Juvenile Double-crested Cormorant - Boardwalk Wildlife Viewing Area - Huntington Beach State Park, Murrells Inlet, SC 3-26-11
The Double-crested Cormorant is the most numerous and widespread North American cormorant. It's also the only one that occurs in large numbers inland as well as on the coast. The Double-crested Cormorant makes a bulky nest of sticks and other materials. It frequently picks up junk, such as rope, deflated balloons, fishnet, and plastic debris to incorporate into the nest. Parts of dead birds are commonly used too. Large pebbles are occasionally found in cormorant nests, and the cormorants treat them as eggs. Double-crested Cormorant nests often are exposed to direct sun. Adults shade the chicks and also bring them water, pouring it from their mouths into those of the chicks.