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Gannets are seabirds in the family Sulidae, closely related to the boobies. The Northern Gannet ( Morus bassanus, formerly Sula bassana) is a Seabird and is the largest member of the Gannet family Sulidae Chordates ( Phylum Chordata) are a group of Animals that includes the Vertebrates together with several closely related Invertebrates Birds ( class Aves) are bipedal endothermic ( Warm-blooded) Vertebrate animals that lay eggs. The Pelecaniformes are an order of medium-sized and large waterbirds found worldwide The Bird family Sulidae comprises the Gannets and boobies. Both groups are medium-large coastal Seabirds that plunge-dive for fish Carl Linnaeus (Latinized as Carolus Linnaeus, also known after his ennoblement as, May 23 new style (13 May old style 1707 who laid the foundations for The Northern Gannet ( Morus bassanus, formerly Sula bassana) is a Seabird and is the largest member of the Gannet family Sulidae The Cape Gannet ( Morus capensis, originally Sula capensis) is a large Seabird of the Gannet family Sulidae. The Australasian Gannet ( Morus serrator or Sula bassana, also Australian Gannet, Tākapu) is a large Seabird of the In Scientific nomenclature, synonyms are different Scientific names used for a single Taxon. The Australasian Gannet ( Morus serrator or Sula bassana, also Australian Gannet, Tākapu) is a large Seabird of the Muriwai, also called Muriwai Beach, is a coastal community located on the west coast of North island, New Zealand. New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island Seabirds are Birds that have adapted to life within the marine environment In Biological classification, family ( Latin The Bird family Sulidae comprises the Gannets and boobies. Both groups are medium-large coastal Seabirds that plunge-dive for fish
The gannets are large black and white birds, with long pointed wings and long bills. Birds ( class Aves) are bipedal endothermic ( Warm-blooded) Vertebrate animals that lay eggs. Northern gannets are the largest seabirds in the North Atlantic, with a wingspan of up to 2 meters. The Northern Gannet ( Morus bassanus, formerly Sula bassana) is a Seabird and is the largest member of the Gannet family Sulidae The other two species occur in the temperate seas around southern Africa and southern Australia and New Zealand. Southern Africa is the Southernmost Region of the African Continent, variably defined by Geography or Geopolitics. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island
Gannets hunt fish by diving from a height into the sea and pursuing their prey underwater. Fish are aquatic Vertebrate animals that are typically ectothermic (previously Cold-blooded) covered with scales, and equipped with two Gannets have a number of adaptations which enable them to do this:
- they have no external nostrils;
- they have air sacs in their face and chest under their skin which act like bubble-wrap, cushioning the impact with the water;
- their eyes are positioned far enough forward on their face to give them binocular vision, allowing them to judge distances accurately. Bubble Wrap is a pliable transparent Plastic material commonly used for packing fragile items Binocular vision is vision in which both Eyes are used together
Gannets can dive from a height of 30 m, achieving speeds of 100 km/h as they strike the water, enabling them to catch fish much deeper than most airborne birds.
The gannet's supposed capacity for eating large quantities of fish has led to "gannet" becoming a disapproving description of somebody who eats excessively, similar to "glutton".
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Mating and nesting
Gannets are colonial breeders on islands and coasts, which normally lay one chalky blue egg. It takes five years for gannets to reach maturity. First-year birds are completely black, and subsequent sub-adult plumages show increasing amounts of white.
