I missed seeing those little fuzz balls. I had not been over to the beach to catch the baby black skimmers growing up since the summer of 2019. This year I got there right after the sun came up. Black skimmers nest in huge colonies right on the sand on public beaches. The area is roped off with signs to keep people from stepping on the babies since they blend into the sand. These were all taken far away from the rope since I had my 300mm lens and extender on my camera. These are also cropped up. The parents were just starting to feed the babies when I arrived.
The baby ages ranged from 1 day old to a week old. It always amazes me how they get those fish down. Even though they are tiny fish, they seem like they couldn’t fit in the baby’s tummy. There were a few times when a baby tried to swallow and then dropped it because they couldn’t get it down. Usually the parent would pick it up and eat it themselves.
It also amazes me how a parent can fly down to the water and catch a fish and then come back and find their own baby. Sometimes they get chased around by other parents trying to steal the fish or a baby thinking it’s his parent.It’s always chaos during feeding time.
Sometimes the siblings try and get the fish from each other and fighting takes place.
It’s funny to watch when the parent brings back a needlefish. The parent may break up the fish with his beak before giving it to the baby.
Hello,
Wonderful post on the Skimmers. Those babies are just adorable, what a great sighting. Loved all the photos, well done. Thank you for linking up and sharing your post. Take care, have a happy weekend.
How cute they are and fun to watch. I was wondering if the mama broke any of it up and you answered my question. I think these little ones just want to gobble down their dinner! lol Amazing photos. I’ve never seen these young ones!
Thank you, thank you, thank you! I LOVED this. I could sit and watch them all day long.
Adorable feeding shots!