Little Pied Cormorant - BirdForum Opus

Alternative Names: Little Shag (New Zealand)

Photo by Tannin
Victoria, Australia, July 2003

Microcarbo melanoleucos

Identification

Juveniles
Photo by Mzungu
Sandy Camp Rd Wetlands, Queensland, Australia, March 2016

55–65 cm (21¾-26 in)

Black upperparts
White underparts
Short yellow bill
Long tail
Black feet

Juvenile has all black plumage

Distribution

Indonesia, Solomon Islands, Australia and New Zealand.

Taxonomy

Formerly placed in genus Phalacrocorax.

Subspecies

There are 3 subspecies^[1]:

M. m. melanoleucos Lesser Sundas to Solomon Islands, Australia and Tasmania
M. m. brevicauda Rennel I. (Solomon Islands)
M. m. brevirostris New Zealand, Stewart and Campbell islands

Habitat

Subspecies melanoleucos
Photo by Mzungu
Wellington Point, Brisbane, Queensland, March 2017

Lakes, rivers, swamps etc. They prefer fresh water, but are often seen on the coast too.

Behaviour

Diet

Diet consists of aquatic animals, from insects to fish including freshwater crayfish, shrimps and prawns.

Breeding

The nest is a flat platform of sticks, lined with green leaves and is usually placed in a tree. Both adults share in egg incubation and care of the 3-4 young.

References

Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2016. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2016, with updates to August 2016. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
BirdsinBackyards
Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved March 2017)

List of references

Recommended Citation

BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Little Pied Cormorant. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 22 May 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Little_Pied_Cormorant

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