These pellets can be dissected by biologists in order to discover what they ate. Cormorants are expert divers, some types of Cormorant diving as deep as 45 metres. Researchers recently fitted a South American sea bird called an imperial cormorant with a small camera, then watched stunned as it became 'superbird' -- diving 150 feet underwater in 40 seconds… Below the water they swim by using paddle movements of their feet which have a webbed membrane between Description: The Double-crested Cormorant is a large, dark water bird with a long stocky body, long neck, medium-sized tail, webbed feet and a medium sized hooked bill. It migrates from the coldest parts of its breeding range, such as eastern Canada, and has occurred in Europe as a very rare vagrant, for example in Great Britain, Ireland and the Azores. All cormorants are good fishers, eating around 500 grams of fish a day. Like all cormorants, the double-crested dives to find its prey. Double-crested Cormorants weigh between 1200–2500 g (42.36–88.25 ounces). They build stick nests in trees, on cliff edges, or on the ground on suitable islands. Scientists in Argentina recently attached a lipstick-size video camera to an imperial cormorant 's back. "They wanted to see what it was the animals were seeing ... ", A cormorant generally returns to the same nest, "so if you mark the nest, you know which animal is going to come back to it, and you can track them and [retrieve] the camera there. They can dive under water for more than a minute, reaching depths of around 10 metres. © 1996-2015 National Geographic Society, © 2015- 21 April 2009. 2020 National Geographic Partners, LLC. 9 June 2009. Back to Nearby Nature - Birds. It uses its feet for propulsion and is able to dive to a depth of 1.5–7.5 m (5–25 feet) for 30–70 seconds. The gangly Double-crested Cormorant is a prehistoric-looking, matte-black fishing bird with yellow-orange facial skin. This species flies low over the water, with its bill tilted slightly upward, sometimes leaving the colony in long, single-file lines. It has a body length of between 70–90 cm (28–35 in) long, with a wingspan of between 114–132 cm (45–52 in). Already turning heads online, the video may draw attention to the cormorant flocks of Argentina—a welcome development, according to Mendez. It mainly eats fish, but will sometimes also eat amphibians and crustaceans. Imperial cormorants gather in large colonies on land, but when they leave to feed, they fly solo, and researchers weren't sure why the birds stop in certain places. Behavior: The Double-crested Cormorant swims low in the water, often with just its neck and head visible, and dives from the surface. Then in 2012 he broke his own record, diving to 253 meters (831 feet), but injuring himself in the process. The constant weight apnea word record is currently held by Alexey Molchanov (130 meters) for men and Alessia Zecchini (107 meters) for women. Cornell University. “Double-crested cormorant.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Breeding: Breeding occurs in coastal areas as well as near inland rivers and lakes. It has a body length of between 70–90 cm (28–35 in) long, with a wingspan of between 114–132 cm (45–52 in). The Cornell Lab of Ornithology. "The team wanted to document the situation of where these animals fed, what they were looking at," Mendez said. All rights reserved. "The assumption was that they fed on the surface, or just below the surface," said WCS biologist Martin Mendez, spokesperson for the project, which was led by CONICET biologist Flavio Quintana. It's a new behavior—people didn't know about this before.". Habitat: A very common and widespread species, it winters anywhere that is ice-free along both coasts, as far north as southern Alaska (on the west coast) and southern New England (on the east coast). Fish are caught by diving under water. Behavior: The Double-crested Cormorant swims low in the water, often with just its neck and head visible, and dives from the surface. Growing in numbers throughout its range, this cormorant is increasingly being blamed for declines in sport fisheries and for devastating fish farms. “Double-crested cormorant.” All About Birds. It can be found as far south as Mexico and the Bahamas. More: Learn another diving bird's secret for staying under up to 20 minutes >>, https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2012/8/120801-imperial-cormorant-dive-video-superbird-science.html. "We think it's going to influence the protection of this area," he said. Double-crested Cormorants weigh between 1200–2500 g (42.36–88.25 ounces). The bill of a juvenile will be mostly orange or yellowish. They speed along underwater via their webbed feet, using their wings as rudders. Males and females do not display sexual dimorphism. When foraging, they dive from the surface with a small leap or lunge (unlike Double-crested Cormorant) and swim using their feet to reach the bottom of shallow inshore waters, normally less than 30 feet deep, though they can dive past 100 feet, deeper than the smaller Double-crested Cormorant. The bird's-eye view footage shocked researchers, according to the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), which teamed up with the National Research Council of Argentina (CONICET) on the project and released the cormorant video Tuesday. ", (See an award-winning picture of a diving cormorant penetrating a "globe" of fish underwater.). "This is the first time we have seen them diving to the floor. They are gregarious birds usually found in colonies, often with other aquatic birds, and have a deep, guttural grunt call. The result? by biologists in order to discover what they ate. It uses its feet for propulsion and is able to dive to a depth of 1.5–7.5 m (5–25 feet) for 30–70 seconds. The virtual tag-along ride was intended to help solve that mystery. Some colonies of Cormorants have been observed herding fish for more efficient hunting. Smaller fish may be eaten while the bird is still beneath the surface but bigger prey is often brought to the surface before it is eaten. The bill of a juvenile will be mostly orange or yellowish. 9 June 2009. Interesting Fact(s): The Double-crested Cormorant's numbers decreased in the 1960s due to the effects of DDT. Males and females do not display sexual dimorphism. Immature cormorants have a pale upper breast and throat. The theoretical maximum … Diet: Food can be found in the sea, freshwater lakes, and rivers. The new research, published in the Journal of the Royal Society Interface, studied how cormorants and other diving birds are able to reach depths of some 30 meters without having water permanently wet their protective feathers. "Superbird" Video: Watch Imperial Cormorant's Seafloor Dive. Cormorants regurgitate pellets containing undigested parts of their meals such as bones. The chest varies from nearly whitish to dusky; usually the chest is pale and the belly dark, but may be uniform pale below. Discoveries like this can affect which natural habitats the Argentine government chooses to preserve. Colonies have also been persecuted from time to time in areas where they are thought to compete with human fishing. The result? Scientists in Argentina recently attached a lipstick-size video camera to an imperial cormorant's back. After diving, it spends long periods standing with its wings outstretched to allow them to dry, since they are not fully waterproofed. Footage of the so-called Superbird diving 150 feet (46 meters) to the seafloor to catch a fish—far deeper than researchers thought cormorants could plunge. More Information about the Double-crested Cormorant Source(s):