina. (Courtesy of Rich Thiesfeld)

Joseph Robbins photographed an eastern cottontail rabbit in the Thoroughgood neighborhood of Virginia Beach. “It is protected from predators by the nearby hedge and fallen leaves,” wrote Robbins.

A cottontail rabbit takes sanctuary in a Thoroughgood neighborhood in Virginia Beach. (Courtesy of Joseph Robbins)

Michael Poirier photographed a couple of deer at the edge of the woods in the Riverwalk neighborhood in Chesapeake.

Vickie Shufer, wildfood@cox.net