Double-crested Cormorant (Nannopterum auritum syn. Phalacrocorax auritus)
Resources
Status
- BC: Blue – S3S4 (2015)
- COSEWIC: Not Ranked
- SARA: Not Ranked
- Global: Secure (2016)
- Galiano Island Status: Confirmed
Description
Large black waterbird with long, kinked neck and patch of yellow-orange skin on the face, often seen drying out its wings in the sun while perched on a rock. Feeds mostly on fish.
Habitat
Forms breeding populations in coastal waters and on inland lakes.
Range
North America, from Alaska south to Mexico. In British Columbia, breeds mainly in the Straits of Georgia and Juan de Fuca.
Threats
Double-crested cormorants are threatened by nest predation from other bird species, oil spills, gill-net entanglement, pollutants, and human disturbance.
Galiano Status
This species is sighted frequently in the waters around Galiano Island.