Crested cormorant (phalacrocorax aristotelis). Are the Crested Cormorant and the Long-billed Cormorant the same animal? Crested Cormorant

VERTEBRATES - VERTEBRATA

Squad: Copepods - Pelecaniformes

Family: Cormorants - Phalacrocoracidae

Genus: Phalacrocorax

Spreading: Murmansk coast of the Kola Peninsula. Until the end of the 20s. to the north Scandinavia was found only as far as the Varangerfjord. In 1929, non-breeding birds were recorded on the islands of the Semiostrovsky Archipelago. Later he settled on the islands and coasts of the East. and Zap. Murman. Outside Russia, it lives in Iceland and along the Atlantic coast of Europe, the Mediterranean Sea and the north-west. coast of Africa.

Habitat: It is associated with land only during the breeding season; the rest of the time it spends in the sea near the coast. The main wintering grounds for birds nesting on Murman are the coastal regions of the West. Murman and Sev. Norway. Usually nests in small colonies, less often in single pairs. Most nests are located in hard-to-reach places on small ledges of steep cliffs or in niches under stones, often close to the ground. The building material for the nest is dry grass and algae. The nest has been used for many years in a row. The timing of the start of nesting is determined by clearing the nest site from snow. In late spring, non-breeding of part of the population may occur. The clutch size on Murman is 2-3 eggs, on average 2.5. The average brood size by the time the chicks fledge is 1.9 chicks. Puberty occurs at 3 years. Breeding success varies greatly from year to year, and the proportion of birds surviving in a given year remains almost unchanged and is about 0.9.

Number: World population of the subspecies Ph. a. aristotelis (which also includes Russian birds) in the North. Europe is estimated at 250 thousand individuals. To the East In Murman, the first nest of the crested cormorant was found in 1932 on the island. Kharlov. By 1939, 44 pairs nested here, but during the war years this colony ceased to exist due to disturbance by people; later, only individual birds nested irregularly on this island. The colony moved to the island. Veshnyak and to this day in the Semiostrovie region, cormorants constantly breed only on this island. By 1977, their number here increased to 80 pairs, but in 1979 it sharply decreased and to this day remains at the level of 25-30 nests annually. On the mainland in the area of ​​Dvorovaya Bay (eastern distribution limit) in 1978 there were about 35 breeding pairs; when counting in 1992, only 2 nests were found. On the Gavrilovsky Islands, from the moment of the first census in 1978 to the present, there has been a constant increase in the number from 20 to 94 pairs in 1994. On the mainland near the Gavrilovsky Islands near Cape Shelpinskaya Pakhta in 1989-1992. 5 pairs nested. To the West Murmansk colonies appeared only in the late 70s. To the south coast of the Varangerfjord in the bays of Bazarnaya and Pechenga in 1978-1982. About 30-40 pairs reproduced. In 1979, for the first time, 5 pairs nested on the Ainu Islands. Since then, the number here has been constantly growing; in 1994, 135 pairs nested; in 1997, on the island. Maly Ainove - more than 300 pairs. Another 6 breeding pairs were noted in 1992 at the Gorodetsky Bazaar (Rybachy Peninsula). It is possible that the increase in numbers in the West. Murman and its reduction to the East. Murmansk was caused by a more favorable situation with fish feed in the West. parts of the coast, while to the east. since the mid-70s There was a deep depression in fish stocks, which negatively affected the resources of all fish-eating birds. Thus, currently about 500 pairs of crested cormorants nest on Murman, and their numbers continue to increase, although redistribution of colonies across the territory is observed. Information about an alleged sharp decline in the number of these birds on Murman is based on a misunderstanding: when counting in 1960, the total number of two species of cormorants was given - crested and great. The main limiting factors are disturbance of birds at nesting sites, a decrease in fish stocks in the sea, which leads to the non-nesting of part of the population or a change in nesting sites, death in fishing nets at wintering sites, and pollution of the sea with oil products.

Security: All large colonies of crested cormorants are located on the islands of the Kandalaksha Nature Reserve (Ainov, Gavrilovsky and Seven Islands), where they are strictly protected.

Sources: 1. Sudilovskaya, 1951; 2. Tatarinkova et al., 1983; 3. Modestov, 1967; 4. Shklyarevich, Tatarinkova, 1986; 5. Harris et al., 1994; 6. Rose, Scott, 1994; 7. Spangenberg, 1941; 8. Butyev, 1983; 9. Gerasimova, 1962.

