Birds · Suliformes · Phalacrocoracidae

Brandt's Cormorant

Phalacrocorax penicillatus

Least Concern

The species is abundant and widely distributed; it faces no significant short-term risk. See full glossary

Brandt's cormorant is a large black cormorant of the North American Pacific coast, with a ruff of fine white feathers and a throat of bright cobalt blue during courtship. It breeds in dense colonies on islands and cliffs and fishes in the kelp forests of the California Current. Its populations swing sharply with El Niño events.

Weight

1.8 kg – 2.8 kg

Size

70 cm – 79 cm

Lifespan

18 years

Diet

Carnivore

Feeds mainly on other animals.

Activity

Diurnal

Active mainly during the day.

Social structure

Colony

Lives in large concentrations, often for breeding reasons.

Sighting difficulty

Easy

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Fun facts

In courtship its throat turns an intense cobalt blue and the male displays it by throwing his head back until it touches his own back, a display that lasts only a few weeks a year.
Its populations collapse during El Niño events, when the warm water sinks the productivity of the California Current, and recover in the cold years.
It fishes in the giant kelp forests of the Pacific, diving among the fronds to more than forty metres deep.

Life cycle & biology

Skeleton type: Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (bird)
Habitat & environment: Rocky coasts and shelf waters of the North American Pacific, from Alaska to Baja California
Sexual maturity: 2 years
Gestation / incubation: 30 days
Litter / clutch size: 3

Sources consulted: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brandt's_cormorant