A large black cormorant with white throat patch in breeding plumage. Less common than double-crested. Holds wings out to dry after diving.
§ Quick facts
§ Encyclopedia
The great cormorant, also known as just cormorant in Britain, as black shag or kawau in New Zealand, formerly also known as the great black cormorant across the Northern Hemisphere, the black cormorant in Australia, and the large cormorant in India, is a widespread member of the cormorant family of seabirds. It breeds in much of the Old World, Australasia, and the Atlantic coast of North America.
Source: Wikipedia — Great cormorant Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
§ Identification
Field marks. Big, heavy cormorant with a thick bill; breeding adults show a white throat patch and a white flank patch, plus a yellow chin pouch bordered white.
Similar species. Double-crested Cormorant is smaller with an orange face and lacks the white flank patch; the Great Cormorant is bulkier with a white-bordered yellow throat.
Voice. Deep guttural grunts and croaks at the colony; silent away from it.
§ Diet & behavior
Diet. Fish caught by underwater pursuit dives.
Behavior. The largest cormorant of the North Atlantic; dives for fish in coastal waters and rests upright on rocks with wings spread to dry. Winters along the northeastern U.S. coast.
§ Range
East coast of North America
§ Habitat
Coastal cliffs, islands, large rivers
§ Threats
Coastal habitat loss, plastic pollution.
§ Conservation status
According to the IUCN Red List, the great cormorant is currently classified as Least Concern.
§ What helps
Support coastal protection. Reduce pollution.
§ Further reading
- Wikipedia — Great cormorant
- www.allaboutbirds.org — authoritative profile of Phalacrocorax carbo
- IUCN Red List — search for Phalacrocorax carbo
- GBIF occurrence records
- Encyclopedia of Life — Phalacrocorax carbo
§ Sources cited
- Cornell Lab of Ornithology — All About Birds
- National Audubon Society
- iNaturalist
- IUCN Red List
