A sleek black bird with white shoulder patches stares at the camera, its slender black beak opened to reveal a scarlet red mouth and throat.
The seabird nestles on a small worn flat ledge of wave polished grey lava just its size.
The loosely organized flock of guillemots are in constant motion, flying out to sea from the tidal zone rocks, then returning a half hour later to again flop around on the rocks, mewing, flapping and partying.
The striking scarlet color of both mouth and feet is uniquely special in their matched splashes of color, contrasting amid the grey, black and white of their only foray upon land for a few months in early summer.
The rest of the year they live out on the open ocean.
Pigeon Guillemots holding their annual spring confab on the Seal Rocks of Oregon's mid-coast. They utter a high soft mew sound when their scarlet mouths open, calling to each other.
A once in a lifetime encounter appearing out of the ocean mist where I also perched
#Birds #BirdoftheDay #staredown