CLASS AVES

Black Skimmer

Animals Kingdom (Animalia)

• Chordates (Phylum Chordata)

• Vertebrates (Subphylum Vertebrata)

• Birds (Class Aves)

Rynchops niger is a migratory species. Individuals from northern North America winter in the southern United States and South America or the Caribbean. Rynchops niger is primarily found in bays, estuaries, lagoons, mudflats, beaches, shell banks, spoil islands, and coastal marshes. Individuals nest mostly on sand, salt marsh mats, and dredge spoil. They often choose sites near terns. Black skimmers are piscivores, their diet primarily consists of small fish from 4 to 12 cm in length. Fish that are smaller than 2 cm are fed to young birds. They also eat arthropods, such as crustaceans, and other marine invertebrates. Black skimmers have a unique foraging behavior in which they fly low over the water while submerging their sharp, elongated lower mandible into the water. Once the prey comes into contact with the lower mandible, the upper mandible closes and the prey is captured.