Black Skimmer
Rynchops niger
Habitat
Aquatic
Diet
VertFishScav
Active Time
Diurnal
Size
298 g
About This Species
Flies low over calm coastal waters and lagoons at dawn and dusk, slicing its long lower mandible through the surface to snatch small fish by feel rather than sight. Look for loose flocks resting on sandbars and beaches during the day, often alongside terns and gulls. Breeding colonies form on open sandy or shelly beaches in summer, and evening feeding flights are the easiest time to watch the distinctive skimming technique.
Ethical Viewing Guidelines
- Keep well back from beach-nesting colonies, especially in spring and summer, since eggs and chicks are camouflaged on open sand and easily trampled or flushed; many range states protect beach-nesting seabirds and restrict access to colony areas during the breeding season.
- Watch feeding birds from a distance with binoculars rather than approaching sandbars where flocks are roosting.
- Because protections and enforcement vary across its Americas range, follow posted colony closures and local guidance rather than assuming a fixed distance applies everywhere.
LCAvesCharadriiformesLaridae
Seasonal Activity
608,984 sightings · 2000–2026
Citizen science records via GBIF
All monthsThis month
Classification
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Charadriiformes
- Family
- Laridae
Traits
- Diet
- VertFishScav
- Foraging
- Aquatic
- Activity
- Diurnal
- Body mass
- 298 g
Photo
Wikimedia Commons / Wikimedia Commons
CC-BY-SA-4.0
Occurrence data from GBIF.