The Australian gannet, aka Australasian gannet or tākapu, is a sizable seabird from the booby and gannet family. They hail from Australia and New Zealand. These seabirds face the ongoing threat of overfishing, which can not only potentially out compete with these birds for food, but can also result in bycatch (being caught in fishing set-nets, fishing gear, and longlines. However, they are abundant enough to be listed as Least Concern by the IUCN. Their population trend is also listed as increasing.
First the Stats…
Scientific name: Morus serrator
Weight: Up to 5.1 lbs.
Length: Up to 37 inches
Wingspan: Up to 6.58 feet
Lifespan: Up to 40 years
Now on to the Facts!
1.) These birds are known as plunge divers and incredible fishers, plunging into the ocean at high rates of speed to capture prey.
2.) They were originally formally described by the English zoologist George Robert Gray in 1843.
3.) Their species name has been translated as “sawyer”, from serra meaning “saw”, due to their serrated bill.
4.) Other names given to these birds are diver, booby, or solan goose.
5.) Gannets and boobies first appeared about 30 million years ago during the Oligocene epoch.
But wait, there’s more on the Australian gannet!
6.) While typically silent at sea and loud and vocal at the colony site in the day and sometimes at night during the breeding season. Their usual call is a harsh “arrah-arrah” or “urrah-urrah”, which is produced upon approaching the colony, and also used as a threat.
7.) They often show agonistic (behavior, activity, or mindset related to conflict or competition) displays to defend their nest.
Did you know…?
These birds dive into the water at speeds of up to 87 mph!
8.) Some individuals have even reached as far as South Africa where they have interbred with Cape gannets.
9.) These birds are monogamous (mate for life) and form long term bonds. Pairs may stay together over several seasons until 1 member dies, although they have been known to separate due to lack of infertility.
10.) Females lay a single, pale blue egg each season that hatches in up to 44 days.
But wait, there’s still more on the Australian gannet!
11.) If an egg dies, another egg is often laid that same season.
12.) The chick is fed regurgitated semi-digested fish, aka crop milk, by their parents, who open their mouths wide enough for their young to obtain the food from the back of their throats.
Did you know…?
The Māori harvest these birds for food and adorn their canoes with the feathers. The bones are made into tools to apply facial moko (tattoos).
13.) They feed primarily on forage fish, like anchovies, sardines, herring, and capelin. However, they also feed on squids.
14.) The southern giant petrel has been documented preying on an adult gannets by holding them underwater and drowning them. Chicks on land face predation by Pacific gulls.
15.) The Cape Kidnappers gannets have been featured on New Zealand stamps issued in both 1958 and 2009.
Now a Short Australian Gannet Video!
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Some source material acquired from: Wikipedia & IUCN
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