Fishing Bird

 Fishing Bird, collage/acrylic, 5 x 5, 2010

 Elizabeth W. Seaver
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When we went to the Outer Banks last month, my husband and I took a short trip down towards Hatteras Island by way of Kitty Hawk.  We stopped at a small lighthouse that was being restored and found a boardwalk trail out into the coastal marsh.  The elevated wooden platform out over a sheltered lagoon gave us an excellent view of the antics of the crabs.  Kingfishers, gulls and other shore birds flew overhead.

Looking out over the water from that height, we were able to watch several varieties of herons and egrets stalk their prey in the shallow water.  Every so often they'd go stone-still for a moment and then suddenly strike with their long bills, coming back up with some delectable bit of dinner.

That's when this fisher bird appeared in my head.  Perhaps he should have stuck with the more traditional fishing method for his species, since it looks as if he has fished all day and caught nothing.  And I'm sure his feet are hot, too!