Yesterday, I was walking along the coast, head down, into a stiff breeze, when a shadow fell over me and then on the ground ahead. I had to laugh. It had been a while since this had happened to me. It was the unmistakable large shadow of a Great Frigatebird. I grabbed my camera out of the bag, and wrestled it into action, knowing as I did so that I wouldn’t get any decent photos.

The bird passed probably 10- or 15-feet overhead. By the time I took this photo it was way ahead, even into the wind. Then it dipped down closer to the water and I didn’t see it again.

Great Frigatebirds are prodigious flying machines and they appear effortless in their flight. Had I seen it earlier, it would likely have changed course earlier. But I suspect it’s not an accident when they pass directly overhead. I think they’re just winding me up!