Landing or taking off?

I don't remember. I'm also not sure if that white mass on the bottom is the tide rising or something else. I'm going with the tide. I'd also wager that the bird is taking off as the tide rolls toward it. I wasn't very good at labeling and/or remembering eighteen years ago when I took these pictures.

Is that a cormorant? Mont Saint-Michel, June 2006.

Today is the winter solstice! The days have already stopped getting shorter. It won't be long now before they start getting longer again. Yay!