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Little Black CormorantAlternate name(s): "Little Shag", "Little Cormorant" ![]() Size: 55-65 cm; wing span 1.0 m Weight: 0.58-1.0 kg |
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Similar |
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Photos |
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ADULT |
Sex unknown |
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BREEDING |
Near-frontal view of a Little Black Cormorant in breeding
plumage; note the
characteristic turquoise-blue eyes
and the short white nuptial plumes on the head
(photo courtesy of R. Plumtree)
[Doctors Flat Road, Ensay South, East Gippsland, VIC, December 2014]
Lateral view of a Little Black Cormorant in breeding
plumage
(photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Centennial Park, Sydney, NSW, April 2013]
Near-dorsal view of a Little Black Cormorant in breeding
plumage
(photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Centennial Park, Sydney, NSW, April 2013]
Dorsal view of a Little Black Cormorant in breeding
plumage
drying its wings (photo courtesy of A. Ross-Taylor)
[Highland Park, Gold Coast, QLD, January 2015]
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NON-BREEDING |
Near-lateral view of a Little Black Cormorant in non-breeding
plumage
(photo courtesy of P. Brown)
[Palmerston Golf Course, Palmerston, NT, July 2020]
Lateral view of a Little Black Cormorant in non-breeding
plumage
(photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Centennial Park, Sydney, NSW, September 2013]
Lateral view of a Little Black Cormorant in non-breeding
plumage
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Palmerston Golf Course, Palmerston, NT, July 2020]
Near-dorsal view of a Little Black Cormorant in non-breeding
plumage
looking sideways
(photo courtesy of R. Plumtree)
[Doctors Flat Road, Ensay South, East Gippsland, VIC, December 2014]
Close-up dorsal view of a Little Black Cormorant in non-breeding
plumage
looking sideways
(photo courtesy of C. Pears)
[Lake Herdsman, Perth, WA, August 2023]
Group of resting Little Black Cormorants in non-breeding
plumage
(photo courtesy of C. Hayne)
[Near Moree, NSW, October 2012]
Little Black Cormorants in non-breeding
plumage preening
[Near Wee Waa, NSW, September 2012]
Lateral view of a Little Black Cormorant in water
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, December 2011]
Different lateral view of a Little Black Cormorant in water
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, March 2012]
Dorsal view of a Little Black Cormorant in water; especially with the
sunlight reflecting off the feathers as shown here, one can see how
slick the plumage is
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, March 2012]
Little Black Cormorant diving
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, September 2010]
Lateral view of a Little Black Cormorant in flight
[Near Bourke, NSW, September 2012]
Little Black Cormorant touching down on a lake, eyed suspiciously by a
Dusky Moorhen
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, September 2010]
Family of Little Black Cormorants hunting
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, March 2009]
Skein of Little Black Cormorants flying to their roost on a
sandy beach
[Urunga board walk, Urunga Heads, NSW, September 2016]
Direct comparison of a Great
Cormorant, left, with a Little Black Cormorant, right
(photo courtesy of C. Hayne)
[Near Moree, NSW, September 2013]
Direct comparison between - left to right -
a male Australasian Darter,
a Little Black Cormorant,
a Great Cormorant,
and a Little Pied Cormorant
[New Quipolly Dam, near Quirindi, NSW, November 2019]
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IMMATURE/JUVENILE |
Lateral view of a juvenile Little Black Cormorant
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Lake Broadwater, near Dalby, QLD, January 2018]
Near-dorsal view of a juvenile Little Black Cormorant
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Coolmunda Dam, Darling Downs, QLD, November 2017]
Two slightly different views of a juvenile Little Black Cormorant; note the dark irises and the absence of any scalloping on the dull brownish-grey wing plumage
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Breeding information |
Breeding season: Sep - Dec | Eggs: 3 - 5 | Incubation period: 27 - 28 days | Fledging age: 56 - 70 days |
The breeding season depends significantly on geographical latitude. In the tropical north Little Black Cormorants breed Feb - May. Given the right conditions, they can breed any time of the year. They breed in colonies, together with other aquatic birds.
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Nest |
"bungobittah", "lar", "malunna", "jindi" [bundjalung] = nest [Aboriginal] |
Type: Basket | Material: Sticks, bark, with soft lining | Height above ground: 1 - 30 m |
Colony of Little
Pied Cormorants nesting in a dead tree; in the lower left corner
two nesting pairs of Little Black Cormorants can be seen
[Split Rock Dam, near Manilla, NSW, August 2008]
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Eggs |
"boyanga", "booyanga", "derinya", "dirandil", "koomura", "mirk", "ngampu", "nooluk", "pateena", "pum-pum" = Egg; "dirundirri" = eggs [Aboriginal]; "gawu" = eggs [gamilaraay] |
Size: 49 x 33 mm | Colour: Light blue-green | Shape: Tapered oval |
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Behaviour |
Social behaviour: Communal | Mobility: Dispersive | Elementary unit: Flock |
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Food, Diet |
Like all other members of the Phalacrocorax family, Little Black Cormorants feed on fish and/or crustaceans. We have seen flocks of them hunting in a pack, trapping fish by pushing towards them underwater in a semi-circle.
Little Black Cormorants hunting in saline water
(photo courtesy of P. Brown)
[Darwin, NT, July 2018]