As a followup to yesterday’s post on the Black Skimmer (Rhynchops niger), today’s post features their best-known behavior, skimming across the water. In this first photo, a black skimmer is returning to the beach at St. Petersburg. Note the long size of the lower mandible, while the upper mandible is much shorter:
This gives them a tremendous help in being able to fly across the water, with the lower mandible in the water “skimming” for small fish. Whenever it senses a fish in it’s beak, it closes it’s beak, capturing it’s meal:
In some of the above images you can see the “trail” left behind the bird as it skims across the water. Such an interesting bird to watch!
Photographic Equipment Used:
- Canon 1D Mark 3 body
- Canon EF100mm-400mm, f/4.5 – f/5.6 IS lens, shot from 460mm to 540 mm
- Handheld, with IS “On”
- ISO 500
- Aperture f/8
- Shutter 1/1000 sec. to 1/2000 sec.