Billing Gannets, Bempton Cliffs
Billing Gannets. A breeding pair of Northern Gannets ‘billing’ (clacking their beaks together) an important aspect of their courtship ritual. RSPB’s Bempton Cliffs Nature Reserve, East Riding of Yorkshire.
Gannet in Flowering Campion : More About the Northern Gannet:
The British breeding population of Gannets represents 60-70% of the entire world population, with the largest mainland breeding colony at RSPB’s Bempton Cliffs. The birds arrive at the colonies, known as gannetries, from January and leave between August and October. Gannets are easily identified by their distinctive plumage and ring of blue around the eyes, earning them the alternative nickname ‘spectacled goose’. Gannets are monogamous and will remain together for several mating seasons, potentially even for their entire lives. The pairs separate after the mating season concludes and head out back to sea, returning to shore and pairing back up the following year.
One of the most notable features of the Northern gannet is their impressive wingspan, which can reach up to six feet in length. This allows them to soar high above the ocean and dive into the water at speeds of up to 60 miles per hour, making them one of the fastest diving birds in the world.
During the breeding season, Northern gannets form large colonies on rocky cliffs along the coast. They build nests out of seaweed, grass, and other materials, and lay a single egg each year. Both parents take turns incubating the egg and caring for the chick once it hatches.
Once the chicks are old enough to leave the nest, they make their first flight out to sea, where they will spend the next several years before returning to the breeding colony to start families of their own.
Northern gannets are highly skilled hunters, using their keen eyesight to spot fish from high above the water. When they spot a potential meal, they tuck their wings in and plunge headfirst into the water, using their streamlined bodies and powerful wings to propel themselves deep underwater in pursuit of their prey.
Despite their impressive hunting skills, Northern gannets face a number of threats in the wild. Pollution, climate change, and overfishing are all major concerns, and many gannet populations have seen declines in recent years as a result.
You can find more information on Gannets here.
About Bempton Cliffs:
These impressive chalk cliffs on the Yorkshire coast are one of the best place to see sea birds in the whole of England! Bempton Cliffs are owned and maintained by the RSPB and play host to over 250,000 seabirds which flock to the white chalk cliffs each year, with numbers reaching their peak between April and August.