Black Skimmers are beautiful and unusual shorebirds. The lower mandible being longer than the upper and their coloration striking.
In flight it is graceful and soaring with a wing span of 3.5' and a body of only 18".
A beautiful sight to see on the shoreline as it forages in flight while skimming its lower mandible just under the surface of the water.
There were large colonies of them roosting nearby the last time we were vacationing on Longboat Key.
They roost by lying almost flattened, with their entire body... from head to tail... in contact with the sand. Lots of yapping and barking notes go on during this time.
Human disturbance would send them into the air in a flurry. It was sad to see when folks couldn't recognize they should be left in peace. They would return to the same sandy area shortly.
Their habitat is coastal marine environments, including estuaries, lagoons, sheltered bays and inlets; and they roost on mudflats and beaches.
4 comments:
Hey there, beautiful photos! I love anything beachy and FL> Cheers
Great photos - I think I need to go to the beach and practice taking some birds-in-flight shots:)
Thank you Simone... me too.
Kay, Birds are just cool subjects and the black skimmers are quite majestic.
Meems, your photos are remarkable--what a gift--green thumb an photographer's eye.
Always a pleasure to visit you.
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