Black Skimmer Feeding Near Dark

One of the more interesting sights we discovered while watching the Spoonbills was the sudden appearance of a gliding form between the mangrove banks. A Black Skimmer was feeding just before nightfall above the swallow waters.

Here, it makes a grab at the water's surface. A miss.



You can get the full view of this image by dragging it to your desktop and then you can probably tell that this grab was a success. There is a tiny fish in the bird's bill!



Once a run through this section of water was completed, the Skimmer would make a wide circle back to its starting point and would fly right towards us again and again.



I usually only seem to encounter Skimmers while they are resting and have always wanted to get a shot of them feeding because it is such a unique technique.



Could have used better light but it was fun to watch and shoot, anyway.



I also liked the trails it left on the water as it skimmed along.



A very exciting end to a nice stroll at Black Point. Never seems to disappoint me no matter when I visit.

Meeting Laura Erickson

A friend joined up to support the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and to get subscriptions to "Living Bird". I get to share the magazine as well as any other goodies (decals, etc.).

She received a letter letting her know that she was invited to a special bird walk with Laura Erickson during the Space Coast Birding Festival. My friend doesn't go out on too many outdoor hikes so she passed the invitation along to me. I hadn't planned on attending anything at the festival this year but since it was a special walk, why not?

Plus, I have been listening to Laura's radio shows and podcasts for years so it would be a chance to meet someone of like mind.

However, as the day approached, word of a strong front was posted and by the time I got to the meeting location the rain did begin to fall. I went inside to receive my complimentary copy of Laura's book, "The Bird Watching Answer Book", which she compiled for Cornell (thanks for the autograph, Laura!) and we all gathered to discuss if the walk would go on as planned or not.

Some folks opted out. Some wanted to go on the planned excursion to Viera Wetlands to find the Masked Duck. The rest of us stayed close and decided to try finding anything interesting at Black Point. Seeing as I had a van, I was elected to drive. My pleasure since it is a favorite haunt.

We paused at Parrish Park first to look over the resting gulls and a Black Skimmer that Laura is peering at through her scope.



Then I hurried the folks along as darkness was approaching and I wanted to get a look at Black Point before we were not allowed in. Not many birds in the first parts of the drive but I suggested that we stop at the new observation areas along the way. Here, the group finds a Sora in the mangroves.



At the farthest blind we all took in the wading birds.



I will be posting more of my bird pictures from here shortly (as this post is getting long!) but it was a pleasure meeting everyone involved even during a gloomy late afternoon with only a few handfuls of birds along the way.

Ospreys at Merritt Island

Took a drive over to the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge to try and spot the reported White-rumped Sandpipers hanging out along Bio Lab Road. I found them but they were too far out to get any good shots.

However, there were other birds along the lagoon including Black Terns, many waders, and more peeps. The strong winds seemed to have pushed the warblers inland.

One bird species that seemed quite happy today were the Ospreys. They were streaming by every couple of minutes and every one of them had a meal in their talons. This bird was across the road and getting ready to have lunch.



It was interesting to watch this bird with that fish seemingly barely held onto and very much alive. Every now and then the fish would begin wriggling and the Osprey would have to try and keep its balance while holding on.



At one point an Osprey flew by riding the wind really quickly. I managed to snap a slightly out of focus shot. Though I didn't see it at the time, when I got home to process the photos I noticed that this bird actually had TWO fish. One in each talon!



No other great birds shots today but the gators are always posing somewhere along the canals.



I updated my annual pass so I can't wait to get some more visits in this Fall through Spring.