Great Cormorant Identification

The Four Keys to ID

• Size & Shape

  A heavyset seabird with a long, thick neck, blocky head, and heavy hooked bill. The legs are short, the tail fairly long, and the wings broad.

  Relative Size

  Larger than a Double-crested Cormorant, smaller than a Brown Pelican.

  between crow and goose

  Measurements

  • Both Sexes
  • • Length: 33.1-35.4 in (84-90 cm)
    • Weight: 91.7-130.5 oz (2600-3700 g)
    • Wingspan: 51.2-63.0 in (130-160 cm)

  © Evan Lipton / Macaulay Library

• Color Pattern

  Adults are blackish overall with white throat and yellowish skin around the bill. When breeding, adults have a square patch of white on the thigh and white neck feathers. Juveniles are brownish with a whitish throat and belly, with some brownish streaking at the edges.

• Behavior

  Forages by diving from the water’s surface for bottom-dwelling fish. Spends much of the day out of the water, resting, digesting, and drying its wings. Nesting pairs are very vocal. Flies strongly, with deep, goose-like wingbeats.
• Habitat

  Rocky ocean coastlines, including jetties and breakwaters; rare to uncommon in coastal-plain rivers and lakes. In North America, seldom seen far from the Atlantic Ocean.