This image of the female from the nest box going after a fish gives you some idea how hard they can hit the water. I would guess the splash reaches ten feet into the air! I didn't know it at the time, but I learned a few minutes later she was trying to catch rather small shad.
She wasn't successful on this pass, but after she got airborne again, shook off the water and made a large circle around the area, she returned to the same spot and came up with a fish that hardly seemed worth the trouble. I thought maybe she was catching it for the #3 chick (who I didn't think was flying yet), but once she got back in the air and circled back around, she ate it herself. Through most of the nesting period, the male has been providing the food, so it is nice to know she hasn't lost her touch.
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