A great host of sea-birds was rising from it and returning; in the waters near us the dear little petrels dotted the surface with black points, while slow-flying gannets traveled sedately and active terns rioted in the air.
I was thinking, Ready, if thosegannets and men-of-war birds would be good eating.
These bonettas were so anxious to catch them, that they came on shore also, and then thegannets picked them all up.
Terns and gannets were amongst the birds of the coastal waters.
Illustration: The Bald Eagle's Eyrie] [Illustration: Gannetsnesting on the cliffs.
Gannets nesting on the cliffs of Bonaventure Island, Gulf of St. Lawrence .
The gannets were sleeping on the tops of the bushes, and some of the crabs had climbed up the bushes and were sunning themselves on the top.
The gannets and terns were quite extraordinary, like all the living things there.
Their prey is almost invariably captured by plunging upon it from a height, and a company of gannets fishing presents a curious and interesting spectacle.
It seems to be certain that in former days fishes, and herrings in particular, were at least as plentiful as now, if not more so, notwithstanding that gannets were more numerous.
Apparently inseparable from the gannets generically are the smaller birds well known to sailors as boobies, from the extraordinary stupidity they commonly display.
The watchers had known it by the swift congregation of birds, particularly the gannets and skuas.
A fisherman in Islay told me that in some parts of Scotland a singular method of catching Gannets is adopted.
Gannets are frequently caught in the herring-nets, at various depths below the surface.
Gannets breed in great numbers on several parts of our rocky coast; from the extreme north to Lundy Island in the Bristol Channel.
If he cannot find flying-fish, he stopsgannets and terns in mid-air and makes them disgorge their catch, which he seizes as it falls.
Refusal to give up the food is punished by blows on the head, but the gannets and terns so fear the frigate that they seldom have the courage to disobey.
Gannets are true sea birds, but, as a rule, do not live very far from the land.
When breeding, Gannets are usually associated in great numbers.
About midday we anchored in seven fathoms off the western end of the island, some dozen or so large gannets coming off to meet us, and hovering inquisitively about the ship.
Consorting with the terns and gannets were multitudes of white egrets, stalking about unconcernedly in the long dry grass, or perching in a dreamy sort of way on the topmost twigs of the bushes.
Young unfledged gannets were waddling about among the bushes, and as regards the other birds, their nesting season also seemed to be over.
The soil on the upper parts of the island was a dark loam; and although sea-birds in the shape of gannets and frigate-birds were abundant and bred on the island, I saw very little guano.
Another day we rowed out nine miles in an Irish craft to visit the Skerry Islands, famous for the old Beehive Monastery, and the countless nests of gannets and other large sea-birds.
The innumerable gannets sitting on their nests gave the island the appearance of a snowdrift; and we soon had all the eggs that we needed lowered by a line.
The gannets were sweeping round at a height of about a hundred feet, and were finding fish in plenty as their falls into the sea were pretty frequent.
The wonder is that the gannets diving with such violence, bird following bird so closely, all in so small an area, do not collide and kill each other.
Certainly these gannetsare the greatest brutes out--but what fishers!
Then if the gannets appear hovering over them and hurling themselves down like rocks into the seine the gulls scatter in consternation and have to wait their turn.
The gulls have a particularly uncomfortable time when, as occasionally happens during the pilchard fishing, a number of gannets appear to claim their share in the spoil.
But whatever the method for the day may be, one is impressed and amazed at the marvellous energy of the bird, and this strikes us most when we see gannets and gulls together.
A large number of gannetswere busy fishing and were coming further and further in, following the shoal.
Large numbers of them breed on Bird Rock, they occupying certain ledges while the Gannets and Murres, which also breed there, also have distinct ledges on which to make their homes.
The first sign had been the swift congregation of birds, particularly the gannets and skuas.
It could not be otherwise, the gannets had led us to their old haunts.
A young savage as captain, a tame seal as boatswain, and a flock ofgannets as sailors, certainly made up as curious a set of adventurers as ever floated upon the wide ocean.
