The Black Skimmer’s range map in North America is a thin colored line just along the coast in summer from southern Maine south, around Florida and the Gulf, and then back up the other side of Mexico about as far north as Santa Barbara in California. In winter it retreats on the east coast to the waters of Carolinas and south. Apparently in South America the Black Skimmer frequents the rivers of the greater Amazon basin far inland year round, but it is pretty much a salt water bird here in the US. I have seen them in Cape May, New Jersey, in Georgia and Florida, in Texas on the Gulf Coast, and in Southern California. And every sighting is a treat. They are such unlikely birds. Black and white with bright orange feet and bright orange band at the base of the miss-matched bill…miss-matched since the lower mandible is an inch or more longer than the upper.

The bird in the second shot is actually yawning, but it shows how the bill is held while hunting, with the lower mandible cutting the water to locate food.

These shots are from the base of the bridge on the Merritt Island side, where the fisherman gather. There are mussel or oyster beds just off shore and the birds gather to rest and hunt in large numbers.

I could watch them for hours!

1) and 2) Canon SD100HS behind the 30x eyepiece on the ZEISS DiaScope 65FL for an equivalent field of view of 3400mm, 1/640th and 1/500th @ ISO 160. Program with iContrast and –1/3EV exposure compensation. 3) and 4) Canon SX40HS in Program with iContrast and –1/3EV exposure compensation. 3) 840mm equivalent field of view, f5.8 @ 1/1000th @ ISO 200, 4) 1680mm equivalent (2x digital tel-converter), f5.8 @ 1/500th @ ISO 100.

Processed in Lightroom for intensity, clarity, and sharpness.