4

European Shag (Phalacrocorax aristotelis) Alternate name(s): "Common Shag", "Shag" German name(s): "Krähenscharbe" Size: 68-78 cm; wing span 90-110 cm Body mass: 1.6-1.75 kg

Europe: Family Group 4 Family Group 4 Table Great Cormorant European Shag Pygmy Cormorant Northern Gannet Brown Booby Great White Pelican Thumbnails page Family group table Index of bird names European birds home page

Similar species

Description     Classification     Distribution     Sightings     Photos     Breeding     Nest     Eggs     Behaviour     Food     Call/s

Physical description Click here for a physical description European Shags are medium-sized, slightly built cormorants. The body plumage of adults is all-black. During the breeding season they have an erectile crest on the forehead. The front can have a glossy-green sheen, while the upperwings are less glossy and show some signs of scalloping. In eclipse the crest is much less conspicuous and the chin is light-grey. In flight the neck is held straight and both neck and body are visibly slimmer than in other, similar species of cormorants. The eyes are bluish. The legs and feet are dark-grey. Adults have a dark bill with a yellowish base. Immature and juvenile European Shags have a light-grey bill with a yellow base, often also a yellowish tinge on the lower mandible. Only in nuptial flushis the bill dark. Immature European Shags have a conspicuous light-grey front, from chin to undertail coverts, with a wide, slightly darker band across the chest. The head and the back are brownish-grey, which prominent scalloping on the upperwing coverts. The legs and feet are pinkish-grey, turning darker-grey with age. Juveniles are brownish-grey all over, with a lighter shade of brownish-grey on the front than the back. At all ages, across all races, European Shags have a bill with a yellow base, which distinguishes them from other, similar species of cormorants.

Taxonomy, classification See European Shag at Wikipedia .

Range, habitat, finding this species Click here for information on habitat and range The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found, based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to ebird.org . The global distribution of the European Shag is available HERE . There are 3 races of European Shags, which are a partially migratory species. European Shags are marine cormorants that are found as both permanent residents and as winter visitors around much of the coastal fringe of the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea, including basically the entire coastline of Asia Minor. They are also present along large parts of the Atlantic coastline from north-western Africa to central Scandinavia, including the British Isles (in particular coastlines facing West and North-west). They are also found on many Mediterranean islands and on the West coast of Iceland. While the two races "aristotelis" and "desmarestii" are European, race "riggenbachi" populates the north-western African coastline. Part of the population is migratory, extending their breeding range beyond the Arctic circle in summer, all along the northern coastal fringe of Scandinavia. In Europe European Shags are found along the Mediterranean and Atlantic coastlines. Nominate race "aristotelis" is found in north-western Europe, along the Atlantic Ocean coastlines. Race "desmarestii" is present in southern Europe and Asia Minor, around the Mediterranean and Black Sea coastlines. European Shags have a strong preference for rocky coastlines, especially those facing West to North-west (which are exposed to the fearce storms coming off the Atlantic Ocean). They are always found in saline water.

Sightings Click here for sighting information Race "aristotelis" M. Eaton found a European Shag, race "aristotelis", at Land's End, Cornwall, England, in September 2019. Race "desmarestii" D. Wilczynska reports spotting European Shags, race "desmarestii", on the coastline of eastern Sardinia, near Cala Gonone, Italy, in June 2016. J. Pires reports spotting European Shags, race "desmarestii", occasionally along the coastline of southern to central Portugal. H. Dahlem-Senger found European Shags, race "desmarestii", in Lisbon, Portugal, in November 2019. C. Pears reports spotting European Shags, race "desmarestii", at Athens beach, Athens, Greece, in October 2025.

Photos

Race "aristotelis"

IMMATURE/JUVENILE

Near-dorsal view of a juvenile European Shag (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Land's End, Cornwall, England, September 2019]

Race "desmarestii"

ADULT

Sex unknown

BREEDING

Lateral view of a European Shag in breeding plumage (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Papoa, near Cape Carvoeiro, Peniche, Portugal, January 2023]

Lateral comparison of a European Shag in breeding plumage with a Red Phalarope in non-breeding plumage
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Papoa, near Cape Carvoeiro, Peniche, Portugal, January 2023]

Lateral view of a European Shag in breeding plumage in flight (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Cabo Raso, Cascais, near Lisbon, Portugal, April 2018]

Near-dorsal view of a European Shag in breeding plumage in flight (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Cabo Raso, Cascais, near Lisbon, Portugal, April 2018]

NON-BREEDING

Near-frontal view of a European Shag in non-breeding plumage (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Sagres, Algarve, Portugal, October 2019]

Lateral view of a juvenile European Shag in non-breeding plumage (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Sagres, Algarve, Portugal, October 2019]

Near-dorsal view of a European Shag in non-breeding plumage going for a dive (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Sagres, Algarve, Portugal, October 2019]

Comparison between European Shags, centre to left, mostly in non-breeding plumage, with two Great Cormorants, right
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Sagres, Algarve, Portugal]

Lateral view of a European Shag in non-breeding plumage in flight, wings up (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Alhos Vedros, Tejo estuary, Portugal, July 2020]

Lateral view of a European Shag in non-breeding plumage in flight, wings down (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Alhos Vedros, Tejo estuary, Portugal, July 2020]

IMMATURE/JUVENILE

Near-frontal view of an immature European Shag; the yellowish base of the bill, without a pale-orange mark under the bill, is characteristic of this species; note also the light-grey front and the prominent light tips of the wing coverts characteristic of immature birds of the Mediterranean race "desmarestii" (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Cala Gonone, eastern Sardinia, Italy, June 2016]

Near-lateral view of an immature European Shag (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Cala Gonone, eastern Sardinia, Italy, June 2016]

Near-lateral view of an immature European Shag drying its plumage (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Near Cala Gonone, eastern Sardinia, Italy, June 2016]

Near-dorsal view of a juvenile European Shag (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Land's End, Cornwall, England, September 2019]

Lateral view of a European Shag in breeding plumage in flight, followed by a juvenile (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Cabo Raso, Cascais, near Lisbon, Portugal, January 2025]

Behaviour

Social behaviour: Communal

Mobility: Partially migratory

Elementary unit: Pair/flock

As opposed to Great Cormorants, European Shags are a strictly coastal species. They are sedentary along most of the European coastlines, but breed only where there are suitable cliffs. In other locations they depart to breed elsewhere - including the northern part of Scandinavia, where they are summer migrants.

These pages are largely based on our own observations and those of our contributors. The structure of these bird pages is explained HERE. For more salient facts on any bird species please refer to a field guide.

Would you like to contribute photos or sound recordings to this site? If interested, please CLICK HERE. Credits to contributors are given HERE.