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Difference between revisions of "Spotted Shag" - BirdForum Opus

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(GSearch amended to allow for both scientific names)
(Flight picture. Imp sizes. Some deleted text replaced. Attempt to disguise some copied text. References)
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[[Image:Spotted_Shag.jpg|thumb|550px|right|Photo by janha<br />Photo taken: Bluff, New Zealand.]]
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[[Image:Spotted_Shag.jpg|thumb|550px|right|Photo by janha<br />Bluff, [[New Zealand]], October 2004]]
 
;[[:Category:Phalacrocorax|Phalacrocorax]] punctatus<br />
 
;[[:Category:Phalacrocorax|Phalacrocorax]] punctatus<br />
 
''Stictocarbo punctatus''
 
''Stictocarbo punctatus''
  
 
==Identification==
 
==Identification==
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70cm. Black-spotted, greenish-grey upperparts, a greenish-black head and back and a broad white stripe down the sides of the neck. The facial skin is green and the feet are yellow. In nuptial phase the bird sports two prominent crests on forehead and nape.
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[[Image:DSCF7181.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Photo by {{user|craigwilson|craigwilson}}<br />Oban, Stewart Island, [[New Zealand]], February 2017]]
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64–74 cm (25¼-29 in).  <br />
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Compared with typical cormorants, the Spotted Shag is a light-coloured bird.<br />
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Its back is brown. Its belly is pale blue-grey (often appearing white), and the white continues up the sides of the neck and face, but the throat and the top of the head are dark blue-green.<br />
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In the mating season, it has an obvious double crest.<br />
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There is little sexual dimorphism.
 
==Distribution==
 
==Distribution==
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[[New Zealand]].
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[[New Zealand]] endemic.
  
 
==Taxonomy==
 
==Taxonomy==
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There are two subspecies the Spotted Shag ''S.p.punctatus'' which is locally distributed in the North Island and the northern and eastern South Island and the Blue Shag ''S.p.steadi'' which breeds around Stewart Island and Fiordland.
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====Subspecies====
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''P. p. punctatus'':
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:North Island and South Island ([[New Zealand]])
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''P. p. oliveri'':
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:Stewart Island and adjacent western coast of South Island (New Zealand)
 
==Habitat==
 
==Habitat==
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Marine birds, coastal cliffs or on rocky islets.
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Marine birds, coastal cliffs or on rocky islets. They forage in fairly deep water, up to 16km off shore.
 
==Behaviour==
 
==Behaviour==
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====Breeding====
 
They nest in colonies of 10-700 pairs on ledges of cliffs.  The nest is a platform about 0.6m across made of seaweed, grass and iceplants.  The clutch of 1 – 4 pale blue eggs is incubated for 28 – 35 days.  The chicks fledge at 57 – 71 days.  The young are fed by both parents while in the nest.
 
They nest in colonies of 10-700 pairs on ledges of cliffs.  The nest is a platform about 0.6m across made of seaweed, grass and iceplants.  The clutch of 1 – 4 pale blue eggs is incubated for 28 – 35 days.  The chicks fledge at 57 – 71 days.  The young are fed by both parents while in the nest.
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====Diet====
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The diet includes small fish and crustaceans.
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There is very little detailed information. Their diet is thought to consist of small fish and crustaceans. They hunt by pursuit diving. They can form large feeding flocks.
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==References==
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#{{Ref-Clements6thAug17}}#Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved May 2018)
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{{ref}}
 
==External Links==
 
==External Links==
 
{{GSearch|Shag+punctatus}}
 
{{GSearch|Shag+punctatus}}
  
 
[[Category:Birds]] [[Category:Phalacrocorax]]
 
[[Category:Birds]] [[Category:Phalacrocorax]]

Revision as of 21:20, 7 May 2018

Photo by janha
Bluff, New Zealand, October 2004
Phalacrocorax punctatus

Stictocarbo punctatus

Identification

Photo by craigwilson
Oban, Stewart Island, New Zealand, February 2017

64–74 cm (25¼-29 in).
Compared with typical cormorants, the Spotted Shag is a light-coloured bird.
Its back is brown. Its belly is pale blue-grey (often appearing white), and the white continues up the sides of the neck and face, but the throat and the top of the head are dark blue-green.
In the mating season, it has an obvious double crest.
There is little sexual dimorphism.

Distribution

New Zealand endemic.

Taxonomy

Subspecies

P. p. punctatus:

North Island and South Island (New Zealand)

P. p. oliveri:

Stewart Island and adjacent western coast of South Island (New Zealand)

Habitat

Marine birds, coastal cliffs or on rocky islets. They forage in fairly deep water, up to 16km off shore.

Behaviour

Breeding

They nest in colonies of 10-700 pairs on ledges of cliffs. The nest is a platform about 0.6m across made of seaweed, grass and iceplants. The clutch of 1 – 4 pale blue eggs is incubated for 28 – 35 days. The chicks fledge at 57 – 71 days. The young are fed by both parents while in the nest.

Diet

There is very little detailed information. Their diet is thought to consist of small fish and crustaceans. They hunt by pursuit diving. They can form large feeding flocks.

References

  1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2017. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2017, with updates to August 2017. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
  2. Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved May 2018)

Recommended Citation

External Links

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