Australasian Gannet

Scientific Name Morus serrator

Native Yes

Family Sulidae

Common Weight 2300 Grams

Common Height 50 CM

Common Length 80 CM

Identification

The gannet is a large slender-bodied seabird with mainly white plumage, buff-yellow head and neck. Occassionally seen around Waiheke searching for food in ocean depths.

The Australasian gannet has a wingspan of 1.8 m. It is a large, mostly coastal seabird with predominantly white plumage, long, pointed wings, a long neck and slender body shape. The trailing edges of its wings and a varying proportion of its central tail feathers are black. The wedge-shaped bill is bluish-grey, with a lining of black; the skin surrounding the eye is intensely blue. The head plumage is buff-yellow, which extends down the neck.

Juveniles have mottled dark brown and white plumage, and are separable from immatures, which gradually acquire more white over several moults, before acquiring full adult plumage when about 3 years old.

They have a distinctive call like ‘urrah urrah’ to announce landing, during territorial indication at the nest site, and during mutual bill fencing and bowing with the mate. Also an attenuated ‘oo-ah’ to indicate take-off. Both sexes’ calls are identical, with some locational and marked individual variation.

Characteristic behaviours at breeding colonies include mutual bill fencing and bowing of mates at the nest, the territorial headshake and bow at the nesting site, and sky-pointing as an indication of the intention to take flight. The torpedo-like plunge dive of gannets is a spectacular sight, particularly when large foraging flocks form over surface aggregations of fish.

Fledglings from New Zealand fly directly to Australia, and typically do not return to their home colonies until their third year.

You are more likely to get amazing photos of Gannets at the Muriwai breeding colony or at farewell spit then on Waiheke, they are usually way out of cameras reach.

Waiheke Wildlife

White Fronted Tern

The white-fronted tern is a medium-sized, long-tailed sea tern commonly around New Zealand coasts. Spotted congregating on Waiheke wharfs such as Matiatia and Orapiu.

Spotted Turtle Dove

The spotted dove is a medium-sized, long-tailed dove, with a greyish head and speckled greyish brown upperparts. Found on Waiheke around gardens and the rooster reserve.

Spur-winged Plover

The Spur-winged plover is a large stocky wader with a yellow bill and spurs on each wing, locations found on Waiheke are Blackpool, Maori hill and Whakanewha.

The gannet is a large slender-bodied seabird with mainly white plumage, buff-yellow head and neck. Occassionally seen around Waiheke searching for food in ocean depths.

Grey Warbler

The Grey Warbler is a tiny olive-grey song bird often heard before seen. Locations on Waiheke are dense woody vegetations. The warbler can be difficult to spot.

Bar-tailed Godwit

The Godwit is a migrant from Alaska, they fly 8-9 days straight to arrive in NZ. They can be found on Waiheke from September - March located at Blackpool.

Pūkeko

The Pukeko is a large relatively compact rail with a deep blue-violet head, breast and throat and a red bill. Found in swamp/Mangrove areas of Waiheke Island.

Common Myna

Mynas are stocky brown birds with a shiny black head and shoulders. Commonly found on road sides on Waiheke, usually playing chicken with cars while foraging for food.

Thrush

The thrush is a medium-sized songbird with a speckled brown-on-cream breast, usually heard before it is seen, found in grass reserves, gardens and trees on Waiheke.

Variable Oyster Catcher

The variable oystercatcher is a stocky coastal bird with a long, bright orange bill, it is located on many quiet beaches such as Blackpool, Whakanewha and Anzac bay.

Black Bird

The black bird is a medium-sized songbird that is entirely black in adult males with a yellow bill. Abundantly found on Waiheke around household properties and trees.

White Faced Heron

The white-faced heron is a tall, elegant, blue-grey bird usually spotted stalking prey. Locations found on Waiheke are Mangroves, Anzac bay and quiet beaches.

NZ Dotterel

The New Zealand Dotterel is a shorebird which breeds on beaches in NZ's North Island. Locations found on Waiheke are Whakanewha, Anzac Bay and Blackpool.

Pied Stilt

The pied stilt is a dainty wading bird, It is common at wetlands and coastal areas, found on Waiheke at Putiki Bay, Anzac Bay and Blackpool.

