Guanay Cormorant - BirdForum Opus

Photo by Peter Bono
Islas Ballesteras, off Paracas, central Peru, March 2002

Leucocarbo bougainvillii

Phalacrocorax bougainvillii

Identification

71–76 cm (28-30 in)
Adult

• Erectile crest
• Black head, neck, back and uppertail-coverts
• Red eye

Distribution

Photo by Rodrigo Reyes
Quintero, Chile, November 2006

South America: found on seacoasts and islands off Peru and Chile

Taxonomy

This is a monotypic species^[1].

Sometimes placed in genus Phalacrocorax.

Habitat

Islands and sea shores. They feed in colder waters of the Humboldt current.

Behaviour

Juvenile (lacks red eye)
Photo by Peter de Haas
Isla ballestas, Peru, January 2007

Diet

Their main diet consists of fish, which they hunt by diving.

In Culture

This common Humboldt Current species deposits by far the most guano which was harvested in the 19th and 20th centuries.

References

1. Clements, JF. 2008. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to December 2008. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019.
2. Avibase

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Guanay Cormorant. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 26 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Guanay_Cormorant

External Links

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