{"id":15417,"date":"2014-07-18T04:24:15","date_gmt":"2014-07-18T10:24:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=15417"},"modified":"2025-03-03T13:11:43","modified_gmt":"2025-03-03T19:11:43","slug":"black-skimmers-highly-gregarious-and-unmistakable","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2014\/07\/18\/black-skimmers-highly-gregarious-and-unmistakable\/","title":{"rendered":"Black Skimmers – Highly Gregarious And Unmistakable"},"content":{"rendered":"

Black Skimmers\u00a0 are beautiful and unmistakable, with their long orange\/red black tipped bill, white underparts, blackish upper parts and distinctive barking (yip or yep<\/span><\/a>) call.<\/p>\n

\"FlockFlock of Black Skimmers in flight over Fort De Soto’s north beach – Nikon D200, handheld, f6.3, 1\/2000, ISO 250, Nikkor 70-300mm VR at 170mm, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

There is no other coastal water bird in North America that looks anything like them. There also isn’t another water bird in North America that feeds like they do.<\/p>\n

\"BlackBlack Skimmer skimming – Nikon D200, f5.6, 1\/800, ISO 160, Nikkor 80-400mm VR at 400mm, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

The Black Skimmer’s bill has an unusual shape, it is long and thin, the lower mandible is noticeably longer than the upper maxilla.<\/p>\n

When they are feeding the black skimmer’s lower bill skims the water surface and slices through the water, when the bird senses prey with the lower bill the upper bill snaps shut capturing the prey.<\/p>\n

Black skimmers usually eat small fish though they may also take small crustaceans. Skimmers are active during the day but they are also successful hunters during the night.<\/p>\n

\"BlackBlack Skimmer adult on beach – Nikon\u00a0<\/em>D200, handheld while laying in the sand, f7.1, 1\/1000, ISO 200, Nikkor 80-400mm VR at 400mm, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

Photographing Black Skimmers can be very challenging because of the high contrast of the whites, darks and reds. Additionally their long narrow body shape when resting on the ground can present difficulties with composition.<\/p>\n

The dark feathers on the upper part normally have some brown tones\u00a0while the nape and head appear\u00a0black. The adult skimmer in the image above is in breeding plumage, in nonbreeding plumage there is an area above the shoulder to the back of the head that will be white.<\/p>\n

The male is slightly larger than the female and has a slightly longer bill. The wingspan is about 44 inches.<\/p>\n

\"BlackJuvenile Black Skimmer – Nikon D200, handheld while laying in the sand, f9, 1\/500, ISO 160, Nikkor 80-400mm VR at 330mm, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

Juvenile Black Skimmers have the same shape as adults, their bills are shorter and duller. Juveniles have brown mottled feathers on their backs which reminds me of the pattern of herringbone.<\/p>\n

The juvenile above was capable of flight though it appeared to prefer staying on the beach and having the adults feed it instead of foraging for itself at this age.<\/p>\n

\"Black Adult Black Skimmer banking for landing – Nikon D200, handheld, f5.6, 1\/2000, ISO 250, Nikkor 80-400mm VR at 400m, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

Skimmers are graceful in flight, their wing movements are buoyant. Even from a long distance their flight pattern can be used to identify them. During mating season there can be exciting aerial displays between males.<\/p>\n

Highly gregarious skimmers are often seen in large flocks and nest in colonies. If you sit quietly on the beach before dawn you may be able to hear a flock of skimmers coming in from a night of feeding or see them fly onto shore in the pale light of dawn, either one is an experience you won’t soon forget.<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Images created in 2008 and 2009.<\/em><\/p>\n

