Cormorant, Pelagic

Physical Features

The Pelagic Cormorant is the smallest Cormorant. It is slender with an exceptionally slender neck and beak. Both males and females are solid black, except during the breeding season when adults have white rump patches that show in flight. Adults in non-breeding plumage are all black with a metallic iridescence. In their breeding plumage they grow two short crests, one on top of the head and one at the nape. They also have white thighs, and scattered white filoplumes on their head and neck. Their long thin bill and their large feet with all-webbed toes are black throughout the year, while the patch of dark, bare skin below their eye turns a vivid magenta in the breeding season. Males and females do not differ in appearance, although females are slightly smaller. Immature birds lack iridescence and are dark brown, grading into slightly lighter brown on their underside. This small cormorant has a wingspan of about 3.3 ft (1 meter) and a weight of 52-86 oz (1474-2438 g) when fully grown.

Habitat

Pelagic Cormorants are exclusively marine birds and can be found in bays and on the coast fairly close to the shore. They breed on small, offshore islands and rocky cliffs with deep water at the base. The Pelagic Cormorant inhabits the shores and the neritic zone of the North Pacific. Its North American range extends from Alaska to the Baja peninsula in Mexico. It is also found on the Aleutian and other Bering Strait islands, and from the Russian Far East Chukchi Peninsula via Sakhalin south to Kamchatka, and ultimately Kyūshū. The subarctic populations are migratory, while the birds from temperate and subtropical regions only disperse locally after breeding, but Asian birds may reach China or Korea. Vagrants have been recorded in the Hawaiian Islands.

Diet

Pelagic Cormorant feed on small fish, with crustaceans and other marine animals making up a small portion of their diet as well. They forage close to rocks.

Meat

Pelagic Cormorant meat has a strong, smelly, fishy taste due to their marine diet.

Behavior

Pelagic Cormorants nest in colonies, which are smaller than those of other Cormorants. Colonies are situated on islands, narrow cliff ledges, steep slopes, and other relatively inaccessible locations. Males searching for a mate or bonding with their partner give an elaborate courtship display which includes stretching their gular sac with the hyoid bone and repeated 'yawning,' arching the neck and hopping, flapping their folded wings and rapidly fluttering them to show their white thigh patches. Together the male and female construct a nest of seaweed, grass, moss, and occasionally sticks. This nest may be reused from year to year. The female lays a clutch of 2-5 eggs, which both parents incubate for 3 weeks. The young are born naked at birth, but they soon grow sooty-grey down feathers. Both the male and female take responsibility to feed their young. They reach sexual maturity at two years of age. Their lifespan in the wild can be as long as 18 years. Pelagic Cormorants produce low groans, croaks, or hisses.

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