Black Skimmer

Rynchops niger

IUCN: Least Concern

Taxonomy

Order
Charadriiformes
Family
Laridae
Genus
Rynchops
eBird Code
blkski

Vocalizations

Linda Pardy · CC_BY_4_0
John D Reynolds · CC_BY_4_0

Subspecies (3)

  • Rynchops niger cinerascens

    breeds Orinoco and Amazon river systems to northern and western Colombia and western Ecuador; winters to coasts

  • Rynchops niger intercedens

    breeds large rivers of eastern Paraguay and eastern Brazil southward to southern Buenos Aires Province (north-central Argentina); winters to coasts

  • Rynchops niger niger

    breeds coastal USA from southern California to Nayarit (western Mexico) and Massachusetts to Florida and Yucatan (eastern Mexico); winters to Panama and northern Caribbean

Data Sources

Bird images and sounds sourced from GBIF, contributed by citizen scientists worldwide under Creative Commons licenses.

Taxonomy data from AviList 2025.