119. Phalacrocorax carbo. 36 in.

Largest of our cormorants; tail with 14 feathers. Adults with glossy black head, neck and underparts; in breeding season with white plumes on the neck and a white patch on the Hanks. Young with throat and belly white, rest of underparts mixed brown with black. Cormorants feed chiefly upon fish which they pursue and catch under water. They were formerly extensively, and are now to a less extent, used by the Chinese to catch fish for them, a ring being placed around their neck to prevent their swallowing their prey.

Nest. - Made of seaweed and sticks on narrow ledges of rocky islets or sea cliffs, this species being entirely maritime. The four eggs are greenish-white, covered with a chalky deposit. (2.50 x 1.40).

Range. - Breeds from Nova Scotia and Newfoundland north to Labrador and Greenland; winters south to the middle states.