The most elegant surfers in Nicaragua were the pelicans which gracefully glided along the face of breaking waves. Their play must be born out of some form of understanding of the ‘ground effect’, where air drag is reduced if they remain within a wingspan's distance to the water's surface. Apart from the functional benefits of travelling more efficiently, it is clear the birds enjoy playing ‘follow the leader’, getting as close as possible to the water and waiting right up to the last second before the wave breaks to shoot upwards.

 

The play is mapped in plan view with the shadow of the wave in black, the broken section in white and the pelicans distance from the water's surface by the proximity of their shadow.