Another Skimmer Skirmish from Nickerson on August 3. Every so often two Black Skimmers would shoot up out of the colony on the beach, one chasing the other vertically into the stratosphere before leveling off into their normal skirmish routine. I tried a number of times to catch this fast action before finally switching to a wider hand-held lens, and even then almost lost them and had to add some canvas at the top.
D7200, 80-400 VR @ 260 mm, ISO 800, 1/2500s @ f/9 manual.
Hey Bill, new member here, great shot. I love to watch the Simmers and have seen this behavior often. They are acrobatic flyers. I can't decide if they are playing or being aggressive with each other? It seems like it would be too late in the season for it to be a mating ritual.
Thanks John. And welcome to BPN. Yes, I also wonder what they're about when they perform their acrobatics. Sometimes it looks as if they're just having fun. But sometimes it looks as if they're pretty serious about it.
Hi Bill, you have done extremely well capturing these two fast flyers in the frame. Great action, well exposed, and both sharp. Of course, having the top Skimmer with a similar wing spread as the lower one would have put this over the top. But thats just a little nit pick.
Bill - I don't want to hijack or intrude but I thought you might enjoy these of the same behavior. Taken behind Assateague Island on the eastern shore of Maryland.
Those are very nice, John. I have lots of chasing shots, although unfortunately not many where the birds are facing one another as in your second frame. What I was interested in capturing with my OP was the rapid vertical ascent, almost as if they had been shot from a cannon straight up out of the colony.
Up, Up and Away
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