The gull sails aloft white-crested ocean
as smooth as silk, in perfect motion
eyes scan the surf for silver glimmers
to harvest crops of scaly dinners

A glint, a meal, a hunger real
an upward swoop with deft and zeal
one turn, a hover, then a plunge
sharp golden beak in deathly lunge

Quick splash, a grab, wings pumping rough
spraying surf, jaw clenching tough
sprat writhing in a fatal snare
gills choking on cruel ocean air

Snap of the neck, the fish flung high
twisting, squirming, through the sky
then down the throat in one big swallow
and the gull cruises on for more to follow