Gannets

Watched a flock of Cape Gannets working a shoal of bait fish off Cape Point this weekend. These birds are classic "dive bombers", diving down vertically and plunging into the sea to nail a fish. Took several photos (from miles away), but managed to get a few that came out ok. What I thought was really cool was seeing how linear the bird becomes just before it enters the water. The impact speed is pretty high, so obviously these birds want to minimize the shock of hitting the water and maximize their speed through the water to grab the fish. Pretty impressive stuff to watch.