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SkimmerIn their amazing anatomical adaptations and their highly distinctive feeding behavior, Black Skimmers spark wonder and near-incredulity among birders on North America’s seaside coasts. Related to gulls and terns but placed by most taxonomists in a separate subfamily, Black Skimmers are one of three species of skimmers in the world. Skimmers are the only birds whose pupils constrict to a vertical slit, instead of a round opening. Black Skimmers breed along both coasts of the United States. On the eastern seaboard, they may be found in spring and summer from Massachusetts to the northern Gulf coast of Mexico (including some inland areas in Florida), with isolated breeding colonies as far south as the Yucatán Peninsula. The western population of Black Skimmers breeds in southern California along the Pacific as well as on the shores of the Salton Sea. The species winters irregularly along the Atlantic and Gulf coastlines from North Carolina to southern Mexico, and rarely in Panama and Venezuela. Nonbreeding Black Skimmers also occur on the Pacific coast in southern California, Mexico, and Central America, south to Costa Rica. Black Skimmer Range Map Black Skimmers have elongated lower mandibles that extend well beyond the tips of their upper bills. Black Skimmers feed by flying low with open bills, dipping their lower mandibles into the water and slicing through the surface. Upon sensing a fish, the bird snaps its upper bill shut, seizing its prey. (The upper mandible is hinged, and can be moved freely.) This ability to feed by the sense of touch enables Black Skimmers to forage at night, though they often do so by day as well. Their diet consists primarily of small fish, as well as shrimp in more southerly areas. Black Skimmers generally feed in tidal bays, estuaries, and salt marsh pools. They prefer to forage under windless conditions, when the water surface is smooth. Black Skimmers nest in large colonies, usually in the presence of terns, whose aggressive behavior toward predators evidently affords the skimmers some protective benefit. Black Skimmer colonies are usually located on sandy or gravelly bars, or on mats of dead vegetation in salt marshes. Colony sizes vary widely, from single pairs to many thousands; average size increases along the Atlantic coast from north to south. Nests are simple scrapes on the ground or depressions in vegetation. Almost invariably, nests are fully exposed, without any shade. In addition to their reliance on their tern neighbors for deterrence of predators, Black Skimmers also circle and mob intruders, issuing loud barking calls. They also perform distraction displays, landing right in front of predators with a belly flop and feigning labored, unsuccessful attempts at flight. Clutch sizes vary from year to year, ranging between one and six eggs, possibly in response to food availability. Chicks can walk from the nest within one to two hours of hatching, but generally depend heavily on parents for thermoregulation and feeding for the first few weeks of life. The bills of hatchlings have mandibles of equal size, but after about a month, the lower mandible is already discernibly longer. At about this time, young birds first take flight. First attempts at skimming follow within another day or two, but low foraging success rates necessitate continued dependence on parents for food for at least two additional weeks. Description: Black Skimmers are essentially unmistakable birds, highly distinctive in plumage and morphology. The most striking feature of the species is its long bill, which is bright red at the base and black toward the tip. The bill is laterally compressed, like a blade balanced on edge; the lower mandible extends an inch or more beyond the upper. Wings are long and slim; tail is short and square or slightly forked. Legs and webbed feet are bright red. Adult Black Skimmers are solid jet-black above and white below. Juveniles are brown streaked with black above. Black Skimmers measure about 16 to 20 inches in length. Males are generally distinctly larger than females, with commensurately longer bills. Voice: Call is a loud bark, given singly or in series. Visit Shaw
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