Adults such as this were outnumbered by immatures. Northern Gannets breed in colonies in the North Atlantic with separate populations breeding in the West wintering in North America and those in the East wintering in Europe. Iceland lies in the middle, directly on the crest of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Until recently it was not known if Iceland breeders were part of the Eastern or Western population. However a study by Garthe et al (2016) using geolocators found that all Northern Gannets tagged in Iceland spend their winter from Northwest Europe (Scotland) to Northwest Africa. They are thus part of the Eastern group.
