Bird

Double-crested Cormorant

Phalacrocorax auritus

A winter visitor to Alabama, found in all 67 counties and 21 habitats.

Here: Winter and on migration
Nesting: Not known to nest here
Range: All 67 counties
Habitats: 21

Male Double-crested Cormorant, whole bird — **Male**. (c) Bob Nieman, some rights reserved (CC BY). CC BY. iNaturalist photo 182156141. iNaturalist large derivative; no local crop or retouch.

At a glance

Group: Birds
Here: Winter and on migration
Nesting: Not known to nest here
Range: All 67 counties
Habitats: 21
Habitat models: Summer, Winter

Where it lives

The places its habitat model includes. It is not found everywhere a habitat occurs.

Habitats in Alabama 21

Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

1 of 21

SummerWinterUnconsolidated Shore (Beach/Dune)George Catlin, White Sand Bluffs, on Santa Rosa Island, Near Pensacola (1834-35): high white dunes with scattered clumps of dune plants above the Gulf. Shown: Santa Rosa Island near Pensacola, Florida, a neighboring state.White Sand Bluffs, on Santa Rosa Island, Near Pensacola, George Catlin (1796-1872), 1834-1835. Public domain. Source record.

SummerWinterSouthern Coastal Plain Oak Dome and Hammock; Southern Coastal Plain Hydric HammockWinslow Homer, In the Jungle, Florida (1904): cabbage palms, saw palmetto and fallen trunks in a dense, shady hammock, with a wildcat in the branches. Regional view: the painting does not name the exact site. Shown: Florida (Winslow Homer, In the Jungle, Florida, 1904), a neighboring state.In the Jungle, Florida, Winslow Homer, 1904. Public domain. Source record.

SummerWinterCentral Interior and Appalachian Shrub-Herbaceous Wetland SystemsMartin Johnson Heade, The Great Florida Marsh (1886): open marsh and lily-dotted water beneath live oaks and cabbage palms. Regional view: the painting does not name the exact site. Shown: Florida (Heade, The Great Florida Marsh, 1886; North Carolina Museum of Art), a neighboring state.The Great Florida Marsh, Martin Johnson Heade, 1886. Public domain. Source record.

SummerWinterOpen Water (Fresh)Martin Johnson Heade, Florida Sunrise: still water and a palm-fringed shore glowing at dawn. Regional view: the painting does not name the exact site. Shown: Florida (Heade, Florida Sunrise, c. 1890-1900), a neighboring state.Florida Sunrisetitle QS:P1476,en:"Florida Sunrise"label QS:Len,"Florida Sunrise", Martin Johnson Heade, c. 1890-1900. Public domain. Source record.

SummerWinterOpen Water (Brackish/Salt)Thomas Moran, Fort George Island (1878): a tidal shore of wet sand and shallow water at the river mouth, with cabbage palms and a beached ship. Shown: Fort George Island, Florida (Thomas Moran, 1878; Smithsonian American Art Museum), a neighboring state.Fort George Island, Florida, Thomas Moran, 1878. Public domain. Source record.

SummerWinterCentral Interior and Appalachian Riparian Systems; Cumberland Riverscour; South-Central Interior Small Stream and RiparianWinslow Homer, Blue Spring, Florida (1890): clear blue spring water under overhanging palms. Shown: Blue Spring, Florida (Winslow Homer, 1890; National Gallery of Art), a neighboring state.Blue Spring, Florida, Winslow Homer, 1890. Public domain. Source record.

SummerWinterSouthern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Basin Swamp - Okefenokee Taxodium Modifier; Southern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Basin Swamp - Okefenokee Bay/Gum Modifier; Southern Coastal Plain Seepage Swamp and Baygall; East Gulf Coastal Plain Tidal Wooded Swamp; Central Interior and Appalachian Swamp Systems; Southern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Basin Swamp; Southern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Cypress Dome; Southern Piedmont/Ridge and Valley Upland Depression SwampFlorida, Sunset on the Ocklawaha (1899): a dark swamp-lined river at sunset, with cypress and hardwoods crowding both banks. Shown: Ocklawaha River, Florida, a neighboring state.Florida, Sunset on the Ocklawaha, Detroit Photographic Co. (chromolithograph), 1899. Public domain. Source record.

Disturbed and introduced wetlands

Wet ground taken over by weedy or introduced plants after disturbance, such as common reed, Chinese tallow or tamarisk stands; the upland counterpart is roadsides, fields and disturbed ground.

SummerWinter

Floodplain and bottomland forests

Forests on low ground beside rivers and streams that flood from time to time.

