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Cape Gannets - Greeting Ritual


Cape Gannets - Greeting Ritual
Photo Information
Copyright: James Parker (Jamesp) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 1296 W: 0 N: 5059] (15080)
Genre: Animals
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 1993-08-24
Categories: Birds
Photo Version: Original Version
Date Submitted: 2007-04-23 5:35
Viewed: 948
Points: 28
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
This is a shot I took on a trip to Southen Africa in 1993 – so it is a scanned slide taken with a Pentax Z1 and 100 – 300 Sigma zoom and 100asa Agfa slide film. The colony at Lamberts Bay has an excellent viewing platform and there is also a small colony of Jackass or South African Penguins close by.

The Cape Gannet (Morus capensis, originally Sula capensis) is a large seabird of the gannet family, Sulidae.

When seen in flight the snow-white body with the black tail, primaries and secondaries, and dark bill makes then easy to identify. At closer range the distinctive golden crown and nape, which gradually become white on the neck, are noticeable. On the other hand, the dark brown juveniles look completely black when seen in flight. Adults are about 84-94 cm long and have a 171-185 cm wingspan and weigh about 2600 g.

Their breeding habitat is restricted to southern Africa in three islands off Namibia and three islands off South Africa. They normally nest in large and dense colonies on flat islands or on flat ledges of the steeply sloping Mercury Island off Namibia. The world population was estimated in 1996 to number about 340,000 birds, with 12% in Namibia and 88% in South Africa. The largest colony of this bird, with over 140,000 birds, is found on Malgas Island, South Africa.

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 - as they are doing here.

Cape Gannets begin breeding in August or September. Typically the clutch is a single bluish egg, which soon becomes soiled. Both parents are actively involved in the incubation process which lasts for 42 to 46 days until hatching. Gannets use their foot webs to incubate the egg. The foot webs, which are richly irrigated with blood vessels are wrapped around the egg.

The hatchling is black, naked and blind, it weighs only about 70 grams, but within three weeks its body mass is one third of that of an adult. At eight weeks the chick outweighs the adult, and this remains so until it becomes a fledgling at 95-105 days of age.

Cape Gannets are powerful fliers, using mainly a flap-gliding technique, which is more energy consuming than the dynamic-soaring favoured by albatrosses. As all Sulids, they are fish-eating birds that plunge-dive from considerable height.

Numbers of Cape Gannets at the Namibian islands have declined considerably between 1956 and 2000 from 114,600 to 18,200 breeding pairs respectively, an 84% decrease in less than fifty years. This contrasts with the trends at the South African islands where numbers have increased about 4.3 times during the same period, from 34,400 to 148,000 breeding pairs
GLEM, gypsygirl58, jaycee, ramthakur, MommaMiaX3, Raptorman, horia, Adanac, kessi has marked this note useful
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Critiques [Translate]

Hi James.
Good cetral motive. Pretty shot. Nice DOF and very hard angle to get this all in. Well done. tfs. Stev

Hi James,
Great image. I love the main character with his outstretched wings. Your image scanned very well, nice job. It is sad to think their population is decreasing in some areas, let's hope the other area's stay on the increase. Excellent image and note, thanks for that.
Cheers,
Debbie

  • Great 
  • GLEM Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 524 W: 87 N: 693] (5741)
  • [2007-04-23 6:38]

bonjour James
c'est amusant, j'ai vu un reportage de Yann ARTHUS à ce sujet ce week-end, vraiment c'est très beau. Très bon focus sur le couple parmi tous ces oiseaux.

tfs

Hi James,
Wonderful image of all these Gannets! Excellent sharpness and details, I love the one in the middle showing the full extent of his wings! Sad to hear that their numbers have decreased so dramatically! TFS
Cheers Tina :-)

  • Great 
  • Argus Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2707 W: 139 N: 7809] (24333)
  • [2007-04-23 7:18]

Hello James,
Superb display capture amidst the hubbub of a busy Cape Gannet colony. Good focusing on the central pair and great wing pose from one of the pair. Nice shot with atmosphere: I can almost hear the gannet groans and sense the guano smell.
Well done and TFS!
Ivan

  • Great 
  • jaycee Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 1865 W: 8 N: 4848] (15703)
  • [2007-04-23 10:52]

Hi James,

Fantastic to get all these Gannets in one shot and have them so sharp! The colors are marvelous - they look painted. I love the comp with them surrounding the one with the spread wings.

Jane

What handsome birds these Cape Gannets are, James!
A great capture in slide format going back to 1993. You truly have a rich treasure of these precious gems from the past.
Your notes also do a wonderful job of educating us about the content and context of your great images.
Thanks and best regards.
Ram

Hello James creative shot great dof and focus nicely selected on the action. well done rgds Necip.

Hello James, :)

Wow, another amazing capture for us today! My husband and oldest daughter were in awe as I showed off your photos this evening. Amazing the quality you show us with your scanned slides, showing your true talent as a photographer. This is wonderful with great sharpness and the defined subjects as they court. Always a thrill James, thank you!

Ange

This is a great photo James. I love the the sharp central pair and the multitude blurring into the distance. I think these are my favorite birds. Impact, composition and technique are all good.

TFS
Evelynn : )

Hello James , perfect comp. colors , action , very interesting photo , TFS.

  • Great 
  • horia Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2123 W: 222 N: 3908] (12975)
  • [2007-04-24 5:35]

Hi James

Another charming shot from you!
The poses of this beautiful gannets from the center here are simply magnificent! Excellent timing!
For a scanned slide, the sharpness here is really good! The colors and tones are also superb abd very well saturated and the contrast here is very very good, making those dark marking on the gannets very well visible.
The DOF is also fantastic and the perspective amazing, having only gannets everywhere in the shot! :)

Breavo and TFS
Horia

  • Great 
  • Adanac Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 1096 W: 1 N: 4461] (14972)
  • [2007-04-24 6:05]

Hello James,
Outstanding composition in this fine image with great technical aspects and eye appeal thanks for sharing Jmaes.
Rick

  • Great 
  • kessi Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 88 W: 5 N: 75] (221)
  • [2007-09-18 11:42]

Hello James,
I came across your Gannet picture by accident. What a great shot. Having lived in Namibia, I have seen them as well. I remember walking along the beach at Swakopmund and with my binoculars would see hundreds of gannets diving for fish on the ocean horizon line. You captured them beautifully in the colony. Great point-of-view and focus.

Regards,
Irmgard

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