Brandt's Cormorant
Urile penicillatus
Black overall with greenish iridescence on back. Pale buffy feathers at base of bill. Breeding adults have blue skin on throat. Immatures have buffy breast. Strictly coastal. Dives to capture fish. Thicker bill and neck than similar Pelagic Cormorant.
Identification
The average size of a Brandt's cormorant is 4.6 pounds. They have a length of about 34 inches and their wingspan is 4 feet. During the breeding season, adults have a blue throat patch.
Taxonomy
It was formerly classified in the genus Phalacrocorax, but a 2014 study supported reclassifying it and several other Pacific cormorant species into the genus Urile. The IOU followed this classification in 2021.
- Scientific name
- Urile penicillatus
- Authority
- (Brandt, JF, 1837)
- Order
- Suliformes
- Family
- Phalacrocoracidae
- Genus
- Urile
Range and habitat
Brandt's cormorants live on the Pacific coast of North America, in habitats such as bays, estuaries, and lagoons. This species nests on the ground or on rocky outcroppings. Año Nuevo Island is an important seabird breeding colony in the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, hosting Brandt's cormorants among other species of seabirds.
- Breeding range
- NA, MA : temperate e North Pacific coast: se Alaska to sw Baja California and c Gulf of California (nw Mexico)
- Non-breeding range
- to c Gulf of Alaska and to wc Mexico
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Behavior
They typically live in groups. They breed between March and August, and usually have four eggs. Young birds are cared for by both parents.
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
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