Phalacrocorax fuscicollis Stephens, 1826

General Appearance

This is a medium-sized bronze brown cormorant. Its upper plumage has black scalloped patterning, it has no crest, and it has a small, slightly peaked head.

Bill Structure

Its long narrow bill ends in a hooked tip.

Non-breeding Facial Features

It has blue eyes, and bare yellow facial skin during the non-breeding season.

Breeding Plumage

Breeding individuals develop a short white ear tuft.

Throat Plumage

Some plumages include a white throat, but this white area is restricted below the gape, unlike the pattern seen in the much larger great cormorant.

Sexual Dimorphism

Males and females have similar appearances.

Non-breeding and Juvenile Plumage

Non-breeding adults and juveniles are browner than breeding adults.

Feeding Behavior and Core Habitat

This cormorant fishes in groups, mainly in inland rivers and large wetlands of peninsular India and northern Sri Lanka.

Coastal Habitat Range

It can also be found in estuaries and mangroves, but does not live on the open coast.

Breeding Colonies

It breeds only in very localized mixed-species breeding colonies.

Extended Distribution Range

Its range extends northeast into Assam, and eastward into Thailand, Burma, and Cambodia.