# Northern gannet (*Morus bassanus*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/northern-gannet  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The northern gannet (Morus bassanus) is a bird in the family Sulidae, order Suliformes. It is a medium-sized marine bird with an aerial lifestyle, a wingspan of 1.72 m and an adult body mass of 3.0 kg, with reported values from 2.932 kg to 3.067 kg. The northern gannet is a carnivore and aquatic predator, and it is partially migratory. It lays one egg per clutch and one clutch per year, with an incubation period of 43.5 days, and reaches sexual maturity at 3 years; its IUCN Red List category is Least Concern.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 2.93 kg – 3.07 kg |
| Length | 87 cm – 1 m |
| Wingspan | 1.72 m |
| Lifespan | 25.3 years |
| Diet | Aquatic predator |
| Longest recorded lifespan | 37.4 years |
| Main food | vertebrates |
| Habitat | marine |
| Egg incubation | 43.5 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 1 |
| Age at maturity | 2.99 years |
| Litters or clutches a year | 1 |
| Lifestyle | Aerial |
| Migration | Partial |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Aves
- order: Suliformes
- family: Sulidae
- genus: Morus
- species: *Morus bassanus* (Linnaeus, 1758)

Synonyms: *Moris bassana*, *Morus bassanus bassanus*, *Pelecanus bassanus*, *Sula alba*, *Sula americana*, *Sula bassana*, *Sula bassana*, *Sula bassana*, *Sula bassana bassana*, *Sula bassanus*, *Sula major*, *Sula major*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the northern gannet?

The northern gannet is a bird in the family Sulidae and order Suliformes. It is a medium-sized marine bird.

### How big is the northern gannet?

The northern gannet has a wingspan of 1.72 m and an adult body mass of 3.0 kg, with reported values from 2.932 kg to 3.067 kg.

### What does the northern gannet eat?

The northern gannet is a carnivore in the aquatic predator diet category.

### Is the northern gannet endangered?

No. The northern gannet is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category.

### How long does the northern gannet live?

The northern gannet has a lifespan of 25.33 years, with values up to 37.42 years reported by sources.

### How many eggs does the northern gannet lay?

The northern gannet lays one egg per clutch and one clutch per year. The egg incubation period is 43.5 days.

### What are other names for the northern gannet?

Other English names for the northern gannet are Gannet, Solan goose, Soland goose, Common gannet and Highland goose.

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7), CC BY 4.0, v7. Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Northern gannet (Morus bassanus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/northern-gannet