SummerWinterEast Gulf Coastal Plain Large River Floodplain Forest - Forest Modifier; South-Central Interior Large Floodplain - Forest Modifier; Southern Piedmont Large Floodplain Forest - Forest Modifier; Central Interior and Appalachian Floodplain Systems; Central Interior and Appalachian Riparian Systems; Southern Piedmont Small Floodplain and Riparian Forest; South-Central Interior Small Stream and Riparian; East Gulf Coastal Plain Small Stream and River Floodplain Forest; Southern Coastal Plain Blackwater River Floodplain Forest; South-Central Interior Large Floodplain

Hardwood and oak flatwoods

Flat, poorly drained uplands and terraces with oaks, sweetgum and sometimes loblolly pine, wet in winter and dry in summer, but neither a floodplain nor a swamp.

SummerWinterEast Gulf Coastal Plain Jackson Plain Dry Flatwoods - Open Understory Modifier; East Gulf Coastal Plain Southern Loblolly-Hardwood Flatwoods; South-Central Interior / Upper Coastal Plain Wet Flatwoods

Seeps and springs

Places where groundwater keeps the soil or rock wet, such as seepage slopes and spring runs.

SummerWinterSouthern Coastal Plain Seepage Swamp and Baygall

Wet meadows

Open, wet, grassy or sedgy ground that is not a bog.

SummerWinterCentral Interior and Appalachian Shrub-Herbaceous Wetland Systems

SummerWinterOnly within 250 m of water.Southern Piedmont Dry Oak-(Pine) Forest - Loblolly Pine Modifier; East Gulf Coastal Plain Northern Dry Upland Hardwood Forest - Offsite Pine ModifierNamed place / source context. Shown: Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park, Georgia, a neighboring state.Trail on Little Kennesaw Mountain., Unidentified in HFC record, undated. Public domain. Source record.

SummerWinterOnly within 250 m of water.East Gulf Coastal Plain Near-Coast Pine Flatwoods - Open Understory Modifier; East Gulf Coastal Plain Near-Coast Pine Flatwoods - Scrub/Shrub Understory Modifier; East Gulf Coastal Plain Near-Coast Pine FlatwoodsGeorge Inness, Georgia Pines (1890): tall, straight pines over an open, grassy floor in a south Georgia pine woods. Regional view: the painting does not name the exact site. Shown: Georgia pine woods (George Inness, 1890; site not named), a neighboring state.Georgia Pines, George Inness (1825-1894), 1890. Public domain. Source record.

Dry forests and woodlands

Forests and open woodlands on dry ridges and slopes, often oak or pine.

SummerWinterOnly within 250 m of water.East Gulf Coastal Plain Limestone Forest; East Gulf Coastal Plain Northern Dry Upland Hardwood Forest; Southern Coastal Plain Dry Upland Hardwood Forest; Southern Piedmont Dry Oak-(Pine) Forest - Hardwood Modifier; Southeastern Interior Longleaf Pine Woodland; Southern Piedmont Dry Oak-(Pine) Forest; Southern Ridge and Valley Dry Calcareous Forest

Glades, barrens and outcrops on limestone

Open, thin-soil openings and rock on limestone, dolomite or other lime-rich rock, including cedar glades.

SummerWinterOnly within 250 m of water.Ridge and Valley Calcareous Valley Bottom Glade and Woodland; Central Interior Highlands Calcareous Glade and Barrens

Granite and other acidic rock outcrops

Bare or thin-soil rock on granite, gneiss, sandstone, quartzite and similar acidic rock, including granite flatrocks and domes.

SummerWinterOnly within 250 m of water.Cumberland Sandstone Glade and Barrens

Maritime forests and thickets

Salt-pruned forests and shrub thickets behind coastal dunes.

SummerWinterOnly within 250 m of water.East Gulf Coastal Plain Maritime Forest

Moderately dry forests

Forests between dry and moist, often oak-hickory on slopes.

SummerWinterOnly within 250 m of water.East Gulf Coastal Plain Limestone Forest; Southern Interior Low Plateau Dry-Mesic Oak Forest

Moist forests

Forests on moist but not wet ground, such as rich slopes and ravines.

SummerWinterOnly within 250 m of water.Southern Piedmont Mesic Forest; East Gulf Coastal Plain Northern Mesic Hardwood Forest; East Gulf Coastal Plain Southern Mesic Slope Forest; South-Central Interior Mesophytic Forest

Tree plantations and managed pine

Planted or intensively managed stands of pine or hardwoods grown for timber; a land use rather than a natural community.

SummerWinterOnly within 250 m of water.Deciduous Plantation; Evergreen Plantation or Managed Pine

Other habitats in its models (127)

Land cover, or classes with no habitat page in Alabama. Those recorded in Alabama first, the rest by region.

In Alabama 1

Southern Piedmont Glade and Barrens Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.

