Study of A Double-crested Cormorant Catching A Fish At Peace Valley Park

The Double-crested Cormorant (Phalacrocorax auritus) is a member of the cormorant family of seabirds. It occurs along inland waterways as well as in coastal areas, and is widely distributed across North America, from the Aleution Islands in Alaska southward to Florida and Mexico. Once threatened by use of DDT, the numbers of this bird have increased markedly in recent years. It measures 28 to 35 inches in length. It is dark brown to blackish in color and gains a small double crest of black and white feathers during breeding season. It has a bare patch of orange-yellow facial skin. It mainly eats fish and hunts by swimming and diving. Five subspecies are recognized.

Its feathers, like those of all cormorants, are not waterproof and it must spend time drying them out every once in a while.

There were two cormorants fishing together today at the Chapman Bridge in Peace Valley Park (New Britain Twp, Bucks County, PA.) One of them caught a catfish (a Brown Bullhead, Ameiurus nebulosus.) This fish happens to have very sharp, sawtoothed spines at the base of both the dorsal and pectoral fins which can be locked in an erect position. It is thought that this helps protect the Bullhead against predators by making it much harder to swallow. Obviously, the cormorant was not deterred. It first either stunned or killed the fish (perhaps using accupressure) and then spent some eight minutes maneuvering it so that it could swallow it head first. It never let go of the fish. The following photos depict the episode from start to finish.

Please click on either the thumbnails or the captions to see a larger image.

Revised Oct 1st, 2008

© Howard B. Eskin 2008      Please click here to go back to Bird Webpage Index                           Please email your comments to hbeskin@voicenet.com