Skimming
A flock of black skimmers on the beach at Grand Isle State Park, Louisiana The first time I saw a black skimmer was on Pensacola Beach, Florida. It was a rainy day and cool so there were few people on the beach. Skimmers were fishing in the shallow waves on the shore by dipping their lower bill in the water as they were flying. It was an amazing sight to see them singly, or in groups of three or more, flying right past us in what I deduced was a feat of aeronautic self-control. Some of the birds were successful in catching bait fish and I watched them bring their catch back to offspring on the shore. W ith a large, stunningly-colored bill, t hey are obviously well-adapted to feeding this way. The bill seems disproportionately large for the size of their head. It seems that such a large bill does not come without a price. According to The Cornell Lab of Ornithology , skimmers can be found resting their head and bill upon the sand, "probably to keep cool and to give...
