Cormorants

Great Cormorant, Phalacrocorax carbo

Family Phalacrocoracidae (Cormorants)

Size: 36"

Season: Year-round

Habitat: Coastlines, rocky coastal cliffs, islands

The great cormorant is the largest cormorant and is found throughout the world. It has a heavy body with a broad, angular head, thick neck, thick bill, short tail, and a yellow gular (throat) patch. The plumage is uniformly black with a blue or greenish gloss and has a white border behind the gular patch, stretching along the throat from eye to eye. During breeding season a white patch at the hip is evident, and thin, white plumes grow on the sides of the neck. The juvenile great cormorant has a white belly and a pale, brownish-gray neck. Gregarious both at and away from its breeding grounds on rocky cliffs, the great cormorant dives for fish, crustaceans, and mollusks. Typical of cormorants, they are often seen standing with their wings outstretched to dry them. The breeding adult is illustrated.