Pelagic Cormorant (Urile pelagicus)
About the Pelagic Cormorant
The pelagic cormorant (Urile pelagicus), also known as Baird's cormorant or violet-green cormorant, is a small member of the cormorant family Phalacrocoracidae. Analogous to other smallish cormorants, it is also called the pelagic shag occasionally. This seabird lives along the coasts of the northern Pacific; during winter it can also be found in the open ocean. Pelagic cormorants have relatively short wings due to their need for economical movement underwater, and consequently have the highest flight costs of any bird. It was formerly classified in the genus Phalacrocorax, but a 2014 study supported reclassifying it and several other Pacific cormorant species into the genus Urile. The IOC followed this classification in 2021.
No audio on this page yet
We only publish recordings we may use commercially, because this site is supported by ads. xeno-canto lists 6 recordings for this species: 4 CC BY-NC-SA. None of them permits commercial use, so there is no player here — the page is kept as a profile so the bird is not missing from the guide.
As soon as someone uploads a freely licensed recording, we mirror it and the player appears here.
Listed as recorded in Canada, Japan, United States in the xeno-canto catalogue.
Other birds you can hear here
- Bohemian WaxwingBombycilla garrulusrecording
- Boreal OwlAegolius funereusrecording
- Acadian FlycatcherEmpidonax virescensrecording
- Alder FlycatcherEmpidonax alnorumrecording
- American AvocetRecurvirostra americanarecording
- American Barn OwlTyto furcatarecording
These are the birds recorded alongside it, not close relatives — the site holds no other member of its genus or family yet.