Great Cormorant vs Shoebill

Phalacrocorax carbo 比較対象 Balaeniceps rex

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Side-by-Side Comparison

属性 Great Cormorant Shoebill
学名 Phalacrocorax carbo Balaeniceps rex
Suliformes Pelecaniformes
Phalacrocoracidae Balaenicipitidae
保全状況 Least Concern Vulnerable
体長 90.0 cm (35.4 in) 120.0 cm (47.2 in)
翼開長 145.0 cm (57.1 in) 240.0 cm (94.5 in)
体重 2600.0 g (91.71 oz) 5500.0 g (194.01 oz)
食性 Fish caught by diving from the surface. Pursues prey underwater using powerful feet for propulsion. … Primarily lungfish, also catfish, water snakes, monitor lizards, and baby crocodiles. Hunts by standing motionless, …
一腹卵数 1-7 1-3
Population Trend
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Size Comparison

Body Length
Great Cormorant 90.0 cm
Shoebill 120.0 cm
翼開長
Great Cormorant 145.0 cm
Shoebill 240.0 cm
体重
Great Cormorant 2600.0 g
Shoebill 5500.0 g
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Habitat Comparison

共通生息地

Great Cormorant only

Shoebill only

None

Great Cormorant

Coasts, estuaries, lakes, rivers, and reservoirs. Nests in colonies in trees, on cliffs, or on the ground.

Shoebill

Freshwater swamps dominated by papyrus and other dense aquatic vegetation in tropical East Africa.

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Song & Call Comparison

Great Cormorant

さえずり

Deep, guttural grunts and 'karrr' calls at colonies. Bill-clicking and hissing in threat displays. Silent at sea. Colonial noise can be deafening during the breeding season.

Shoebill

さえずり

Largely silent; produces mechanical bill-clattering 'clap-clap-clap' when greeting at the nest — similar to White Stork. Also gives low croaking grunts. Rarely calls in the wild.

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Geographic Range & Migration

Great Cormorant

Very wide range across Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australasia. One of the most widespread cormorant species.

Shoebill

Central and East Africa from South Sudan and Ethiopia south to Zambia. Largest populations in South Sudan and Uganda.

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保全状況

Least Concern

Great Cormorant

Vulnerable

Shoebill

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How to Tell Them Apart

Great Cormorant

羽毛

All black with a bronze-green gloss. White throat patch and white thigh patches in breeding season. Yellow-orange face patch around the bill base.

くちばし

Long, hooked, dark bill with a yellow gape

Shoebill

羽毛

Blue-grey plumage overall with a slightly darker back and wings. Powder down gives a washed-out appearance. Small tuft on the back of the head.

くちばし

Massive shoe-shaped bill, one of the largest of any bird — pale yellowish-grey with darker markings

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About These Birds

Great Cormorant

The great cormorant is one of the most widespread seabirds in the world. Unlike most waterbirds, cormorants lack fully waterproof plumage, leading to the iconic pose of standing with wings spread open to dry. In Asia, cormorants have been used by fishermen to catch fish for over a thousand years.

Shoebill

The shoebill is one of the most sought-after birds for birdwatchers visiting Africa, prized for its prehistoric appearance and massive bill. It can stand motionless for hours before collapsing forward to seize prey in its enormous bill. Despite standing over a meter tall, shoebills weigh relatively little due to their hollow bones.

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