Places CitiesVirginia Beach

Wildlife near Virginia Beach, VA

Illustrated wildlife of Virginia Beach

Virginia Beach reaches from the Chesapeake Bay mouth down a long Atlantic shoreline, and the wildlife follows the water. Bottlenose dolphins cruise just offshore in the warm months, humpback and even right whales pass in winter, and the marshes and maritime forest at Back Bay and False Cape hold wild horses, bald eagles, and huge numbers of wintering snow geese and tundra swans. Loggerhead sea turtles nest on the beaches in summer.

Everything below is pulled live from recent research-grade observations near Virginia Beach. Browse by group, explore the map, and identify what you find with Huck.

29,106
recent observations
30
species listed
15
birds
5
insects & arthropods
2
mammals

Naturalists have logged 29,106 research-grade observations across the 30 most-recorded species near Virginia Beach. The most frequently seen is the Eastern Gray Squirrel, with 2,808 recorded sightings.

Birds account for the largest share of what gets recorded there (15 of the species listed here), followed by insects & arthropods (5).

🖨️ Printable wildlife checklist

Most-observed species near Virginia Beach

Eastern Gray Squirrel
Sciurus carolinensis
2,808 observations
Mallard
Anas platyrhynchos
1,838 observations
Great Blue Heron
Ardea herodias
1,555 observations
Yellow-crowned Night Heron
Nyctanassa violacea
1,554 observations
Northern Mockingbird
Mimus polyglottos
1,353 observations
Canada Goose
Branta canadensis
1,116 observations
Yellow Garden Spider
Argiope aurantia
1,077 observations
Monarch
Danaus plexippus
1,036 observations
Atlantic Ghost Crab
Ocypode quadrata
980 observations · iNaturalist
Ring-billed Gull
Larus delawarensis
954 observations
white clover
Trifolium repens
928 observations
Osprey
Pandion haliaetus
912 observations
American Robin
Turdus migratorius
908 observations
Great Egret
Ardea alba
883 observations
Double-crested Cormorant
Nannopterum auritum
866 observations
Brown Pelican
Pelecanus occidentalis
818 observations
Northern Cardinal
Cardinalis cardinalis
813 observations
Black Swallowtail
Papilio polyxenes
788 observations
Laughing Gull
Leucophaeus atricilla
764 observations
Eastern Cottontail
Sylvilagus floridanus
757 observations
Northern Cottonmouth
Agkistrodon piscivorus
749 observations
Pond Slider
Trachemys scripta
688 observations
Eastern Carpenter Bee
Xylocopa virginica
661 observations
loblolly pine
Pinus taeda
655 observations
European Starling
Sturnus vulgaris
639 observations
Southern Toad
Anaxyrus terrestris
620 observations
North American Wheel Bug
Arilus cristatus
618 observations
American sweetgum
Liquidambar styraciflua
612 observations
American trumpet vine
Campsis radicans
592 observations
Sanderling
Calidris alba
564 observations

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