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MarshBunny Notes
The St. Johns River The Intracoastal and Beyond
Cormorant
Cormorants swim very low in the water, ready to dive at a likely target. They can swim quite a distance, popping their heads up long enough to catch a breath and have a look around.

CormorantCormorant

A Cormorant pops up for a look around.

Cormorant on bridge piling
This Cormorant is sitting on a partially submerged piling from the old bridge.

The Cormorant grasps its catch with the blunt crook on the tip of its short beak. It is quite adept at tossing a fish into the air and swallowing it nose first.

In China fishermen raise Cormorants by hand from birth and train them to fish for them. They will tie a string around the birds neck to prevent it swallowing it's catch, and the birds will dive and return repeatedly with fish they have caught.

They sometimes join together in communal fishing. They will line up across the water and move forward with their wings flailing to drive fish into shallower water to make them easier to catch.

Cormorants are similar to Anhingas in appearance and fishing style, and are often mistaken for each other. I always check the beak - the Anhinga's beak is long and sharp, the Cormorant's is short and has a crook at the end.

Cormorants on trestleCormorants feathers are very oily to assist their diving and protect them from exposure to the water. When they are not fishing you will see them on posts or dead tree branches with their wings spread to dry in the breeze.
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