Date November 23, 2022
Location Gulf of Mexico near Dry Torguas National Park, Key West, FL
On the boat ride from Key West to Dry Tortugas, I was standing on the outside deck right at the front of the bow. Off to port and forward some distance ahead I saw three birds flying. All three clearly had the white body and black wing tips seen here. I could not discern the warm buffy tones on the heads. They flew together for quite a long time, maybe 10 minutes, just over the surface of the ocean, and gradually moved out of site.
I didn't have my field guide with me, and I postulated in my head that I had seen some sort of shearwater or maybe even an albatross due to the size. They definitely had long wing spans. These were large birds.
I finally got home to investigate, and I was surprised that this bird fit the description. For some reason I had thought that these were roughly the size of a gull, but in fact they are, as the Cornell guide states in the first sentence of the description, "nearly as large as an albatross." Combined with the clearly discernable color pattern, and range, I was able to identify my trio of birds as Northern Gannets.
I think from the tip of the bill to the base of the neck, this is one of the most beautiful birds out there. So while I have officially ticked this species off, I do want to see them again up close. They are featured in the film Winged Migration and I am always struck with their beauty.
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