Nero lay as still as if his former lesson had taught him the necessity of remaining motionless; and the gannets now and then expressed their satisfaction by a shrill cry or a rapid fluttering of their wings.
My disappointment was shared by Nero, who seemed to regard my vexation with a sympathising glance, and even the gannets turned their dull stupid gaze upon me, with an expression as if they deeply commiserated my distress.
Of birds, the gannets were generally the sole frequenters of the island; but we had seen, at rare intervals, birds of a totally different character, some of which I had shot.
The breeze remained fair and we scudded along at a spanking rate, thegannets keeping us company all the way--evidently bound to the same shore.
Many Gannets at these times may, perhaps, be seen swimming, but they are merely resting, not fishing.
There are many colonies of Gannets round the British coasts, one of the most accessible, and perhaps the most famous, being on the Bass Rock, in the Firth of Forth.
At the Bass Rock, numbers of young Gannets used to be taken for food, the proprietor baking quantities, and selling them to the country people round about.
On every side the Gannets are eyeing you suspiciously, some disgorging fish previous to taking wing, others barking defiance as you approach them, and stubbornly remaining upon their egg until absolutely pushed from it.
The Gannetsfollow the shoals of fish as they swim near the surface.
Early in the springGannets begin to assemble at the breeding places, and towards the end of April nest building commences.
The Cormorant, however, never fishes like the Gannets and the Terns, by a headlong plunge from the sky.
Cormorants and Gannets are widely dispersed species; the former are almost cosmopolitan, only being absent from the polar regions and Polynesia; the latter are most abundant in the tropics and the southern seas.
About four hundred Gannets are shown nesting on this single ledge--one of many quite as densely populated.
I have heard of men catching gannetsby tying a fish on a board, and letting it float; and when the gannet strikes at it he drives his bill into the board, and cannot get it out.
Gannets are of no use, for eating, or anything else.
Such birds as Guillemots, Razorbills, Puffins, and Gannets are here in vast abundance, but our space is required for the description of a few birds that we meet with nowhere else in the British archipelago in such numbers.
The Gannets in the air are quiet enough, gliding to and fro in a bewildering throng, but the birds on the cliffs and the grassy downs at the summit, those that are standing or sitting, keep up a never-ending chorus of harsh cries.
We have caught Gannets when thus asleep, but care must be exercised to grip the bird firmly round the neck, or a stab from the formidable beak will reward the would-be captor's rashness.
Here on the grassy downs, near the edge of the cliffs, numbers of Gannets may be seen standing quietly, some fast asleep with their head buried in the dorsal plumage.
There are few more charming sights amongst bird-life at sea than a company of Gannets when fully on the feed.
At the end of March or during the first half of April the Gannets begin to assemble at the time-honoured nesting-place.
In any case, judging from the most reliable information obtainable, the Gannets seem to be on the decrease.
The grand home of theGannets here is situated upon the north, north-east, and west cliffs.
The gannets are such gluttons, they generally fly home so full of fish that they are unable to close their beaks.
The breeze remained fair, and we scudded along at a spanking rate, the gannets keeping us company all the way--evidently bound to the same shore.
A young Savage as captain, a tame seal as boatswain, and a flock of gannets as sailors, certainly made up as curious a set of adventurers as ever floated upon the wide ocean.
Kittiwakes andgannets were readily censused by a combination of photographic methods and detailed counts in sample areas (Brun 1971b).
South African gannets are apparently depositing guano that is worth twice as much as the fish they consume to produce it (Jarvis 1971).
Evidently immigration of gannets is still occurring, since the observed rate of increase far exceeds the population's intrinsic rate of increase.
The most striking difference is the very small number of procelli-forms and gannets in Norway compared to Britain and Ireland, where they are almost as numerous as the gulls and the auks.
The air above for a hundred yards, and for some distance around the whole rock, was filled with Gannets on the wing, which from our position made it appear as if a heavy fall of snow was directly above us.
Many Gannets also were seen about the extreme point of this island.
The above list will hopefully give you a few useful examples demonstrating the appropriate usage of "gannets" in a variety of sentences. We hope that you will now be able to make sentences using this word.
