BlackRockArt
Staff
I was walking along the beachfront trail the other day, late in the afternoon, when I heard a sound like "oink oink". I looked up to see a brood of three Double Crested Cormorant chicks flapping their wings high up on the pylons.
To the left was the mother, and to the right were three chicks bustling in the nest. Then one of the chicks started to rapidly poke at the mother's gular pouch. This is how young cormorants trigger regurgitation.
The mother cormorant stood her ground, holding her position. After a dozen or so pokes, the young chick began to dive into her throat.
As I watched in total bewilderment, the depth to which he went was truly astonishing. This was an almost fully grown young cormorant, his entire beak, head, and neck almost disappeared into his mother's throat. All the while, the mother cormorant stood fast, allowing the baby to search for any food.
This process continued for more than a minute. The mother held her bill wide open, her throat expanding and contracting. I could even make out the shape of the young cormorant's sharp bill hook.
Finally, the young cormorant came up for air. He immediately tried to dive in for a second serving, but this time, his two siblings bit his neck to pull him away.
The other two young cormorants took their turns eating in the same manner, and all the while, the mother cormorant waited patiently. I've seen plenty of cormorants fishing in the water before but had never observed how the young ones were fed. This was one of the most impressive examples of a mother's feeding I've ever witnessed. What a sighting!
Oliver
San Francisco, CA
To the left was the mother, and to the right were three chicks bustling in the nest. Then one of the chicks started to rapidly poke at the mother's gular pouch. This is how young cormorants trigger regurgitation.
The mother cormorant stood her ground, holding her position. After a dozen or so pokes, the young chick began to dive into her throat.
As I watched in total bewilderment, the depth to which he went was truly astonishing. This was an almost fully grown young cormorant, his entire beak, head, and neck almost disappeared into his mother's throat. All the while, the mother cormorant stood fast, allowing the baby to search for any food.
This process continued for more than a minute. The mother held her bill wide open, her throat expanding and contracting. I could even make out the shape of the young cormorant's sharp bill hook.
Finally, the young cormorant came up for air. He immediately tried to dive in for a second serving, but this time, his two siblings bit his neck to pull him away.
The other two young cormorants took their turns eating in the same manner, and all the while, the mother cormorant waited patiently. I've seen plenty of cormorants fishing in the water before but had never observed how the young ones were fed. This was one of the most impressive examples of a mother's feeding I've ever witnessed. What a sighting!
Oliver
San Francisco, CA