Birds Order Copepods

Briefly about the crested cormorant. Pelicans and cormorants are great friends in nature. Where there are many of them, they cooperate for fishing. Pelicans form a “living net”, lining up in a chain, then in an arc, and, flapping their wings, drive the fish to the shore. Pelicans cannot dive. And cormorants, on the contrary, play the role of beaters, dive excellently, scare the fish, stir them up in the area captured by the “net”: the fish rush about and splash out - and as a result, the birds are satisfied with their friendship and catch.

There are 6 species of cormorants in the fauna of the USSR. So far, fortunately for us and the cormorants, the trouble has affected only one species - the crested cormorant. This bird nests in two separate areas: on the Kola Peninsula and on the northern coast of the Black Sea.

Outside the USSR, crested cormorants nest in Iceland, along the Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts of Europe, the northwestern coast of Africa and the western coast of Asia Minor.

The favorite habitats of the crested cormorant are sea coasts with coastal cliffs and piles of steep rocks. It often nests in colonies in close proximity to other birds: great cormorants, kittiwakes, guillemots.

According to the Red Book of the USSR, there are currently approximately 650-700 breeding pairs within our country. The crested cormorant is a species whose numbers are declining sharply for two main reasons: disturbance from humans at nesting sites and poaching. Both are determined primarily by the irrational curiosity shown by tourists organized in groups, single travelers and some citizens from the local population. There are people among them who are “sick” with a wild passion to take every living thing at gunpoint or at the camera lens. If you mishandle a camera or movie camera, seemingly harmless objects, you can cause considerable harm to birds (in this case, crested cormorants). The so-called quiet hunt does not always end quietly. Birds can abandon a nest with a clutch of eggs and even chicks; grown chicks can leave their cradle prematurely and die.

Well, enough has already been said about poachers. The cormorant is inedible, they still shoot it.

In order to preserve the crested cormorant, it is necessary to organize the strictest protection at nesting sites, and in those areas where these birds are found, to carry out extensive educational work and undoubtedly strengthen the fight against poaching.

The crested cormorant, or Phalacrocorax aristotelis (lat.), is the smallest of all the species considered. These are amazing birds with special distinctive habits. They are individual in their method of fishing, as well as in adopting different positions during the mating season. But there are also similar characteristics that define all cormorants. For example, nesting site, place of residence, etc.

Description

This photo is a great way to get acquainted with what a crested cormorant looks like. They can be seen in our article. The bird is the smallest among all cormorants. The length of its body does not exceed 80 cm, and its wingspan is a meter. Birds never gain more than 2 kilograms in weight, even during periods of abundant and accessible food.

Black cormorants have a corresponding shade of plumage with a greenish tint. During the mating season, as well as throughout the nesting period, the bird's appearance changes - a small crest of feathers appears on its head, which rise upward.

Cormorants have a long beak. At first it is pink in color, and towards the end it turns yellow. The skin around the eyes is emerald, but near the base of the beak it is yellow.

The abdomen is dark, but only in adults. Young males and females are lighter in color. In addition, chicks may have different shades on the main plumage, which is never observed in adult cormorants.

Spreading

Globally, the crested cormorant lives wherever there is a sea coast. Unlike other similar and related species, it will not be able to live near bodies of fresh water. It is distributed along the entire Atlantic coast, up to and can also be found in southwest Africa.

On the territory of the Russian Federation, cormorants are found in the north and east of the Black Sea. There is a critical habitat point for the species near this reservoir. In general, the bird can be found throughout the southern part of Russia.

The crested cormorant can also be seen in Crimea. On some coasts, they are normal in close proximity to humans, and it is possible to see them in person, and quite closely.

Nutrition

When talking about what cormorants eat, it is first necessary to consider the method of catching food. It involves diving. Therefore, if the reservoir is heavily polluted, then the cormorant simply will not be able to get food for itself.

The bird feeds mainly on fish. Usually these are gerbil, smarida, wrasse and the like. Very rarely, when a cormorant is hungry, it can afford to eat a small crustacean animal. But he will not be able to eat them on a regular basis, since the digestive system cannot cope.

Reproduction

During the mating season, the crested cormorant becomes very beautiful, photos can confirm this. Bird nests are located in rocky crevices or ledges with a canopy. They create them from branches and dry seaweed. Their nests are quite massive, this is done so that the hatched babies feel comfortable.

