Great Cormorant
Scientific Name: Phalacrocorax carboMaltese Name: Margun
Family: Cormorants (Phalacrocoracidae)
Occurence: Regular
Breeds in Malta: No
Overview:
The Great Cormorant, is a widespread member of the cormorant family of seabirds. Its a large black bird, with a longish tail, thick, long bill and yellow throat-patch.
It feeds on the sea, in estuaries, and on freshwater lakes and rivers. Northern birds migrate south and winter along any coast that is well-supplied with fish. The Great Cormorant can dive to considerable depths, but often feeds in shallow water. It frequently brings prey to the surface. A wide variety of fish are taken. The Great Cormorant is one of the few birds which can move its eyes, which assists in hunting.
The Great Cormorant breeds mainly on coasts, nesting on cliffs or in trees, but also increasingly inland. 3-4 eggs are laid in a nest of seaweed or twigs.
Many fishermen see in the Great Cormorant a competitor for fish. Because of this it was nearly hunted to extinction in the past. Thanks to conservation efforts its numbers increased. At the moment there are about 1,2 million birds in Europe.
Chinese fishermen sometimes tie fishing line around the throats of cormorants, tight enough to prevent swallowing, and deploy them from small boats. The cormorants "eat" fish without being able to fully swallow them, and the fishermen are able to retrieve the fish simply by forcing open the cormorants' mouths, apparently engaging the regurgitation reflex. This traditional fishing method is known as Cormorant fishing.
Status:
Regular autumn/winter migrant. In Malta the nominate species occurs, but the sub species lucidus/maroccanus of North Africa occured once when a single bird was recorded from Qawra on the 19th of November 2004. Mostly seen migrating in singles or in small flocks. An unusually large flock, in fact the largest ever recorded in Malta, was seen from Qawra on the 21st of February 2001. The flock was of 80 birds. Although it is not considered as a wintering bird in Malta, some birds do spend a part of the winter here. In winter 2009-2010, a group of 9 birds wintered at Salina.
When to See:
Mid-September till March.
Where to See:
Mostly seen from the coast, migrating offshore. Some use Salina, Ghadira and Simar Nature Reserves as feeding/resting spots. They often come into harbours aswell.
Photographs:
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Adult Cormorant, Ghadira Nature Reserve |
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| Flock of Migrating Cormorants, Cirkewwa | Adult Cormorant, Xemxija Bay |
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