Elsewhere in the South (73)

Atlantic Coastal Plain Brownwater Stream Floodplain Forest Summer and winter.
Atlantic Coastal Plain Central Maritime Forest Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Atlantic Coastal Plain Dry and Dry-Mesic Oak Forest Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Atlantic Coastal Plain Mesic Hardwood and Mixed Forest Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Atlantic Coastal Plain Northern Tidal Wooded Swamp Summer.
Atlantic Coastal Plain Peatland Pocosin Summer and winter.
Atlantic Coastal Plain Sea Island Beach Summer and winter.
Atlantic Coastal Plain Small Blackwater River Floodplain Forest Summer and winter.
Atlantic Coastal Plain Small Brownwater River Floodplain Forest Summer and winter.
Atlantic Coastal Plain Southern Beach Summer and winter.
Atlantic Coastal Plain Southern Maritime Forest Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Atlantic Coastal Plain Southern Tidal Wooded Swamp Summer and winter.
Atlantic Coastal Plain Southern Wet Pine Savanna and Flatwoods Summer and winter.
Atlantic Coastal Plain Upland Longleaf Pine Woodland Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Atlantic Coastal Plain Xeric River Dune Summer and winter.
Central and South Texas Coastal Fringe Forest and Woodland Winter, only within 250 m of water.
Central and Southern Appalachian Montane Oak Forest Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Central and Southern Appalachian Northern Hardwood Forest Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Central Atlantic Coastal Plain Wet Longleaf Pine Savanna and Flatwoods Summer and winter.
Central Florida Pine Flatwoods Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Central Interior Highlands Dry Acidic Glade and Barrens Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Crosstimbers Oak Forest and Woodland Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
East Gulf Coastal Plain Northern Loess Bluff Forest Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
East Gulf Coastal Plain Southern Loess Bluff Forest Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
East-Central Texas Plains Pine Forest and Woodland Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
East-Central Texas Plains Post Oak Savanna and Woodland Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
East-Central Texas Plains Riparian Forest Summer and winter.
Edwards Plateau Limestone Savanna and Woodland Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Louisiana Beach Summer and winter.
Lower Mississippi River Dune Woodland and Forest Summer and winter.
Lower Mississippi River Flatwoods Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Mississippi Delta Maritime Forest Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Mississippi River Alluvial Plain Dry-Mesic Loess Slope Forest Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Mississippi River Bottomland Depression Summer and winter.
Mississippi River Low Floodplain (Bottomland) Forest Summer and winter.
Mississippi River Riparian Forest Summer and winter.
Nashville Basin Limestone Glade Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Northern Crowley's Ridge Sand Forest Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Ouachita Montane Oak Forest Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Ozark-Ouachita Dry Oak Woodland Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Ozark-Ouachita Dry-Mesic Oak Forest Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Ozark-Ouachita Mesic Hardwood Forest Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Ozark-Ouachita Riparian Summer and winter.
Ozark-Ouachita Shortleaf Pine-Bluestem Woodland Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Ozark-Ouachita Shortleaf Pine-Oak Forest and Woodland Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Red River Large Floodplain Forest Summer and winter.
South Florida Bayhead Swamp Summer and winter.
South Florida Cypress Dome Summer and winter.
South Florida Dwarf Cypress Savanna Summer and winter.
South Florida Hardwood Hammock Summer and winter.
South Florida Mangrove Swamp Summer and winter.
South Florida Pine Flatwoods Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
South Florida Pine Rockland Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
South Florida Shell Hash Beach Summer and winter.
Southeast Florida Beach Summer and winter.
Southeast Florida Coastal Strand and Maritime Hammock Summer and winter.
Southern Crowley's Ridge Mesic Loess Slope Forest Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Southwest Florida Beach Summer and winter.
Southwest Florida Coastal Strand and Maritime Hammock Summer and winter.
Texas Coastal Bend Beach Winter.
Upper Texas Coast Beach Winter.
West Gulf Coastal Plain Chenier and Upper Texas Coastal Fringe Forest and Woodland Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
West Gulf Coastal Plain Large River Floodplain Forest Summer and winter.
West Gulf Coastal Plain Mesic Hardwood Forest Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
West Gulf Coastal Plain Near-Coast Large River Swamp Summer and winter.
West Gulf Coastal Plain Nonriverine Wet Hardwood Flatwoods Summer and winter.
West Gulf Coastal Plain Pine-Hardwood Flatwoods Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
West Gulf Coastal Plain Pine-Hardwood Forest Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
West Gulf Coastal Plain Sandhill Oak and Shortleaf Pine Forest and Woodland Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
West Gulf Coastal Plain Seepage Swamp and Baygall Summer and winter.
West Gulf Coastal Plain Small Stream and River Forest Summer and winter.
West Gulf Coastal Plain Upland Longleaf Pine Forest and Woodland Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
West Gulf Coastal Plain Wet Longleaf Pine Savanna and Flatwoods Summer and winter.

