Cormoran is the Cornish name of the sea giant in the tale of Jack the Giant Killer. Indeed, "sea raven" or analogous terms were the usual terms for cormorants in Germanic languages until after the Middle Ages.

What is a double-crested cormorant? The cormorant (Nannopterum auritum; formerly Phalacrocorax auritus) is a pheasant-sized waterbird with an elongated neck like a goose in the family Phalacrocoracidae. It is the only cormorant species found regularly in Minnesota. What does a cormorant look like?

There are 38 species of cormorants living throughout the world, and six make their home in North America. Cormorants and shags are in a group called non-passerines. They can easily be distinguished from passerines as they rarely perch due to their large size. They are called diving birds, and some can dive into water from heights up to 150 feet.

Great cormorants have a longish tail and yellow throat-patch. Adults have white filoplume patches on the thighs and on the head and upper neck in the breeding season. In European waters it can be distinguished from the common shag by its larger size, heavier build, thicker bill, lack of a crest and plumage without any green tinge.

Great Cormorants are found throughout the world, but outside of North America they inhabit mostly freshwater rivers and lakes. The claw of the Great Cormorant’s middle toe is pectinated, or serrated like a comb. It’s thought that the birds use this for preening the plumage.

Cormorants are a group of aquatic birds containing about 40 different species. In some areas, these birds are also known as “shags.” The different species come in a variety of shapes and sizes, which can range in size from less than a pound to over ten pounds!

Widespread in the Old World, the Great Cormorant was once an uncommon and local breeder in a limited area of eastern Canada. In recent decades its North American population has gone through a great increase and expansion, with the nesting …

Large cormorant found nearly worldwide. Note large size, white patch on throat, and lack of crest. Breeding adults show circular white patch on flanks. Immatures typically have contrasting white belly; African "White-breasted" also has extensive white underparts in all plumages. Often spotted standing on rocks or pilings.

The Cormorant is a large, black waterbird whose size and colour make it very visible. With a reptilian neck, it has an almost prehistoric appearance. It is often seen standing with its wings held out to dry. Cormorants are supreme fishers which can bring them into conflict with fisherman and has seen them persecuted in the past.

These large-billed, blocky-headed cormorants have a white throat patch and in breeding season a white patch on the thigh. They feed mostly on bottom-dwelling fish captured during dives. Like other cormorants their plumage has limited waterproofing, and they often stand on rocks with their wings outstretched to dry.