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

A Fish Heist At Carlos Pointe: Pt. I

It was surreal to drive along Estero Boulevard and Fort Myers Beach on the morning after the Independence Day holiday.

The sunrise above (image 1) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

It appeared I was one of few up and about save a few pedestrians in the predawn hour about while on my way to Carlos Pointe. Bud Tom Obrock had told me of the Black Skimmer fuzzballs that were abundant there a few days earlier.

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

The fishermen above (image 3) were photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Roseate Spoonbill above (image 4) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Least Tern above (image 5) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Snowy Plover incubating eggs above (image 6) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Black Skimmer chick above (image 7) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The birds were active over Big Carlos Pass as were the fishermen shortly before sunrise. Certainly nothing unusual about that. After parking I was eager to cross the bridge and see the action at Carlos Pointe up close.

The Black Skimmer 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 Black Skimmer chick above (image 10) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

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

The Black Skimmer with prey above (image 12) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Black Skimmer with prey above (image 13) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

A dozen or so Roseate Spoonbills immediately caught my attention at the pool. The purpose of the circus flags that are hung over the water there are a mystery. I should have asked one of the wildlife volunteers that were seen this day who is responsible for them.

The Black Skimmer with prey above (image 14) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Black Skimmer with prey above (image 15) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Black Skimmer with prey above (image 16) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Black Skimmer with prey above (image 17) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Black Skimmer with prey above (image 18) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Black Skimmer with prey and chick above (image 19) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The next thing of interest as I walked north were the owl decoys. My thought was that they were to deter other predator birds that would readily consume the chicks and juveniles that are abundant at this venue this time of year.

The Black Skimmer with chick and Laughing Gull above (image 20) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

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

The Black Skimmer with prey above (image 22) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Black Skimmer with prey above (image 23) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Black Skimmer with chick above (image 24) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

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

Well, my attention was next focused on the Black Skimmer colony. It was here that I would settle down and observe. Although I was tempted on a few occasions to get closer to the wildlife, it was rewarding enough to watch the action from the point where its was impossible to identify the decoys without very close scrutiny.

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

The Black Skimmer with chick above (image 27) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Black Skimmer with chick above (image 28) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Black Skimmer with chick above (image 29) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Black Skimmer with chick above (image 30) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Snowy Plover above (image 31) was photographed at Carlos Point in July 2015.

There was a very modest breeze this particular morning which made the flight of the birds unpredictable though I managed to occasionally stay with them. There was a recurring auto focus opportunity. This venue had previously been of interest to me for observation of a Red-necked Phalarope.

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

The Common Ground Dove above (image 33) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The juvenile Little Blue Heron above (image 34) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Black Skimmer above (image 35) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

A small flock of Laughing Gulls were assessing the situation.

The Black Skimmer above (image 36) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

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