Sea bird behavior and what it tells us

[DarkSkies]

Gannet behavior II

Gannets on pilchards






http://www.answers.com/topic/solan-goose-1
Ecology
Gannet pairs may remain together over several seasons. They perform elaborate greeting rituals at the nest, stretching their bills and necks skywards and gently tapping bills together.

They are migratory and most winter at sea, heading further south in the Atlantic.

These birds are spectacular divers, plunging into the ocean at high speed. Although they are pul and agile fliers, they are clumsy in takeoffs and landings. They mainly eat small fish (2.5-30.5 cm in length) which gather in groups near the surface. Virtually any small fish (roughly 80-90% of the diet) or other small pelagic species (largely squid) will be taken opportunistically.

**Various cod, smelt and herring species are most frequently taken.[4]

Although Northern Gannet populations are now stable, their numbers were once greatly reduced due to loss of habitat, removal of eggs and killing of adults.
Predators of eggs and nestlings include great black-backed and herring gulls, common ravens, ermine and red fox. The only known natural predator of adults is the bald eagle, though large sharks and seals may rarely snatch a gannet out at sea.[5]

Old names for the Northern Gannet include solan, solan goose and solant bird.





Gannets on sardines

[finchaser]

listen up cause SOS knows birds

[gjb1969]

hey dark u are going to open upa can of worms with the bird stuff get worms bird stuff

[CharlieTuna]

Don't worry about the ball busting Dark, you know that's because we like you. I think you did a good job with the gannet info. And you are right, I am amazed at how many people confuse seagulls with gannets. Online research is so easy now. When I grew up we had to go the library to do this stuff.

[baitstealer]

The birds tell us when SOS is around doing his scouting.

[storminsteve]

listen up cause SOS knows birds

I guess you really do know your birds DS. Grats to you and Stripercoast for laying down this info. I saw birds the other day, not many fish under them. But last week in ocean county I saw gannets diving just beyond our casts. I also saw boats in the area hooking up, I'm assuming they were over bass and some kind of big bait.
It's a thrill to watch them kamikaze dive into the water. I checked out that other thread you have highlighted too. Thanks guys for sharing your knowledge.

[Pebbles]

http://www.cartoonstock.com/directory/s/seagulls.asp

[DarkSkies]

hey dark u are going to open upa can of worms with the bird stuff get worms bird stuff

What can I say, G!

And Pebbles, what can I say, she can bust me anytime, special priveleges....


*****
I came across a large body of bait the other night, in 46 degree water...with a few hundred birds sitting on them. the birds wouldn't move despite the diffulty they had in maintaining their position.

In situations like that, it's always a good idea to work the area for predators, There weren't many there, but at least I worked it hard to find that out....

Thanks again to Ed for his perspective as well.

[DarkSkies]

Birds and Winter Herring......

Back in late December when the water was a little warmer there were schools of herring......
Most of these schools didn't have bass under them, they just moved up and down the coast....

As opposed to bunker, which sometimes stay closer to the surface as they feed, these herring were only visible by looking for a dark stain....

The birds could see them, though....with crystal clear clarity and perfect vision they would gather around the schools waiting for something to happen...it often never did, but the birds would wait anyway......

The following are pics I took one such cold dreary morning....

Thought some of ya's might like to see what I saw, the subtle signs......

[DarkSkies]

Stage 1 - the birds know the fish are there. They can see them and sometimes smell them, but there is no real activity from predators. So the birds will tend to group up where the bait is.

Some groups sit exactly over them on the water waiting for something to happen. Others sit on the shore looking for telltale clues from the ones over the fish that the action is ramping up.











The above pics show a group of birds sitting on a school of herring about 250' out....it's hard to see because it is a cloudy day. I took very large pics to study this at home, but had to downsize them to post. For anyone who finds it hard to see the best advice I can give is you can sometimes tell, if there is a lot of bait, where you will see a portion of the water stained darker than the rest.

With bunker it's easier to tell, because they are sometimes feeding on top.
Maybe others have experienced differently, but I have never found herring feeding on top in the daytime....it's usually the case that they are more mid-level, suspended from the bottom. So with herring, you need to be a little more perceptive than with bunker. If you want to do the same scouting, you have to teach yourself to recognize signs that bait is there, even when there are no predators to make it obvious.




As I post the rest of the pics, some viewers with sharp eyes will notice the herring as the darker stain I am talking about.
I believe this day there were 2 distinct bands of herring, one larger and one smaller.
It's hard to see that from these pics.

I prefer to do most of my scouting on overcast days....

I wish these pics could show a little more detail. This is the best I could come up with. In any event, they and the descriptions listed should help folks learn some of the things to look for. Hope you all find these helpful.

[surferman]

You really do some serious scouting dark. I guess it pays off in the long run. Thanks for sharing the information.