Black Skimmer with chicks

This photo was taken on June 1 within the Santa Rosa area of Gulf Islands National Seashore.  If you click to enlarge the photo, you may be able to see the tiny beak and eyes peering out from under mama Skimmer's wing (to your right).

Just three days later I captured photos of the same nest with the chicks venturing out.  The daddy Skimmer guards his family and warns other birds to stay clear.

Black Skimmer chicks almost look cartoonish when they start toddling around.  Their body looks a little out of proportion to their head.

But they are such beautiful, graceful birds as adults, especially when you observe them feeding along the water's edge.