Charadriiformes / Laridae / Rynchops

Black Skimmer

Rynchops niger

IUCN: Least Concern

Data Sources

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

Taxonomy data from AviList 2025.

Linda Pardy · CC_BY_4_0

John D Reynolds · CC_BY_4_0

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

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

Taxonomy data from AviList 2025.