Great Cormorant look-alikes

Key differences

Smaller and more slender than the Great Cormorant. Adults have a distinctive crest during breeding season (lacking in Great Cormorant). The Shag has a smaller, more delicate bill, and lacks the prominent white throat patch and yellow gular pouch of the Great Cormorant. Juveniles are browner overall, but still lack the white throat. Shags are almost exclusively marine, rarely found inland.

Key differences

Found in North America. Similar in size and overall dark plumage. Key differences include the Double-crested Cormorant's more orange gular pouch (lacking the white border of the Great Cormorant), and the presence of two small crests during breeding season (often difficult to see). The Great Cormorant (P. c. carbo) in North America is restricted to the Atlantic coast and is generally larger and heavier-billed than the Double-crested Cormorant, with a more extensive white throat patch.

Key differences

Smaller and more slender than the Great Cormorant, with a noticeably thinner bill. Found in South Asia. Lacks the prominent white throat patch and yellow gular pouch of the Great Cormorant. Breeding adults have a small white tuft behind the eye.