We had a rare - if not unique - visitor behind the house late Thursday afternoon. It was a cormorant, a diving, fish-eating water bird, common to open water such as Lake Ontario or the waters along the Atlantic shoreline. This was the first time I've seen one on the Tonawanda.
Note the hooked bill, a big help in taking fish. The cormorant is an excellent diver, diving to depths from five to twenty-five feet for a minute or more.
The cormorant is a great fish-catcher, so good in fact, it is the bane of charter boat captains and fishermen on Lake Ontario's eastern basin.
The cormorants wings are not fully water proofed and here it spreads them to dry.
This particular cormorant was a willing subject, not only staying put for several photos, but displaying as well.
The cormorant obviously had dining plans when it made its Tonawanda stop over. Whether it had any luck I couldn't say.
Wow Jim, isnt this wild. The
Wow Jim, isnt this wild. The last time I saw a Cormorant, was at Disney off the Contemperary, on our fishing excursion. The Guide got it to come up on the boat, and sit on her lap. He stayed with us the whole day walking around the boat. But to see one in New York? Is this unusual? P.S. Did you see the Monster Bass Mike and I caught over the last few weeks? Unreal. FisherMOMs been busy reelin um in too(: Yah know Jim there's some BIG Smallies in the Ole Tonowandee.
That is a great catch, Jim.
That is a great catch, Jim. Definitely not something you see everyday. He must need a gps or one of those "fish finders"
Nice shots Jim ! Just
Nice shots Jim ! Just curious what make and model camera you use? Great photos !!!!!!!!!!
Cormorants have been a real
Cormorants have been a real threat to the fishing industry up to the Thousand Islands. For the last several years they have dessimated the perch, causing the Islands to lose money in the tourist industry. As usual insects, birds and other critters are brought into the country to help with one problem causing another one.
The Chinese and Japanese
The Chinese and Japanese exploited the Cormorant for fishing- particularly night fishing. They tethered the birds and constricted their throats so any large fish the birds caught could not be swallowed. They would go out on rivers at night in boats with torches for illumination and when the birds caught a fish, they would draw them in and collect the fish. This technique has been documented as far back as the 14th century.
The double-crested cormorant is indigenous to North America; it is not an introduced species. The contrary misconception probably derives from efforts to re-establish depleted cormorant populations. U. S. populations plummeted in the 50s and 60s due to DDT-related pollution and human interference- eradication programs and loss of habitat. The cormorant may compete with sport fishermen for species such as yellow perch, however its preferred diet is alewife and round goby- both being invasive species. Rainbow smelt, pumpkinseed, crappie, perch and bass are secondary food choices.
The cormorant has been categorized as a nuisance- certainly no more so than blue herons and egrets. All of the fishing-bird species should be regarded less as competitors- more as signs of healthy fish populations.
The decline in yellow perch populations has been notably attributed not to predation, but loss of the species' staple food source- the mayfly which is water-born during its larval stage. Blame pesticides and dissolved-oxygen-reducing pollution for that loss.
It sure matches the wiki
It sure matches the wiki picture I borrowed.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Phalacrocorax_carbo02.jpg
Good stuff, Thank You.
Hi Karen! You can
Hi Karen!
You can imagine how surprised I was to see this guy sitting on the end of a submerged log. He didn't appear to be the least bit spooked by my presence...a bit wary perhaps.
I've seen at least one of the big bass you or Mike caught this year. A largemouth if I remember correctly. You are absolutely right, the Tonawanda holds some better than average bronzebacks. Sometime in October, after the fall turnover, they really start to turn on. With the water temps rapidly cooling, they turn into real acrobats, smashing plugs then cartwheeling across the surface as they attempt to spit the hook.
Dave Olsen, thanks for your
Dave Olsen, thanks for your comment and yeah it was a surprise to see a cormorant in the "backyard" so to speak. Actually I saw some - an entire flock - up in your neck of the woods last autumn. They came winging through Oxbow marsh, in formation like geese but unlike the honkers the flight of the cormorants was silent.
Steve, Thanks and I'm glad
Steve, Thanks and I'm glad you liked the photos. My wife and I use a Fuji 5100 w/10x zoom.
Cheryl, I recall
Cheryl,
I recall hearing quite a bit of commotion from the fishing community around the Thousand Islands regarding the cormorant. Apparently they found a fishing ground to their liking, and not only decimated the fish population, they turned Little Galloo Island white with bird droppings. Sadly some local fishermen decided to take matters into their own hands and were arrested and fined for shooting cormorants - a protected species.
C.M. - I wholeheartedly
C.M. - I wholeheartedly agree with you....herons, cormorants and other winged fish eaters won't hang around where there is nothing to eat.
Thanks Gabor... and thanks
Thanks Gabor... and thanks for the photo. The background in your pic looks a tad less murkier than the Tonawanda!
Jim, I will have to keep my
Jim, I will have to keep my eyes on the skies!!!!