78 CICONIIFORMES CHAP. 
feathers, the thighs show a few white markings, and a_ broad 
white stripe reaches from above the eye down each side of the 
neck, where the coat is somewhat elongated and silky. P. 
pygmaeus, the Pigmy Cormorant, which breeds across South-East 
Europe and South Asia to Java and Borneo, as well as in North 
Africa, is greenish-black with greyer mantle, reddish-brown head 
and neck, and small white spots on the lower surface, the naked 
parts being black. The sexes in Phalacrocorax are alike, or nearly 
so. The young are browner above—with little of the charac- 
teristic gloss—and brown, or white mottled with brown below, 
the bill and irides often differing in colour from those of the 
adult. 
The members of this family as a rule frequent salt water, 
yet not uncommonly breed on inland lakes and swamps, especi- 
ally in the proximity of trees; they are often to be seen in 
companies, and are decidedly shy and cautious in most cases. 
The heavy flight is strong, steady, and rapid, bearing a certain 
resemblance to that of the Duck-tribe, while the birds experience 
considerable difficulty in starting, and laboriously flap their 
wings until fairly launched in the air, when they rise to some 
height, or skim the waves, as fancy dictates. They swim and 
dive to perfection, remaining a long time submerged, and indulg- 
ing in many a turn and twist as they pursue their slippery 
prey, both wings and feet lending their aid to the performance. 
Ordinarily a spring precedes the plunge from the surface, but in 
presence of danger they disappear more quietly. Though the 
gait on land is an awkward waddle, Cormorants perch with ease 
on rocks, posts, and limbs of trees, where their upright posture 
gives them the appearance of black bottles or objects hung out 
to dry ; they are stated, moreover, to be able to cling to the face 
of a cliff, and certainly can climb among thick vegetation, as im 
the case of P. pygmaeus. Not unfrequently they roost in trees, 
with the head drawn back upon the shoulders. The food, 
normally of fish, is varied by crustaceans, or even frogs and 
newts; the young are fed by regurgitation, and, when old 
enough, thrust their heads into their parents’ bills to help 
themselves.| The note, comparatively seldom heard, is a harsh 
guttural croak, while the female hisses during incubation, in 
which she is said to be assisted by the male. The nest, placed 
1 P. L. Sclater, P.Z.S. 1882, p. 458. 
