Phalacrocorax pelagicus

North Pacific

This seabird is found on the northern coasts of the Pacific, from California (USA) in the east, round Canada, Alaska, the Aleutian Islands, Russia and South Kuril Islands (Japan) to the southern tip of Japan. It can also be found north of the Berings Sea¹.

occurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations

Canada

Origin: Native

Regularity: Regularly occurring

Currently: Present

Confidence: Confident

Type of Residency: Year-round

United States

Origin: Native

Regularity: Regularly occurring

Currently: Present

Confidence: Confident

Type of Residency: Year-round

Global Range: (>2,500,000 square km (greater than 1,000,000 square miles)) BREEDS: from Chukchi Peninsula, Siberia, and Wrangel and Herald Islands in Arctic Ocean, south along Asian coast to northern Japan; also from Point Hope, Alaska, south locally to the Alaska Peninsula, including St. Lawrence and Diomede islands, west through the Aleutian and Commander islands, and eastward and southward from the Alaska Peninsula along the Pacific coast to northern Baja California (Johnsgard 1993). RANGES/WINTERS: from Aleutians and southern Alaska (or northern limits of open water) south to central Baja California; from Kamchatka south to China (AOU 1983).

Length: 66 cm

Weight: 1915 grams

Habitat and Ecology

Systems

• Terrestrial
• Marine

Depth range based on 1007 specimens in 1 taxon.
Water temperature and chemistry ranges based on 86 samples.

Environmental ranges
  Depth range (m): 0 - 0
  Temperature range (°C): 12.220 - 17.102
  Nitrate (umol/L): 0.102 - 3.951
  Salinity (PPS): 30.381 - 33.496
  Oxygen (ml/l): 5.549 - 6.395
  Phosphate (umol/l): 0.330 - 0.674
  Silicate (umol/l): 1.436 - 16.169

Graphical representation

Temperature range (°C): 12.220 - 17.102

Nitrate (umol/L): 0.102 - 3.951

Salinity (PPS): 30.381 - 33.496

Oxygen (ml/l): 5.549 - 6.395

Phosphate (umol/l): 0.330 - 0.674

Silicate (umol/l): 1.436 - 16.169
 
Note: this information has not been validated. Check this *note*. Your feedback is most welcome.

Comments: Bays, inlets, and outer coastal areas, especially in rock-bottom habitats; often in water less than 100 m deep within 1-2 km of shore, though some (probably immatures and nonbreeding adults) may wander to much deeper waters. Nests on island cliff ledges and in crevices and on narrow cliff ledges along the coast, or in sea caves. Often nests with other species of cormorants, as well as near murres, common eiders, tufted puffins, and glaucous-winged gulls (Terres 1980). Colony site locations may shift abruptly from year to year (see Spendelow and Patton 1988).

Non-Migrant: Yes. At least some populations of this species do not make significant seasonal migrations. Juvenile dispersal is not considered a migration.

Locally Migrant: Yes. At least some populations of this species make local extended movements (generally less than 200 km) at particular times of the year (e.g., to breeding or wintering grounds, to hibernation sites).

Locally Migrant: Yes. At least some populations of this species make annual migrations of over 200 km.

Northernmost breeding populations migrate southward for winter; arrives in northern breeding areas usually between mid-April and late May or sometimes not until early June, departs mainly in late September-October (Johnsgard 1993).

Comments: Feeds on fishes, especially nonschooling, cryptic, demersal or epibenthic forms of rocky reefs (Johnsgard 1993); also consumes crabs, shrimps, marine worms, and amphipods (Terres 1980). Diver; forages individually, primarily along rocky shorelines, sometimes over flat sand or mud bottoms.

Note: For many non-migratory species, occurrences are roughly equivalent to populations.

Estimated Number of Occurrences: > 300

100,000 - 1,000,000 individuals

Comments: North American population probably approaches 130,000 (Johnsgard 1993). California-Oregon-Washington population was estimated at about 28,500 in the late 1970s-early 1980s; about half in California (Spendelow and Patton 1988); about 100,000 birds in Alaska in the late 1970s (Lensink 1984).

Corvids, large gulls, and raptors probably are the most important sources of egg and chick mortality in southern areas, whereas bald eagles, food, or weather may be more important in limiting productivity in northern areas; foxes and river otters may be locally important (Johnsgard 1993).

Maximum longevity: 17.8 years (wild)

Egg laying occurs mid-April through June or early July in southern California, mid-May through early August (renesting) in British Columbia, late May through late June or early July in Gulf of Alaska. Both adults, in turn, incubate an average of 3-4 eggs for 27-37 days (average 30-32 days). Young are altricial, leave nest at 4+ to 8+ weeks (average 7 weeks). Single-brooded. Sexually mature at 2 or 3 years. Renesting rate after clutch loss may be low in some areas. Reproductive success may vary greatly from year to year within a single colony, depending on predation or food supply (see Johnsgard 1993). Nests in small colonies; less gregarious than other cormorant species.

The following is a representative barcode sequence, the centroid of all available sequences for this species.

There are 13 barcode sequences available from BOLD and GenBank.  Below is a sequence of the barcode region Cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 (COI or COX1) from a member of the species.  See the BOLD taxonomy browser for more complete information about this specimen and other sequences.

Download FASTA File

Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLDS) Stats
Public Records: 13
Specimens with Barcodes: 18
Species With Barcodes: 1

Year Assessed

Assessor/s

Reviewer/s

Contributor/s

Justification

History

• 2008
  Least Concern
• 2004
  Least Concern

Canada

Rounded National Status Rank: N4 - Apparently Secure

United States

Rounded National Status Rank: N5 - Secure

Rounded Global Status Rank: G5 - Secure