The mating season begins in mid-spring, less often in March. One clutch can contain up to 5 pale blue eggs. The incubation process lasts almost a month, after which chicks are born without feathers and with dark skin. They are also blind; they will be able to open their eyes only after 2 weeks.

Plumage appears in babies on the 20th day. First it's fluff. Then it is gradually replaced by coarser feathers.

After a month and a half, the chicks are fully feathered and ready to leave the nest. Despite the fact that a clutch of eggs can reach 5 pieces, fewer chicks remain, a maximum of three. They begin to fly out fully after 3-4 months.

During the nesting period, adults will not fly far from the colony. Therefore, in order to feed themselves, they will need the presence of fish near the shore. This factor negatively affects the conservation of the species.

Lifestyle

The crested cormorant is not a bird that leads a solitary lifestyle. It usually settles in colonies. The ideal habitat is the rocky shore of the sea coast. But cormorants do not refuse to create colonies on small islands.

The bird winters at sea, in close proximity to the nests. Cormorants usually do not fly inland, but sometimes this happens. They simply cannot feed themselves on land, so there is no point in going far from the sea.

If a bird finds suitable living conditions, it will never start looking for another option. This means that cormorants lead their migrations and migrations can only be due to the fact that the reservoir is too polluted.

The crested cormorant is an endangered species in many countries. This is due not only to the fact that previously the bird was caught in large quantities. The fact is that habitats change according to climate and temperature regimes. For some, there is not enough food, again due to human activities. Therefore, every effort must be made to preserve this species.

CRESTED CORMORANT
Phalacrocorax aristotelis Spreading: Murmansk coast of the Kola Peninsula. Until the end of the 20s. to the north Scandinavia was found only as far as the Varangerfjord. In 1929, non-breeding birds were recorded on the islands of the Semiostrovsky Archipelago. Later he settled on the islands and coasts of the East. and Zap. Murman. Outside Russia, it lives in Iceland and along the Atlantic coast of Europe, the Mediterranean Sea and the north-west. coast of Africa.
Habitat: It is associated with land only during the breeding season; the rest of the time it spends in the sea near the coast. The main wintering grounds for birds nesting on Murman are the coastal regions of the West. Murman and Sev. Norway. Usually nests in small colonies, less often in single pairs. Most nests are located in hard-to-reach places on small ledges of steep cliffs or in niches under stones, often close to the ground. The building material for the nest is dry grass and algae. The nest has been used for many years in a row. The timing of the start of nesting is determined by clearing the nest site from snow. In late spring, non-breeding of part of the population may occur. The clutch size on Murman is 2-3 eggs, on average 2.5. The average brood size by the time the chicks fledge is 1.9 chicks. Puberty occurs at 3 years. Breeding success varies greatly from year to year, and the proportion of birds surviving in a given year remains almost unchanged and is about 0.9.
Number: World population of the subspecies Ph. a. aristotelis (which also includes Russian birds) in the North. Europe is estimated at 250 thousand individuals. To the East In Murman, the first nest of the crested cormorant was found in 1932 on the island. Kharlov. By 1939, 44 pairs nested here, but during the war years this colony ceased to exist due to disturbance by people; later, only individual birds nested irregularly on this island. The colony moved to the island. Veshnyak and to this day in the Semiostrovie region, cormorants constantly breed only on this island. By 1977, their number here increased to 80 pairs, but in 1979 it sharply decreased and to this day remains at the level of 25-30 nests annually. On the mainland in the area of ​​Dvorovaya Bay (eastern distribution limit) in 1978 there were about 35 breeding pairs; when counting in 1992, only 2 nests were found. On the Gavrilovsky Islands, from the moment of the first census in 1978 to the present, there has been a constant increase in the number from 20 to 94 pairs in 1994. On the mainland near the Gavrilovsky Islands near Cape Shelpinskaya Pakhta in 1989-1992. 5 pairs nested. To the West Murmansk colonies appeared only in the late 70s. To the south coast of the Varangerfjord in the bays of Bazarnaya and Pechenga in 1978-1982. About 30-40 pairs reproduced. In 1979, for the first time, 5 pairs nested on the Ainu Islands. Since then, the number here has been constantly growing; in 1994, 135 pairs nested; in 1997, on the island. Maly Ainove - more than 300 pairs. Another 6 breeding pairs were noted in 1992 at the Gorodetsky Bazaar (Rybachy Peninsula). It is possible that the increase in numbers in the West. Murman and its reduction to the East. Murmansk was caused by a more favorable situation with fish feed in the West. parts of the coast, while to the east. since the mid-70s There was a deep depression in fish stocks, which negatively affected the resources of all fish-eating birds. Thus, currently about 500 pairs of crested cormorants nest on Murman, and their numbers continue to increase, although redistribution of colonies across the territory is observed. Information about an alleged sharp decline in the number of these birds on Murman is based on a misunderstanding: when counting in 1960, the total number of two species of cormorants was given - crested and great. The main limiting factors are disturbance of birds at nesting sites, a decrease in fish stocks in the sea, which leads to the non-nesting of part of the population or a change in nesting sites, death in fishing nets at wintering sites, and pollution of the sea with oil products.

