Gannet
Scientific
name
Sula
bassana
Gaelic
name
Sulaire
Physical Description
Gannets
have a long neck and a long pointed beak, a long pointed
tail and long pointed wings.
They
are white with black wingtips. Their head is bright yellow.
They
wear a crest on the front of their head. Their plumage is dark
glossy green.
Gannets
can stand up to 100 cm.
Feeding
Gannets like small
fish as mackerel and herring and sometimes squid.
Behaviour
Gannets
travel in small groups.
They
feed by diving at high speed from a great height. They folder
their wings just before they enter in the water like a torpedo.
Gannets
spend all their life at sea, but come to land to breed.
You
can see them offshore anywhere, especially in when they migrate.
They
nest in dense colonies on cliffs. The biggest colony of Gannets
is on the island of St Kilda in the Scottish Hebrides.
Threats
Shags
are threatened by pollution, fishing nets and marine litter.
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