27-2-2026 WATERFRONT, CAPE TOWN - CAPE CORMORANT (Phalacrocorax capensis)

 The Cape cormorant (Phalacrocorax capensis), also known as the Cape shag, is a member of the cormorant family. It is endemic to the southwestern coast of Africa, and classified as "Endangered" by the IUCN. The Cape cormorant is most closely related to the great cormorant and Japanese cormorant.

The Cape cormorant is a blue-black bird with a glossy shine. The entire body follows the same coloration. There is little to no sexual dimorphism, with both males and females measuring 61–64 cm and weighing 1.1-1.3 kg, along with a similar plumage. The beak is dark grey-black, and a deep yellow-orange gular pouch can be observed. The eyes are turquoise with a greenish eye-ring around them.

Both non-breeding and immature adults have duller plumage, with a brown throat for immature adults. Juveniles are browner than immature adults, with grey eyes and a black, white, or speckled gular pouch.

Males and females have a wingspan of around 260 mm. For breeding adults, the wings are bottle green. Cape cormorants have a non-breeding range extending from Lobito, Angola, to Maputo Bay, Mozambique. Their breeding range is smaller, reaching from Southern Angola to the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. Cape cormorants stay close to the Benguela Upwelling System, an area of high food availability.

There are around 57,000 breeding pairs of Cape cormorants in Namibia alone. However, overfishing in the Cape cormorant’s range has led to a shift in food sources. Anchovies, sardines, and rock lobster have all recently shifted south and east. Cape cormorants have a limited foraging range when breeding. As such, this resource shift has led to a strong decline in Cape cormorant numbers.

24-3-2018 WATERFRONT, CAPE TOWN - CAPE CORMORANT (Phalacrocorax capensis)

The Cape cormorant, or Cape shag, is a sleek seabird with a predominantly glossy black plumage. During the breeding season, it exhibits a purplish sheen and sprouts a few delicate white plumes on its head, neck, and cloacal regions. This bird is distinguished by its deep orangey-yellow gular skin and the rare characteristic of feathered lores, setting it apart from its cormorant kin.

Adult Cape cormorants are identifiable by their size, with a wingspan ranging from 240 to 280 millimeters and a weight between 800 and 1600 grams. There is minimal difference between the sexes. Observers should look for the bird's striking gular skin and the feathered area around the base of the beak, as well as the white plumes present during the breeding season.

This species is endemic to the southwestern coasts of Africa, favoring the coastal areas for both breeding and foraging.

The Cape cormorant breeds along the coast from Namibia to the southern Western Cape. Outside the breeding season, its range extends northward to the mouth of the Congo and eastward along the South African coast up to Mozambique.

Cape cormorants are gregarious birds, often seen foraging in flocks. They are adept at capturing schooling fish from mid-water, displaying a preference for smaller prey compared to the sympatric bank cormorant.

The Cape cormorant breeds along the southwestern African coast, with a historical breeding population in Namibia once estimated at over 1 million individuals in the 1970s.

The Cape cormorant may be confused with the sympatric bank cormorant, but can be differentiated by its smaller prey size and the feathered lores.

The diet of the Cape cormorant consists mainly of small schooling fish such as pilchards, anchovies, and sand eels. They are skilled hunters, diving and swimming to catch their prey in mid-water.

The IUCN has classified the Cape cormorant as "Endangered." The species has experienced a very rapid decline in population over the last three generations, signaling a pressing need for conservation efforts.