Tui

The Tui is a iridescent blue-green honeyeater with two curled white feather tufts on the throat. Locations found on Waiheke are around flaxes feeding off nectar.

Little Shag

The little shag is a small shag, with a short yellow bill, black feet, a relatively long tail, usually spotted in the ocean searching for food or hanging around Waiheke…

Red Billed Gull

The red-billed gull also known as a "Seagull" is common around New Zealand Coasts. Located everywhere on Waiheke beaches where food or bait is readily accessible.

Sacred Kingfisher

The sacred kingfisher is a distinctive bird with a green-blue back, buff to yellow undersides and a large black bill. they can be found nearby tidal beaches on waiheke.

Kaka

The Kaka is a large, olive-brown parrot with grey-white crown, red-orange underwing and deep crimson belly, located in tree covered areas around Onetangi.

Pied Shag

This large black-and-white shag is often seen individually or in a group, usually spotted in the ocean searching for food or hanging around fisherman by the rocks of Waiheke.

Great black-backed gull

The Black-backed gull is a large black-and-white gull with a white head and underparts, black back, yellow bill with a red spot near the tip. Located on Waiheke beaches.

Magpie

The Magpie is a large black-and-white songbird, It was introduced from Australia. It can be found on Waiheke around farmland and large grass reserves.

Wood Pigeon

The Wood pigeon is a large distinctively-coloured pigeon, it is easy to find on Waiheke due to its size, they are usually perched on powerlines or trees.

White-Eye

A small songbird, immediately recognisable by its distinctive white eye-ring. This quick little bird can be found feeding off flax and kowhais or fruit trees on Waiheke.

Welcome Swallow

Welcome swallows are small fast-flying birds, they are usually seen around waiheke during breeding season between August and February on powerlines, fences and beaches.

Fantail

The Fantail is a well known NZ bird due to its distinctive fanned tail. Locations found on Waiheke are any well-treed parks, bush walks and even properties.

Breeding

Australasian gannets nest in dense breeding colonies on the New Zealand mainland and coastal rocks and islands.

They prefer flat ground for nesting, rather than cliff ledges. Breeding colonies are mostly situated at sites that are completely or largely surrounded by the sea, i.e. on islands or headlands.

Nest are a compact nest mound with a central shallow cup is accumulated from the surrounding soil where the terrain allows, cemented guano (Bird faeces), and diverse plant materials are integrated.

The breeding season extends from July, when birds first return to the gannetries, to fledging in March-April.

Breeding birds have their ritualised displays, they present seaweed to each other, the impressive greeting ceremonies and solo dances which are essential for maintaining ownership of the nest site and consequently the ability to rear a chick.

Males arrive earlier than females, and re-occupy or establish and defend a nest. From the onset of breeding, the male brings nesting material such as brown algae Carpophyllum, which he retrieves from the shallows.

Both members of the pair form and maintain the nest mound, particularly when the surrounding ground is soft from rain.

The single egg is produced during laying period that starts in August at Hauraki Gulf gannetries. A replacement egg can be laid within 4 weeks if the first egg is lost. Laying of replacement eggs can extend into January.

Eggs are incubated while being held between the webbings of the gannets’ feet. The Australasian gannet can only successfully incubate a single egg. Both sexes share the incubation duty, and later brood the chick on the top of their webbed feet. Feeds are delivered by both parents as incomplete regurgitations, which the chick receives by pushing its bill into the parents’ throats.

Australasian gannets often breed with the same partner over consecutive seasons. Some birds retain the same mate for the rest of their lives.

Food

Gannets mainly eat fish, particularly pilchards, Australian anchovies, barracouta, garfish, mackerel and horse mackerel. Other recorded prey includes New Zealand piper, saury, flying fish, yellow-eye mullet and also squid.

Waiheke Locations

Coastal waters – Gannets are not common on Waiheke but they do occasionally feed and fly around the island, they don’t breed though. Breeding colonies are found at Muriwai and Farewell Spit. You may also spot them feeding around whales or dolphins in the Hauraki Gulf if your in a boat.

The Gannet are flying birds so they can really be anywhere on Waiheke but not just Waiheke they are all over New Zealand, these are just areas I’ve spotted them and photographed. ( I got my photos from the Muriwai colony and some flying shots from Waiheke)