The crested cormorant is a seabird that belongs to the order Pelicanidae, family Cormorantidae. All birds of this order have one similar feature - they can swim and feed mainly on fish. All Pelicans have small nostrils to keep water out of their respiratory tract, webbed feet to allow them to swim in water, and waterproof feathers. However, the crested cormorant has its own distinctive characteristics.

Description of the species

The second name of the species is the long-billed cormorant. This is due to the fact that the beak of this species of cormorant is slightly longer than that of all others. Each member of the family has its own habitat and appearance characteristics. A distinctive feature of the crested cormorant is the crest on its head and the relatively long beak.

The average size of birds of this species is about 70 cm, weight reaches 2 kg, wingspan is about 1 m. The beak length of crested cormorants is about 7 cm, which can only be compared with the great cormorant, but it is almost twice as large as the crested cormorant, therefore the relative length of the beak more in the crested representatives of the family, which is where their second name comes from.

Cormorants are covered with black feathers with a metallic greenish tint. A distinctive feature of the described species is that they do not have spots of a different color. Only in young representatives of the species can sometimes a light, not very bright spot be found on the cheek or neck. Other members of the family are characterized by white or red spots on the face or neck.

All members of the family have feathers that are not completely waterproof. After swimming, the cormorant is forced to remain in the sun for a long time and dry its plumage.

Prevalence

Cormorants are heat-loving birds. The southern representatives of the species lead a sedentary lifestyle, since the ambient temperature allows them to feel comfortable all year round. Northern representatives are forced to fly to warmer countries when the cold season sets in.

In Russia, the crested cormorant can be found on the Kola and Crimean peninsulas. Moreover, its prevalence is sporadic. In some areas of Crimea, representatives of this species are more numerous than other seabirds, while in others they are practically not found.

There are several interesting facts about this bird species:

1. Unexpressed sexual dimorphism. In crested cormorants, males and females differ only in size. Males are somewhat larger, but this difference can only be noticed by an experienced ornithologist. In general, males and females have the same color and are very similar. Representatives of both sexes hatch eggs in turns, so it is very difficult to understand which one is which.
2. A bird that doesn't like to fly. Crested cormorants are one of those rare animals that, having wings and paws, still prefers to swim. Cormorants can fly, but their flight is very difficult; they are often forced to flap their wings. The cormorant flies when it needs to get down from a cliff or move to a new habitat. The cormorant also does not like to walk; its gait is unsteady.
3. Floats like a submarine. Unlike most birds, which seem to sit on the water, the cormorant plunges into it up to its neck. These birds are also excellent divers and can move underwater.
4. Protected species. The crested cormorant is a species listed in the Red Book of Russia, Ukraine and the Black Sea. However, in general in the world this species is considered preserved and quite widespread. In the world's view, the crested cormorant is a species with minimal risk of extinction.
5. A bird that loves to change clothes. The Crested Cormorant can be called a real fashionista. The fact is that its chicks hatch not black, but dirty brown. As birds grow older, they gradually darken. So, in nesting juveniles the back and back of the head and neck are black, and the belly and front of the neck are dirty white. During the first mating season, the back of the bird acquires a greenish metallic tint, and the belly becomes black; white spots remain only on the neck or cheeks, but they are not clearly expressed. Adults are completely covered with black feathers with a green tint, and during the mating season a crest appears on their heads. The rest of the time the crest is absent.

We can conclude that the crested cormorant is a protected species listed in the Red Book. This is a seabird that swims better than walks or flies, dives well and feels comfortable under water. Males and females of this species hardly differ from each other and are similar in size to an average duck. You can meet the cormorant in Russia on the Kola and Crimean peninsulas, but it is difficult to recognize it, since it has a characteristic appearance only in adulthood and during the mating season.