Bank Cormorant
Encyclopedia
The Bank Cormorant, Phalacrocorax neglectus, also known as Wahlberg's Cormorant is a medium-sized cormorant
that is endemic
to Namibia
and the western seaboard of South Africa
, living in and around coastal waters; it is rarely recorded more than 15 km offshore.
The Bank Cormorant is a heavy-bodied bird, roughly 75 cm in length. It is generally black in appearance with a bronze sheen, though the wings are a dark brown rather than a true black. Adults have a small crest on their heads, and normally have a white rump.
A prime food for these birds is the cape rock lobster Jasus lalandii, and their feeding distribution closely matches the kelp
beds where these lobsters live, though the birds will also take a variety of other crustacean and fish prey, notably Pacific goby
Sufflogobius bibarbatus.
The birds may breed at any time of the year, laying two or three chalky-white eggs in a nest constructed from seaweed and guano.
Numbers of these birds have been declining sharply in recent decades, partly because of commercial fishing for Pacific goby, partly because of increasing human disturbance, and partly because numbers of Kelp Gull
s have been increasing because of human provisioning, and the gulls are active predators on the cormorant eggs and chicks. The world population is probably now around 4000 birds. The most important population centres are in Mercury Island
and Ichaboe Island in Namibia.
Cormorant
The bird family Phalacrocoracidae is represented by some 40 species of cormorants and shags. Several different classifications of the family have been proposed recently, and the number of genera is disputed.- Names :...
that is endemic
Endemic (ecology)
Endemism is the ecological state of being unique to a defined geographic location, such as an island, nation or other defined zone, or habitat type; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsewhere. For example, all species of lemur are endemic to the...
to Namibia
Namibia
Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia , is a country in southern Africa whose western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and east. It gained independence from South Africa on 21 March...
and the western seaboard of South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, living in and around coastal waters; it is rarely recorded more than 15 km offshore.
The Bank Cormorant is a heavy-bodied bird, roughly 75 cm in length. It is generally black in appearance with a bronze sheen, though the wings are a dark brown rather than a true black. Adults have a small crest on their heads, and normally have a white rump.
A prime food for these birds is the cape rock lobster Jasus lalandii, and their feeding distribution closely matches the kelp
Kelp
Kelps are large seaweeds belonging to the brown algae in the order Laminariales. There are about 30 different genera....
beds where these lobsters live, though the birds will also take a variety of other crustacean and fish prey, notably Pacific goby
Sufflogobius bibarbatus
The Bearded Goby or Pelagic Goby The Bearded Goby or Pelagic Goby The Bearded Goby or Pelagic Goby (Sufflogobius bibarbatus is a fish in the family Gobiidae. Its genus Sufflogobius is monotypic.-Description:...
Sufflogobius bibarbatus.
The birds may breed at any time of the year, laying two or three chalky-white eggs in a nest constructed from seaweed and guano.
Numbers of these birds have been declining sharply in recent decades, partly because of commercial fishing for Pacific goby, partly because of increasing human disturbance, and partly because numbers of Kelp Gull
Kelp Gull
The Kelp Gull , also known as the Dominican Gull, breeds on coasts and islands through much of the southern hemisphere. The race L. d. vetula occurs around southern Africa, and nominate L. d...
s have been increasing because of human provisioning, and the gulls are active predators on the cormorant eggs and chicks. The world population is probably now around 4000 birds. The most important population centres are in Mercury Island
Mercury Island
Mercury Island is a small rocky island off The Diamond Coast, Namibia. Despite its small size it is recognised by Bird Life and other global conservation groups as one of the Important Bird Areas for its important coastal seabird breeding.-Situation:...
and Ichaboe Island in Namibia.
External links
- BirdLife Species Factsheet.
- Species report from the Avian Demography Unit of the University of Cape TownUniversity of Cape TownThe University of Cape Town is a public research university located in Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. UCT was founded in 1829 as the South African College, and is the oldest university in South Africa and the second oldest extant university in Africa.-History:The roots of...