Double-crested Cormorant
The Double-crested Cormorant is an species of seabird with a wide distribution across much of North America. They are found near water, either fresh or salt, where they hunt for fish by diving underwater.
Double-crested Cormorants have an all-black plumage. They are named for the feathers that develop into crests on either side of the head during breeding season. These crests can be black or white or a mixture of each. Both males and females develop the crests.
Double-crested Cormorants are common and widespread throughout their range. Their conservation status is Least Concern as of February 2014.
Details & Statistics
- Least Concern (LC)
- Near Threatened (NT)
- Vulnerable (VU)
- Endangered (EN)
- Critically Endangered (CR)
- Extinct in the Wild (EW)
- Extinct (EX)
Conservation
The Double-crested Cormorant is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List and was last assessed in 2012 by BirdLife International. This species has an extremely large range, and hence does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the range size criterion (Extent of Occurrence <20,000 km2 combined with a declining or fluctuating range size, habitat extent/quality, or population size and a small number of locations or severe fragmentation). The population trend appears to be increasing, and hence the species does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population trend criterion (>30% decline over ten years or three generations). The population size is extremely large, and hence does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population size criterion (<10,000 mature individuals with a continuing decline estimated to be >10% in ten years or three generations, or with a specified population structure). For these reasons the species is evaluated as Least Concern.
International Names
