Florida Cormorant. The double-crested cormorant is a member of the cormorant family of seabirds.
Its habitat is near rivers and lakes as well as in coastal areas, and is widely distributed across North America, from the Aleutian Islands in Alaska down to Florida and Mexico. Measuring 70-90 cm in length, it is an all-black bird which gains a small double crest of black and white feathers in breeding season.
It has a bare patch of orange-yellow facial skin. Five subspecies are recognized.
It mainly eats fish and hunts by swimming and diving. Its feathers, like those of all cormorants, are not waterproof and it must spend time drying them out after spending time in the water.
Once threatened by the use of DDT, the numbers of this bird have increased markedly in recent years. The double-crested cormorant was described by Rene Primevere Lesson in 1831. Its scientific name is derived from the Greek words, bald and, crow or raven, and the Latin auritus, eared, referring to its nuptial crests. Its common name refers to the same nuptial crests. Five subspecies are recognized: P. a. albociliatus, Farallon cormorant, breeds along the Pacific coast of North America from British Columbia to Bird Island in the state of Sinaloa, Mexico and possibly even further south. Significant colonies of these birds may also be found further inland including areas around the Salton Sea. According to currently available info
Its habitat is near rivers and lakes as well as in coastal areas, and is widely distributed across North America, from the Aleutian Islands in Alaska down to Florida and Mexico. Measuring 70-90 cm in length, it is an all-black bird which gains a small double crest of black and white feathers in breeding season.
It has a bare patch of orange-yellow facial skin. Five subspecies are recognized.
It mainly eats fish and hunts by swimming and diving. Its feathers, like those of all cormorants, are not waterproof and it must spend time drying them out after spending time in the water.
Once threatened by the use of DDT, the numbers of this bird have increased markedly in recent years. The double-crested cormorant was described by Rene Primevere Lesson in 1831. Its scientific name is derived from the Greek words, bald and, crow or raven, and the Latin auritus, eared, referring to its nuptial crests. Its common name refers to the same nuptial crests. Five subspecies are recognized: P. a. albociliatus, Farallon cormorant, breeds along the Pacific coast of North America from British Columbia to Bird Island in the state of Sinaloa, Mexico and possibly even further south. Significant colonies of these birds may also be found further inland including areas around the Salton Sea. According to currently available info
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