The most important nesting ground for Northern gannets is the United Kingdom with about two thirds of the world's population. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located These live mainly in Scotland. Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. The rest of the world's population is divided between Canada, Ireland, Faroe Islands and Iceland, with small numbers in France (they are often seen in the Bay of Biscay), the Channel Islands and Norway. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page Ireland (pronounced /ˈaɾlənd/ Éire) is the third largest island in Europe, and the twentieth-largest island in the world The Faroe Islands or Faeroe Islands or simply Faroe(s or Faeroes (Føroyar meaning " Sheep Islands" Færøerne Old Norse Iceland, officially the Republic of Iceland ( ( Ísland or Lýðveldið Ísland ( This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Cantabrian Sea redirects here Not to be confused with Biscay Bay Newfoundland and Labrador or Biscayne Bay. The Channel Islands ( Norman: Îles d'la Manche, French: Îles Anglo-Normandes or Îles de la Manche) are a group of Islands Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional The biggest Northern gannet colony is in the Scottish islands of St Kilda; this colony alone comprises 20% of the entire world's population. St Kilda (Hiort is an isolated Archipelago 64 kilometres (40 mi west-northwest of North Uist in the North Atlantic Ocean. Bass Rock in the Firth of Forth is also famous for its large gannet population. The Bass Rock, or simply The Bass, is an island in the outer part of the Firth of Forth in the east of Scotland, approximately one mile off North The Firth of Forth ( Scottish Gaelic: Linne Foirthe) is the Estuary or Firth of Scotland's River Forth, where it flows
Systematics and evolution
The three gannet species are now usually placed in the genus Morus, Abbott's Booby in Papasula, and the remaining boobies in Sula, but some authorities believe that all nine sulid species should be considered congeneric, in Sula. In Biology, a species is one of the basic units of Biological classification and a Taxonomic rank. The Abbott’s Booby ( Papasula abbotti) is a large endangered Seabird of the Gannet family Sulidae. The Abbott’s Booby ( Papasula abbotti) is a large endangered Seabird of the Gannet family Sulidae. At one time, the gannets were considered to be a single species.
- Northern Gannet, (also known as "Solan Goose"), Morus bassanus
- Cape Gannet, Morus capensis
- Australasian Gannet, Morus serrator
Most fossil gannets are from the Late Miocene or Pliocene, a time when the diversity of seabirds in general was much higher than today. The Northern Gannet ( Morus bassanus, formerly Sula bassana) is a Seabird and is the largest member of the Gannet family Sulidae The Cape Gannet ( Morus capensis, originally Sula capensis) is a large Seabird of the Gannet family Sulidae. The Australasian Gannet ( Morus serrator or Sula bassana, also Australian Gannet, Tākapu) is a large Seabird of the The Miocene is a geological epoch of the Neogene period and extends from about 23 The Pliocene epoch (spelled Pleiocene in some older texts is the period in the Geologic timescale that extends Seabirds are Birds that have adapted to life within the marine environment It is not completely clear what caused the decline in species at the end of the Pleistocene; increased competition due to the spread of marine mammals and/or supernova activity which led to mass extinctions of marine life are usually assumed to have played a role. Marine mammals are a diverse group of roughly 120 species of Mammal that are primarily Ocean -dwelling or depend on the ocean for food
The genus Morus is much better documented in the fossil record than Sula, though the latter is more numerous today. FOSSIL is a standard protocol for allowing serial communication for Telecommunications programs under the DOS Operating system. The reasons are not clear; it might be that boobies were better-adapted or simply "lucky" to occur in the right places for dealing with the challenges of the Late Pliocene ecological change, or it could be that many more fossil boobies still await discovery. Notably, gannets are today restricted to temperate oceans while boobies are also found in tropical waters, whereas several of the prehistoric gannet species had a more equatorial distribution than their congeners of today.
Fossil species of gannets are:
- Morus loxostylus (Early Miocene of EC USA) - includes M. atlanticus
- Morus olsoni (Middle Miocene of Romania)
- Morus lompocanus (Lompoc Late Miocene of Lompoc, USA)
- Morus magnus (Late Miocene of California)
- Morus peruvianus (Pisco Late Miocene of Peru)
- Morus vagabundus (Temblor Late Miocene of California)
- Morus willetti (Late Miocene of California) - formerly in Sula
- Morus sp. (Temblor Late Miocene of Sharktooth Hill, USA: Miller 1961) - possibly M. magnus
- Morus sp. 1 (Late Miocene/Early Pliocene of Lee Creek Mine, USA)
- Morus sp. 2 (Late Miocene/Early Pliocene of Lee Creek Mine, USA)
- Morus peninsularis (Early Pliocene)
- Del Rey Gannet, Morus reyanus (Late Pleistocene of W USA)
References
- Miller, Loye H. (1961): Birds from the Miocene of Sharktooth Hill, California. Condor 63(5): 399-402. This article is about the journal The Condor for information about the bird from which it takes it name see Condor. PDF fulltext
- Olsen, M. P. (1982): Standard Book of British Birds (unexpurgated version)
External links
- Gannet videos on the Internet Bird Collection