A close-up of a black skimmer calling in Florida.

Barking Skimmer

Tierra Verde, Florida

The black skimmer is certainly an oddity: it's the only North American species with a lower bill longer than the upper, it rests by lying flat on its stomach, and it has a call more akin to a dog's bark than anything a bird might be expected to sound like. In flight, that long lower bill drags through the water until it touches a fish, at which point the beak slams shut to trap the prey.

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