A Fish Heist At Carlos Pointe: Pt. II

A trip to the beach is always a relaxing and rewarding experience in southwest Florida no matter the time of year.

The Black Skimmer with chick and decoy above (image 1) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

A July observation of Black Skimmers and other wildlife that had taken a good hold of Carlos Pointe directly south of Estero Beach was a great attraction in itself. Perhaps not quite as thrilling as a roller coaster, an interchange between a skimmer and several Laughing Gulls was almost as dizzying.

The Least Tern above (image 2) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Snowy Plover above (image 3) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull above (image 4) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The immature Tricolored Heron above (image 5) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Black Skimmer with chick above (image 6) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Great Egret above (image 7) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

While I had considered a walk to the American Oystercatcher nest, I weighed the exhaustion that would ensue with an interest for reading a report about the birds first. It was with a Facebook report by Gail R. Campbell the day after I made my trip to Carlos Point that I read bad news.

The Black Skimmer with chick above (image 8) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Black Skimmer with chick above (image 9) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull above (image 10) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 11) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 12) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 13) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

According to Gail, John D. Mosele of Fort Myers Beach had observed one of the American Oystercatcher chicks on 2 July, but it had not been seen thereafter. I have not seen any other reference to the second egg in the nest.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 14) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 15) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 16) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 17) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 18) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 19) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The oystercatcher eggs were hatching more quickly than I had anticipated since first observing them on 15 June. The loss of the oystercatcher chick was likely through predation from a Yellow-crowned Night-Heron or perhaps an extremely hungry Laughing Gull.

The Black Skimmer above (image 20) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 21) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 22) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 23) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 24) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 25) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

Jessica Yarnell has made superb reports of Black Skimmer chicks at Indian Rocks Beach, just south of Clearwater, with additional images she intended to present interrupted with good fortune by her blog's namesake.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 26) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 27) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 28) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 29) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Least Tern above (image 30) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Black Skimmer chick above (image 31) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

Here at Carlos Pointe I was given an incredible show with the heist of a fish from a Black Skimmer by an extremely persistent Laughing Gull. The chase for the quarry which began with a solitary gull in pursuit of the skimmer, after two minutes had three gulls immediately on its tail.

The scene above (image 32) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Double-crested Cormorant above (image 33) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Snowy Plover above (image 34) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Beach Sunflower above (image 35) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The walk back to the car offered a view of blooming flora sheltered at the foot of Big Carlos Pass bridge.

The sunface above (image 36) was photographed near Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The scene above (image 37) was photographed near Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

Please also see A Fish Heist At Carlos Point: Pt. I