Click here<\/a> to see more of my Black Skimmer photos plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Black Skimmers are beautiful and unmistakable, with their long orange\/red black tipped bill, white underparts, blackish upper parts and distinctive barking call.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":141133,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":true,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[27,253,25,2000],"tags":[4004,970,3990,4072,4620,4052,4247,4122,173,4077,4067,4071,4211,4697,5117,4248,2315,102,4193],"class_list":["post-15417","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-avian","category-black-skimmers","category-florida","category-pinellas-county-florida","tag-adult","tag-autumn","tag-black-skimmer","tag-calling","tag-fall","tag-flight","tag-flock","tag-flying","tag-gulf-coast","tag-gulf-of-mexico","tag-immature","tag-juvenile","tag-rynchops-niger","tag-skimmer","tag-skimmers","tag-skimming","tag-summer-3","tag-wildlife","tag-young"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/black-skimmer-mia-mcpherson-adult-8056.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-40F","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":3322,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2011\/10\/12\/black-skimmer-adult-in-flight\/","url_meta":{"origin":15417,"position":0},"title":"Black Skimmer Adult In Flight","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"October 12, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"I could always tell when a flock of Black Skimmers were flying in to Fort De Soto's north beach when I was photographing there because I could usually hear their soft, nasal barking yips or yeps before I saw them.","rel":"","context":"In "Black Skimmers"","block_context":{"text":"Black Skimmers","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/terns-and-skimmers\/black-skimmers\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Adult Black Skimmer in flight over the Gulf on Mexico, photographed at the north beach of Fort De Soto County Park, Florida","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/black-skimmer-mia-mcpherson-adult-flight-8868.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/black-skimmer-mia-mcpherson-adult-flight-8868.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/black-skimmer-mia-mcpherson-adult-flight-8868.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/black-skimmer-mia-mcpherson-adult-flight-8868.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":39045,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2016\/04\/29\/black-skimmer-skimming-the-gulf\/","url_meta":{"origin":15417,"position":1},"title":"Black Skimmer Skimming the Gulf","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"April 29, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"My own technique for photographing this Black Skimmer skimming the Gulf and other skimmers that day was to sit down in the water right where the waves crested and moved on shore.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Black Skimmer skimming the Gulf, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Florida","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/black-skimmer-adult-skimming-mia-mcpherson-1996.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/black-skimmer-adult-skimming-mia-mcpherson-1996.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/black-skimmer-adult-skimming-mia-mcpherson-1996.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, 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Florida","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/black-skimmer-flock-mia-mcpherson-7755.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/black-skimmer-flock-mia-mcpherson-7755.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/black-skimmer-flock-mia-mcpherson-7755.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/black-skimmer-flock-mia-mcpherson-7755.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":101757,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2022\/04\/24\/black-skimmer-photo-from-13-years-ago\/","url_meta":{"origin":15417,"position":3},"title":"Black Skimmer Photo From 13 Years Ago","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"April 24, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"It was thirteen years ago today when I took this photo of an adult Black Skimmer flying over the Gulf of Mexico in Pinellas County, Florida.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Adult Black Skimmer flying over the Gulf of Mexico, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Florida","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/black-skimmer-adult-flight-mia-mcpherson-7825.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/black-skimmer-adult-flight-mia-mcpherson-7825.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/black-skimmer-adult-flight-mia-mcpherson-7825.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/black-skimmer-adult-flight-mia-mcpherson-7825.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":14837,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2014\/04\/26\/black-skimmers-at-fort-de-soto-five-years-ago-today\/","url_meta":{"origin":15417,"position":4},"title":"Black Skimmers at Fort De Soto Five Years Ago Today","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"April 26, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"It is really cruddy here in Utah this morning so I thought I would go back in time to a warmer, sunnier day via the magic of some Black Skimmer images I created five years ago today.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Black Skimmer in flight close up as it flew past me at Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Florida","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/black-skimmer-close-up-flight-mia-mcpherson-9063.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/black-skimmer-close-up-flight-mia-mcpherson-9063.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/black-skimmer-close-up-flight-mia-mcpherson-9063.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/black-skimmer-close-up-flight-mia-mcpherson-9063.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":10970,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2013\/11\/22\/black-skimmers-in-flight\/","url_meta":{"origin":15417,"position":5},"title":"Black Skimmers In Flight","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"November 22, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"I photographed these Black Skimmers in flight at the north beach of Fort De Soto County Park in Florida one cool January morning.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Black Skimmers in flight over Fort De Soto\u2019s north beach, Florida","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/black-skimmers-flight-fort-desoto-florida-mia-mcpherson-3595.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/black-skimmers-flight-fort-desoto-florida-mia-mcpherson-3595.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/black-skimmers-flight-fort-desoto-florida-mia-mcpherson-3595.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, 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