In early November, I started to posting photos of mysterious Birds that
love perching on the pilings in Shelley Lake. Niki my very nice Nikon CoolPix
love perching on the pilings in Shelley Lake. Niki my very nice Nikon CoolPix
takes lovely photos but not at distance. We knew they were not the infamous Geese of Canada
not ducks their beaks were long and sharp. Perhaps they were (not) Herons.
I sent a few photos to Hootin' Anni friends they are Cormorants
We had no idea we had them in NC but we do. Evidently they are not at all
shy when the paparazzi is around. In fact, they often turn, spread their wings
and appear to be having a good time. Here is the info Anni sent me:
C...
Yes, definitely cormorants! There are two different species in the south...double crested & neotropic. And the only way to tell them apart is their neck/beak markings. One, has white around the orange beak, the other has all orange. The double crested (during breeding season in Spring actually shows off it's great...white)
Our next goal is to get a closer look at their beaks we think they were orange. My birding book states: Neotropic can be spotted perched on fence posts in this case pilings or trees I suspect these are Neotropic.
This photo was taken on December 22, a dismal day. No photo editing of colors.
but as you can see same pose
As the Below photos were taken in November of the
NOT HERONS
CORMORANTS
Happy holidays <3
ReplyDeleteLovely set of photos. We see lots of cormorants all over the UK, but I was not aware there are different species. Cheers, Gail.
ReplyDeleteLovely photos. We get a lot of Cormorants down on the marshes by the river.
ReplyDeleteWell nice to finally ID those BURDS! They sure looked interesting on the pilings - I think they posed JUST FOR YOU!
ReplyDeleteHugs, Teddy
I wouldn't know a Cormorant either but it's wonderful to know for sure. It makes you smile and feel good and you'll think of Miss Anni every time you see one.
ReplyDeleteI'll have to look them up. Don't know if we have them here in Mississippi.
ReplyDeleteVery interesting! We have our share of Cormorants here in the South Central Gulf Coast of Florida. Glad the mystery is solved!
ReplyDeleteHow cool that you were able to identify them. We hope you get a closer look to see which kind they are.
ReplyDeleteHave you listened to them talk? We had lots of them in the trees at our marina. They are most messy and they talk. Loudly and it's kind of other worldly. Very interesting birds.
ReplyDeleteThank you for joining the Happy Tuesday Blog Hop.
Have a fabulous Happy Tuesday. Big hug, honey. ♥
hari OM
ReplyDeleteLOL - well, I am sorry I was MIA during the time you posting this photo originally - cos I knew instantly that they were cormorants! We have, as Gail mentions, a great many and as you will have seen on recent WINGS shots, they are often right by the shore near the Hutch. The wing-spread is less likely to happen in cold weather, I should mention. They do make a lovely silhouette when they shape them though. There are several different types other than those mentioned by Anni; in fact there are something like forty different variants! You might also hear the word 'shag' used - that is a cormorant with a tufted feather on its crown. Some have white (saw lots of 'pied' cormorants in OZ)... oh yes, they are one of my fave waterbirds! YAM xx
Well, we learn something new every day!
ReplyDeleteI have a small selection of "Birds Of Michigan", and "Birds of The Midwest" if I get stuck, but my birding days are ahead of me.
However, finding an owl with my own eyes is still at the top of my 'to do' list!
I did not know what they were either, i do know what commorants are and look like, but not from looking at these photos. i remember the first tiem I saw one with wings spread, was in 2006 when I went with my friend Diane the bird lover to preserve. i pointed to the wing spread bird sitting on a piling in the middle of a small lake and said what is that? i had never heard the word cormorant or seen one..
ReplyDeleteThere are TONS of Cormorants on the West Coast (especially) where we used to live. they reminded us of the thunderbirds on the tops of totem poles!
ReplyDeleteWe love your shots of them, they made Mom a little nostalgic.
Purrs
Marv, Jo Jo, Kozmo, Cinnamon and Barb
I didn't know either, I only knew they looked too big to mess with!
ReplyDeleteWe also have lots of cormorants in our area...They are such beautiful birds...so graceful both in and out of the water or air!
ReplyDeleteI have never heard of cormorants. XO
ReplyDeleteSuch a satisfying feeling to have that answer, finally.
ReplyDeleteWe don’t have cormorants around here...or at least we’ve never seen any.
ReplyDeleteFascinating birds. I am glad the mystery has been solved.
ReplyDeleteVery Cool!!! We don't live that near to the water, so we don't gets to see them that often, like geese...we gots LOTS of geese! BOL
ReplyDeleteKisses,
Ruby ♥
There they are holding court over the various fish they will eat in the next days
ReplyDeleteYour friend must be an expert in birds. I will ignorantly continue to call all birds I see on the lake and river "herrons" or "blue herrons".
ReplyDelete