Diving for silver

The sight of hunting gannets plunging into the sea at speed is one of the greatest natural spectacles in Britain. Shetland wildlife photographer Richard Shucksmith admires the dramatic lifestyle of our largest seabird

- Richard Shucksmith

As I slip over the side of the boat, the cool northern waters of the Atlantic engulf me. I take a breath through my snorkel and steady myself. Keep calm. Focus on the camera. Seconds pass.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! - the sound of torpedoes pierces the water. Streaks of yellow and white speed toward my camera; streams of bubbles engulf me. I press the shutter, freeze a split second of this super-fast frenzy of activity.

The sight of gannets hunting is like no other. Safely back in the boat, under towering cliffs with thousands of gannets swirling around, I reflect that the spectacle must be one of the greatest wildlife wonders to be seen in the UK.

RICH SEAS

The preferred breeding grounds for gannets are towering sea cliffs on remote and windswept offshore islands. Safe from large mammalian predators, these refuges are surrounded by the gannet's favourite food: oily fish. Feeding is important to the gannet: these birds carry a lot of fat, providing both the insulation that allows them to save energy while in icy waters and a fuel store to tide them over in lean times.

Gannet colonies are also windy places, and wind is especially important to the gannet. Its long narrow wings are adapted for distant foraging out at sea, but they make landing and taking off difficult without assistance from the wind. Remote island cliffs provide strong updraughts, which the gannet uses to land and take flight.

PHOTOGRAPHING A FEEDING FRENZY

Trying to shoot a natural feeding frenzy of thousands of gannets diving on a shoal of fish has proved impossible in the UK - so we photographers have had to improvise.