PHALACROCORAX.
Bill straight, compressed sideways, hooked at point; tarsus short, compressed sideways, not feathered ; frequent sea and inland waters; _feed on fish caught by diving ; nest on rocks or trees and generally in colonies ; eggs bluish white with chalky crust.
Phalacrocorax carbo carbo (L.). CORMORANT. Fr. Grand cormoran ; Ger. Konnoran ; Swett. Storskarf.
Above bronzy green, with purple margins ; head, neck and underparts purplish black ; chin and hair-like feathers on head and neck (January to May) and patch on thighs (January to July) white ; throat-pouch yellow ; tail 14 feathers. Iris green. Bill above brown, below yellowish white with brown tip. Legs and feet black. Wing 340-370. Tarsus 63-70. Bill 62-72. Full plumage attained in second summer. Young : dark brown, with slight bronze tinge ; beneath white with pale brown markings, flanks dark brown.
.Breeds.—Coasts of Norway to Kola Peninsula, Iceland, Faroes, British Isles ; Greenland to Labrador. Chiefly resident ; a few wander south in winter.
P. carbo subcormoranus (Brehm). Smaller. Bill more slender ; purple less intense and of a greener shade. Wing 33o-356 (H.).
Breeds.—Continental Europe from Baltic to N. Spain, Balearic Islands, C. and S. Italy, Sardinia, Sicily, Hungary and Rumania ; and through S. Russia to Central Asia. In winter occurs in Greece, Egypt, Tunisia, Algeria, and on the Caspian Sea.
P. carbo maroccanus Hartert. Upper parts as in "carbo," beneath differs in throat and fore neck (latter with black tips) being white.
Coast of Morocco.
Dark oily green with a bronzy tinge, upper parts with dark margins to feathers, bluish on head (which is crested Jan. to
May) ; bare skin of chin black with yellow spots ; tail 12 feathers.
Bill black, yellow at base below. Legs and feet including webs black. Iris green. Wing 260-282. Tarsus 58-62. Bill 57-63. Young : above brown tinged green ; beneath light to whitish brown, throat white. Full plumage is attained in fourth year.
Resident.—Coasts of Norway to Fininark, Russian Lapland, Iceland, Faroes, British Isles, \V. France, \V. Spain and \V. Portugal. In winter occurs on E. Coast of North Sea.
P. graculus desmaresti (Payraudeau). Bill longer and more slender, crest smaller or almost absent ; webs yellow, in very old birds brown. Wing 8 270-280, 9 245-256. Bill 66-71 (H.).
Resident.—Mediterranean Coasts of France and Spain, Italy, Corsica, Sardinia, Adriatic, Greece, Asia Minor and Cyprus. Rare on Algerian and N. Moroccan Coasts.
The status of the Shag breeding on \V. Coast of Morocco is still doubtful.
Phalacrocorax pygmmus (Pallas). PiGmv CORMORANT. Ger. Zwergscharbe ; Ital. Marangone minore.
8 9 summer. Glossy greenish black with long white spots ; middle of back, scapulars, wing coverts and inner secondaries grey with dark margins ; head reddish brown. Bill, skin round eye and on throat, legs, and feet black. After the breeding season throat is white, breast reddish, and white spots are absent. Wing 200-207. Tarsus 36. Bill 28-31 (H.).
Breeds.—Hungary, Balkan Peninsula, Black Sea, Lower Volga, Egypt, Algeria (L. Fetzara), and in S.W. Asia. Partly migratory ; occurs in winter in Greece, Palestine, Egypt and N.W. Africa. Has occurred occasionally in Europe outside its breeding range and Greece, e Russia, Germany, Poland, Switzerland and Italy.