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| Gannets | ||||||||||||
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 Northern Gannet | ||||||||||||
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Morus bassanus Morus capensis Morus serrator |
The gannets are part of the family Sulidae. This is a group of seabirds, which is closely related to the boobies.
The three gannet species are now usually placed in the genus Morus, Abbot's Booby in Papasula, and the remaining boobies in Sula, but some authorities consider that all nine species should be considered congeneric, in Sula.
The gannets are large black and white birds with long pointed wings and long bills. They hunt fish by diving from a height into the sea and pursuing their prey underwater. They have facial air sacs under their skin which cushion the impact with the water.
These 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.
This group is related to other Pelecaniformes as below:
ORDER PELICANIFORMES