Great cormorants, Hesse, Germany
© Wilfried Martin/Getty Image
Great cormorants
Found in Europe, Asia, Australia, Africa and North America, great cormorants are experts at diving under the water's surface to catch bottom-dwelling fish. They sometimes even swallow pebbles to increase their weight, which enables deeper and longer dives. But these underwater fishing trips come at a price: Ironically for a water-diving bird, the great cormorant's plumage isn't sufficiently waterproof. As a result, cormorants must come ashore to dry themselves by spreading their wings open for long periods. This behaviour may also help with digestion or control their body temperature.
Related Images
Bubbles in the ice of Abraham Lake in Alberta, Canada
Manatees in the Ichetucknee River in Florida
Green sea turtle with sardines near Playa Grandi Beach, Curaçao
Sperm whale mother and albino baby swimming off the coast of Portugal
A Brandt's cormorant hunts for a meal in a school of Pacific mackerel beneath an oil rig off the coast of Los Angeles, California
Sea Cliff Bridge along Australian Pacific Ocean coast
Painted bollards by Jan Mitchell along the Geelong waterfront precinct
Cefalù on Mediterranean Sea in Sicily, Italy
Bing Today Images
The Wave residential building, Vejle, Denmark
Mar 06, 2026
Wahclella Falls in the Columbia River Gorge, Oregon
Mar 06, 2024
Icelandic horses standing in a field, Iceland
Mar 06, 2023
Komodo National Park, Labuan Bajo, Flores, Indonesia
Mar 06, 2021
Autumn colours in Cheshire, England
Mar 06, 2017
