222 
PELECANINJE. PHALACROCORAX. 
ticulated; toes obliquely scutellate, webbed, tbe outer longer; 
claws strong, curved, compressed, acute, that of the third 
toe pectinate. Plumage of the head, neck, lower parts, and 
rump, glossy, blended, silky, of the wings and fore-part of 
the back compact, imbricated ; wings rather large and broad ; 
primaries short, strong, obtuse, the first longest ; tail rather 
small, rounded, of from twelve to sixteen narrow, strong- 
shafted feathers. 
Species occur on almost every rocky coast of both conti- 
nents. They feed entirely on fish, swim and dive with ex- 
treme agility, sink in the water when alarmed, have a mo- 
derately quick even flight, perch on rocks and trees, and 
nestle in both situations. In diving, they generally leap 
out of the water, and descend in a curve. Two species oc- 
cur in Britain. 
286. Phalacrqcorax Carbo. Great Cormorant. 
Length about three feet ; tail of fourteen feathers ; imbri- 
cated feathers of the back and wings ovate, rounded, with 
silky margins. Adult in winter crestless ; the plumage silky, 
greenish-black, tinged with blue ; of the back and wings grey- 
ish-brown or bronzed, with greenish-black margins ; a grey- 
ish-white band on the throat, ascending to the eyes ; some 
scattered, extremely minute, pil-iform pencil-tipped, white 
plumelets on the head and neck, and a few white streaks 
over the thigh. Adult in spring coloured as in winter, with 
the addition of a longitudinal greenish-black crest, numerous 
linear white feathers on the head and neck, the throat-band 
pure white, and a roundish patch of that colour on each side, 
over the thigh. Young with the head and hind-neck dusky 
brown, streaked with brownisli-grey ; cheeks and fore-neck 
greyish- white, mottled with brownish-grey ; a brownish- white 
band on the throat ; lower parts greyish-white, mottled with 
dusky, becoming darker behind ; upper parts nearly as in the 
adult. 
Male, 38, 60, 14, 3 X V, 2 T %, Female, 35, 58. 
This species occurs in considerable numbers here and there, 
on all our rocky coasts, resting on headlands and rugged in- 
sular crags, and fishing in the bays and estuaries. They swim 
and dive with extreme agility, feed on small fishes, which, 
on coming to the surface, they toss about in their bill, or 
throw up into the air, to bring them into a favourable posi- 
tion for being swallowed. They alight heavily, keep in a 
