Pacific gannet (SciiFii)

The Pacific gannet (Morus canadensis) is a species of seabird of the family, Sulidae, that originally did not exist, but has since been created by SciiFii and introduced throughout the Pacific coasts of North America to help boost biodiversity. The closest living relative of the Pacific gannet is the similarly-looking northern gannet (Morus bassanus). The sexes are similar in appearance. The adult Pacific gannet has a mainly white streamlined body with a long neck, long and slender wings. It is 87–100 centimeters (34–39 inches) long with a 170–180 centimeters (67–71 inches) wingspan, making it one of the largest members of the gannet and booby family. The head and nape have a buff tinge that is more prominent in breeding season, and the wings are edged with dark brown-black feathers. The long pointed bill is blue-grey, contrasting with black bare skin around the mouth and eyes. Juveniles are mostly grey-brown, becoming increasingly white in the five years it takes them to reach maturity. The Pacific gannet is a loud and vocal bird, particularly in the colony. Its typical call is a harsh arrah-arrah or urrah-urrah, which is emitted upon arriving or when challenging other gannets at the colony. The call is shortened to a rah rah when fishing or collecting nesting material, and lengthened to a ooo-ah when taking off. The calls of the sexes are similar. Pacific gannets can recognize the call of their breeding partner, their chicks and birds in neighbouring nests. Individuals from outside this sphere are treated with more aggression. Colonies are mostly located on offshore islands with cliffs, from which the birds can more easily launch into the air. The Pacific gannet undertakes seasonal migrations and hunts for the fish that form the bulk of its diet by high-speed dives into the sea. The oldest birds are the first to return to the Pacific gannet's breeding colonies. Birds not of breeding age arrive a few weeks later. In general, birds first return to a colony (not uncommonly the one in which they were hatched) when they are two or three years old. Once an individual has successfully bred in a colony it will not normally change to another. Nesting starts in March or April. Immature birds stay on the edges of the colony. They may even make a nest but they do not breed until they are 4 or 5 years old. Some birds of this age occupy empty nests that they will aggressively defend if they have sat on them for two or three days. If an apparently empty nest has an owner, the immature bird will leave without a struggle when the owner arrives to take possession. The preferred nesting sites are on coastal hillsides or cliffs. If these are not available Pacific gannets will nest in groups on islands or flat surfaces. As they find it more difficult to take off from such locations they will often cross the area occupied by an adjacent nest causing an aggressive reaction from the sitting pair; this means that the stress levels are higher in this type of colony than in those on steeper surfaces. Notwithstanding this, nests are always built close together and otherwise ideal nesting sites will not be used if they are some distance from a colony. On average there are 2.3 nests per square metre (1.9 per square yard). Both sexes fiercely defend the area around their nest. Where space allows, the distance between nests is double the reach of an individual. Nests are made from seaweed, plants, earth and debris from the sea. The males usually collect the materials. Nests are compact cups typically 30–60 cm (12–24 in) in height. The area which a nest occupies grows throughout the breeding season as the breeding pairs throw their excrement outside the nest. Over years, nests can reach 2 m (7 ft) in height. Pacific gannets lay two egg that on average weighs 104.5 grams (3.7 oz), which is light for such a large seabird. The eggs are around 79 mm (3.1 in) long by 50 mm (2.0 in) wide and the shells are pale blue and translucent initially before fading to a chalky white surface that are easily stained. Where three eggs are found in a nest this is the result of two or three females laying an egg or two in the same nest or one egg being stolen from another nest. Pacific gannets will lay replacement eggs if any eggs are lost. Incubation takes 42 to 46 days, during which time the eggs are surrounded by the brooding bird's warm, webbed feet. Just before hatching begins, the brooding bird releases the eggs from its feet to prevent the egg from breaking under the adult's weight as the chick breaks it open. This is a frequent cause of death for chicks of birds that are breeding for the first time. The process of breaking the eggshell can take up to 36 hours. The webbed feet are also used to cover the chicks, which are only rarely left alone by their parents. Chicks that are left unattended are often attacked and killed by other Pacific gannets. Newly hatched chicks are featherless and are dark blue or black in colour. In the second week of life they are covered in white down, replaced over the next five weeks by dark brown feathers flecked with white. Young chicks are fed regurgitated semi-digested fish by their parents, who open their mouths wide for their young to fetch the food from the back of their throats. Older chicks receive whole fish. Unlike the chicks of other species, northern gannet chicks do not move about the nest or flap their wings to ask for food: this reduces the likelihood that they will fall from the nest. The adults feed their offspring for around 13 weeks, right up until the time they leave. The young birds fledge between 84 and 97 days old, departing by launching themselves off a cliff and flying—a procedure for which it is impossible to practice beforehand. If they leave the nest in bad weather they can be mortally wounded as they can be blown against the rocks. The young birds are attacked by adults if unattended. Once they leave the nest they stay at sea learning to fish and fly, their flight skills being too poor for them to return to the breeding ledges. Pacific gannets have only one brood a year. The survival rate for young birds for their first four years is 30% and the annual survival rate for adults is 91.9%. The typical lifespan after becoming adult is 17 years, and the maximum known age is 37 years 4 months 16 days. Gannet pairs are monogamous and may remain together over several seasons, if not for all of their lives. The pairs separate when their chicks leave the nest but they bond again the following year. Should one of the pair die, the other bird will find another mate. The conservation status of the Pacific gannet is Least Concern due to successful conservation efforts, the Pacific gannet's wide range and its tolerance to many of the human activities.
Category:Animals
Category:Species
Category:SciiFii