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A day at Bempton Cliffs, RSPB bird sanctuary. Watching these birds riding the thermals, having to duck from time to time.
In sunny weather with the wind blowing at Bempton Cliffs it is so easy to get carried away and spend an age watching these gannets wheel around and go about their nesting business. I think I heard someone use the term "mesmerising" and I don't think they are far wrong.
The northern gannet (Sula bassana) is a seabird and the largest member of the gannet family, Sulidae. It has the same colours as the Australasian gannet and is similar in appearance. Nesting in colonies as large as 60,000 pairs on both sides of the north Atlantic this bird undertakes seasonal migrations and is a spectacular high-speed diver.
Old names for the northern gannet include solan and solan goose.
Adults are 81–110 cm (32–43 in) long, weigh 2.2–3.6 kg (4.9–7.9 lb) and have a 165–180 cm (65–71 in) wingspan. Before fledging, the immature birds (at about 10 weeks of age) can weigh more than 4 kg (8.8 lb). Each wing measures between 47 and 53 cm (19 and 21 in) when outstretched and the beak measures between 9 and 11 cm (3.5 and 4.3 in) (measured from the head). The two sexes are a similar size.
The plumage of the adults is white with dark wing tips, with colours that range from brown to black. The colour of the head, cheeks and side of the neck depends on the season and the individual; during breeding, the head and neck are brushed in a delicate yellow, although this colouring may not be evident in some individuals. The feathers are waterproof, which allows the birds to spend long periods in water. A water-impermeable secretion produced by a sebaceous gland covers the feathers and the birds spread it across their body using their beak or their head. The eye is light blue, and it is surrounded by bare, black skin, which gives the birds their characteristic facial expression.
Fledglings are brown with white wing tips. They have white spots on their head and on their back and a v-shaped white area underneath. The plumage of one-year-olds can be almost completely brown. In the second year the birds’ appearance changes depending on the different phases of moulting: they can have adult plumage at the front and continue to be brown at the rear. They gradually acquire more white in subsequent seasons until they reach maturity after five years.
Newborn chicks are featherless and are dark blue or black in colour. In the second week of life they are covered in white down. From the fifth week they are covered in dark brown feathers flecked with white.
Their beak is long, strong and conical with a slight downward curve at the end. The front part has a sharp edge. In adults, the beak is blue-grey with dark grey or black edges. It is brownish in immature birds.
The northern gannet’s eyes are large and point forwards, and they have a light blue to light grey iris surrounded by a thin black ring. The four toes of their feet are joined by a membrane that can vary from dark grey to dark brown. There are yellow lines running along the toes that continue along their legs; these lines probably have a role in mating. The rear toe is strong and faces inwards allowing the birds to firmly grip onto vertical cliff faces
This image was taken at Bempton Cliffs, near Bridlington in Yorkshire, England.
If you thought the Gannet doesn't build nests, you are wrong! Often made from sticks and pieces of old rope, they also like the nest lined with selected grasses. I found this one being very picky at Bempton Cliffs.
Northern Gannet (Morus bassanus)
Another shot of a Gannet raided from my 2017 archives taken during a rare sunny day in July.
Bempton Cliffs, East Yorkshire
One of a sequence of shots of this pair of Northern Gannets showing the shift change on the nest.. The one behind has just landed while the foreground one has moved back and relinquished the egg.
I love the interest the Kittiwake expresses, but when you're stuck on the nest anything is interesting!
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