Double-crested Cormorant
Double-crested Cormorant
Breeding adult
- Large dark waterbird
- Long, glossy black neck
- Bare orange throat pouch
- Long gray bill hooked at tip
- © David Stephens, CO, Cherry Creek State Park, May 2010
Double-crested Cormorant
Breeding adult
- Large, heavy-bodied waterbird
- Mostly black overall with paler scalloped pattern on back and wings
- Breeding adults show two tufted plumes on head
- Long bill hooked at tip
- © Laura Meyers, NY, Greenwood Cemetery, Brooklyn, April 2011
Double-crested Cormorant
Nonbreeding adult
- Large, heavy-bodied waterbird
- Black breast and head, grayer on back with scalloped pattern
- Bare orange patch at base of bill
- Long bill hooked at tip
- © Lorcan Keating, CA, Golden State Park, San Francisco, February 2010
Double-crested Cormorant
Nonbreeding adult
- Large dark waterbird
- Often seen perched with wings held open while drying in sun
- Long, slender bill hooked at tip
- © Guy Litcher, MB, Winnipeg, August 2009
Double-crested Cormorant
Immature
- Large waterbird with long neck accentuated while swimming
- Long, slender orange bill hooked at tip
- Immatures paler overall, particularly on breast
- © Osprey41, FL, Tarpon Springs, January 2010
Double-crested Cormorant
Immatures
- Large, heavy-bodied waterbirds
- Long orange bills hooked at tip
- Bare orange throat pouch
- © Jim McCree, ME, Bass Harbor, August 2010
Double-crested Cormorant
Immature
- Large, heavy-bodied waterbird
- Long wings and tail
- Distinctive in flight with long neck and slender, hooked bill
- Immature shows pale breast
- © Stephen Ramirez, TX, March 2010
Similar Species
Breeding adult with Double-cresteds
- Neotropic (at right) is noticeably smaller
- Longer tail and shorter wings than Double-crested
- Thin white patch on chin
- © Lois Manowitz, Tucson, AZ, November 2009
Breeding adult
- Similar to Double-crested but slightly larger and heavier
- Large, squared-off head
- White chin and throat
- © Nick Dean, Dungeness, England, April 2012
Immature
- Larger and heavier-bodied than Double-crested
- Immatures show distinctive white belly, contrasting with gray neck
- White throat contrasts with yellow/orange chin
- © Joby Joseph, Hyderabad, India, April 2011
Breeding adult
- Similar to Double-crested but shorter-tailed
- Lacks scalloped pattern on back and wings
- No orange skin on throat
- Breeding adults show wispy white plumes on back and neck
- © hawk person, Point Lobos, CA, March 2012
Immature
- Similar to immature Double-crested but with darker neck and tan breast
- Dark bill with no orange on throat
- Pale, whitish chin
- © Mike Forsman, Channel Islands Harbor, CA, November 2008
Nonbreeding adult
- Smaller and more slender than Double-crested
- Thin, "pencil" neck
- Petite, slender dark bill
- © ship rock, Richmond, BC, August 2010