Skimmers are another of the master acrobats. Like the Kite they catch prey on the fly, but they feed by grabbing small fish as they fly over the surface.
Above you can see a school of fish jump and scatter as the bird is spotted up above.
It’s like the surface of the water erupts when a Skimmer comes in low.
You might think of a Black Skimmer as a large Tree Swallow in their speed and actions.
Photographing these birds is all based on timing and your location in the path of their flight.
Most of my wildlife photography is done in color. Nature is all about colors and shades. A few scenes though are just made for Black and White.
Best viewed full screen.
The frenzy of an Alligator feeding just need the drama B&W contrast provides.
ACE Basin, South Carolina.
If not for the heavy tree cover overhead I don’t think these would have survived this year.
Found on a walk.
This is a continuation of a previous article, click here to view.
No more than a few minutes after leaving the Red-tailed Hawk and Whistling Duck I caught a quick fly by.
There was no duck so he got by this time.
These Whistlers really need to learn not to hang out in the open.
There was a Whistling Duck here, one where a few days before there were two.
He wanted the duck, and he wanted me to leave. The look he gave me was not a happy one.
He was up in this stand of trees (image below) looking around and waiting. You can see the white Owl box the Duck had lived in if you look closely.
I made sure not to get too close, even though I was hoping the Whistler would see him and leave. There are not many around.
The one to give up was me. The Duck and Hawk were just sitting. I was holding up a heavy long lens.
Some days are better than others…this was a good one.
ACE Basin, South Carolina. Best viewed large.
This is a continuation of a walk down a dike, and the locals there.
The canal side water was low, in some places the Alligator were lying in just a few inches. This allowed a favorite past time.
Lazy eating.
The first time I watched this I wasn’t sure what they were doing. But it’s simple really. I just need to remember an Alligator will eat anything.
An Alligator rolls his head to the side, opens his mouth, and pushes the mud around.
Above he is chomping away. Can’t imagine what he has found in that mud, but they all do it. The shape of their snout prevents them from just reaching out to ‘touch’ something.
Lazy, sideways, eating happens all the time. On this dike I found several doing the same thing.
Next time the topic of Alligator eating habits comes up in a conversation you can jump right in.
A few drops of morning water added to the images.
I went to a rose garden once and brought along a spray bottle of water. Of course I left it in the back seat.
