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June 23, 1963 - The Black Skimmer Black Skimmer Exclusive Sunday Review sketch by Dennis Puleston of Brookhaven FOCUS on Nature by Paul Stoutenburgh, Cutchogue I think I have said this before but I feel it worth repeating; when you get an artist and writer combined you will find this com- bination hard to beat. So it is with Dennis Puleston who brings us this week's article concerning the beautiful Black Skimmer, ps. GUEST WRITER: DENNIS PULESTON The Black Skimmer "It's incredible!" exclaimed my ornithologist friend, as we stood together on the south shore of Moriches Bay on a fine May eve- ning. He was from Los Alamos, New Mexico, and during a recent business visit I had made there he had shown me many splendid Western birds than were new to me. Now, since he was attending a meeting at Brookhaven Nationail Laboratory, I was able to reci- procate by taking him to see some of our local shorebirds that were strange to him. His cry of astonishment was evoked by the sight of a large black and white bird with long wings, gliding effortlessly a few inches above the water, with the lower mandible of its scarlet and black bill cutting the surface. Such expressions of surprise are to be expected when one is given his first sight of a Black Skim - mer; whether they' are natural - ists or not, most people are un- usually impressed with this spec- tacular bird. In the first pdace, his bold and striking three -tone coloration catch the eye. 'then, as we take a second look, we rea- lize that the bill seems to be gro- tesquely deformed, for the lower mandible projects more than an inch further than the upper half. For the Skimmer obtains the small fish and crustaceans that constitute the majority of its diet by skimming low over the wafter, with its lower bil'1 serving as a swiftly moving scoop. This habit has earned for it the local name of t;utwater. -As we watch a Skim- mer feeding in this peculiar but adroit manner, we see its head frequently jerked back as its bill strikes some underwater obstruc- tion. On e would expect many birds to become injured in this way, but no harm ever seems to befall them, and I am often amaz- ed at the resilience of their jaw and neck muscles, for their flight speed is considerable while feed - ing. Since most of its prey rises closer to the top during the hours of darkness and early and late in the day, the Skimmer is most ac- tive during these periods. When satiated, these birds spend most of the midday hours roosting quietly in large, compact flocks on the sandbars, but if approach- ed, they all rise together and fly a r o u n d the intruder uttering their weird cries, that are best compared to the barking of a distant hounds. Although the works of Man have in almost every case produced an adverse effect on our wildlife species, the Skimmer has receiv- ed benefit from this unexpected quarter. Since it breeds on the bare sand, the artificial islands and sandbars created by the U.S. Army Engineers in their dredging operations in our bays and inlets have come as a great boon. Here the Skimmers, together with their constant companions the Terns, can form their breeding colonies undisturbed by rats, cats, foxes, and other predators. The nest, a mere scraping in the sand and broke shells, contains the three to five eggs,' buffy in ground col- or and handsomely marked with large dank brown blotches. When first hatched, the chicks are practically invisible, so closely does their thinly spotted, sand - colored down blend in with their surroundings. To further the cam- ouflage, instinct prompts the young to lie flat and immobile on the sand, so that often the only way we can find them is by their bright beady eyes. Amusingly enough, the young continue to crouch motionless when approach - ed even after their feathers have developed and they are plainly visible. Not until they are cert- ain that they have been detected do they scuttle away with cries of alarm. In the meantime, the frenzied parents are flying direct- ly towards the intruder, barking hoarsely, and only veering off at the last moment, whereas the bolder Terns wi19 often draw blood as they dive from above and strike with their sharp bills. Although, as already mention- ed; the Skimmer has been fortui- tously provided with many new suitable breeding grounds, it be- hooves all of us to ensure that the birds are permitted to nest with the least possible human distur- bance. In thes days when the number of boat owners is in- easin gso rapidly, these nest- ing areas for the Terns and k mmers are more frequently threatened with invasion by pick - nickers. If the birds are kept from their nests too long by hu- man presence, the eggs will grow cold and the embryos will die. But worse than this, I recall land- ing on one o° the sand Islands near Moriches Inlet a few years ago for some photography, and finding to my disgust that several children were busily gathering the eggs into a big pile. Upon seeing me approach, they ran off guiltily to their parents, who obviously were fully aware of this inexcus- able behavior, for they ail,] hast- ily piled into their boat and de- parted. 1 have also heard of boys landing on these islands and amusing themselves by pelting each other with the eggs. How can such vandalism be justified? It is to be regretted that our local authorities cannot find a means or protecting these areas as sanctuaries during the summer months, so that only those who wish to study and en- joy the birds without unduly dis- turbing them are permitted to land there. For the Black Skim- mer is one of the most interesting and spectacular of the wild crea- tures with which we share this earth, and we should be duly grateful that we on Long Island are blessed with it as a vivid orn- ament to our bays and inlets. Special Note: I have just re- ceived a note from LeRoy Wilcox and he reports that the wonder- ful tern and skimmer island Den- nis Puleston speaks of in the above article is no more. The army engineers with their dredg- ing operations have connected the island to the east side of Fire island with the disastrous result of eliminating the tern and skim- mer colony. Mr Wilcox reports there are just no nesting birds left because of predators. One would think that in this day and age of fast disappearing wildlife, some thought and planning with conservation in :mind would be given. Last year on this island alone over 10,000 terns and sever- al hundred skimmers were band - ed.ps.