Northeast (10)

Atlantic Coastal Plain Northern Maritime Forest Summer, only within 250 m of water.
Atlantic Coastal Plain Northern Sandy Beach Summer.
Central Appalachian Alkaline Glade and Woodland Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Central Appalachian Oak and Pine Forest Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Central Appalachian Pine-Oak Rocky Woodland Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
North-Central Interior Wet Flatwoods Summer and winter.
Northeastern Interior Dry-Mesic Oak Forest Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Northeastern Interior Pine Barrens Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Northern Atlantic Coastal Plain Basin Swamp and Wet Hardwood Forest Summer and winter.
Northern Atlantic Coastal Plain Dry Hardwood Forest Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.

Midwest (4)

North-Central Interior Beech-Maple Forest Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
North-Central Interior Dry Oak Forest and Woodland Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
North-Central Interior Dry-Mesic Oak Forest and Woodland Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
North-Central Interior Maple-Basswood Forest Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.

Land cover and other classes (39)

Atlantic Coastal Plain Blackwater Stream Floodplain Forest - Forest Modifier Summer and winter.
Atlantic Coastal Plain Clay-Based Carolina Bay Forested Wetland Summer and winter.
Atlantic Coastal Plain Fall-Line Sandhills Longleaf Pine Woodland - Loblolly Modifier Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Atlantic Coastal Plain Fall-line Sandhills Longleaf Pine Woodland - Offsite Hardwood Modifier Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Atlantic Coastal Plain Fall-line Sandhills Longleaf Pine Woodland - Open Understory Modifier Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Atlantic Coastal Plain Fall-line Sandhills Longleaf Pine Woodland - Scrub/Shrub Understory Modifier Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Atlantic Coastal Plain Nonriverine Swamp and Wet Hardwood Forest - Oak Dominated Modifier Summer and winter.
Atlantic Coastal Plain Nonriverine Swamp and Wet Hardwood Forest - Taxodium/Nyssa Modifier Summer and winter.
Atlantic Coastal Plain Streamhead Seepage Swamp - Pocosin - and Baygall Summer and winter.
Central Appalachian Riparian - Forest Modifier Summer and winter.
East Gulf Coastal Plain Black Belt Calcareous Prairie and Woodland - Woodland Modifier Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
East Gulf Coastal Plain Interior Shortleaf Pine-Oak Forest - Hardwood Modifier Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
East Gulf Coastal Plain Interior Shortleaf Pine-Oak Forest - Mixed Modifier Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
East Gulf Coastal Plain Interior Upland Longleaf Pine Woodland - Loblolly Modifier Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
East Gulf Coastal Plain Interior Upland Longleaf Pine Woodland - Offsite Hardwood Modifier Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
East Gulf Coastal Plain Interior Upland Longleaf Pine Woodland - Open Understory Modifier Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
East Gulf Coastal Plain Interior Upland Longleaf Pine Woodland - Scrub/Shrub Modifier Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
East Gulf Coastal Plain Near-Coast Pine Flatwoods - Offsite Hardwood Modifier Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
East Gulf Coastal Plain Northern Loess Plain Oak-Hickory Upland - Hardwood Modifier Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
East Gulf Coastal Plain Northern Loess Plain Oak-Hickory Upland - Juniper Modifier Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Eastern Great Plains Floodplain Systems Summer and winter.
Florida Longleaf Pine Sandhill - Open Understory Modifier Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Florida Longleaf Pine Sandhill - Scrub/Shrub Understory Modifier Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Introduced Upland Vegetation - Treed Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Lower Mississippi River Bottomland Depressions - Forest Modifier Summer and winter.
Mississippi River Floodplain and Riparian Forest Summer and winter.
Northeastern Interior Dry Oak Forest - Mixed Modifier Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Northeastern Interior Dry Oak Forest - Virginia/Pitch Pine Modifier Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Northeastern Interior Dry Oak Forest-Hardwood Modifier Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Open Water (Aquaculture) Summer and winter.
Southern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Basin Swamp - Okefenokee Clethra Modifier Summer and winter.
Southern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Basin Swamp - Okefenokee Pine Modifier Summer and winter.
Southern Piedmont Dry Oak-(Pine) Forest - Mixed Modifier Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Southern Piedmont Dry Oak-Heath Forest - Mixed Modifier Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Southern Ridge and Valley Dry Calcareous Forest - Pine modifier Summer and winter, only within 250 m of water.
Tamaulipan Riparian Systems Summer and winter.
Unconsolidated Shore Summer and winter.
Unconsolidated Shore (Lake/River/Pond) Summer and winter.
Western Great Plains Floodplain Systems Summer and winter.

All habitats

Seasons in Alabama

Migratory: does not nest here, in 8 of 67 counties.
Winter: does not nest here, in all 67 counties.

Food plants

Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Plants matched by genus.

No native plants of these genera are recorded in Alabama.

Plant genera in its diet records (1)

Vinca 2 diet records. 0 native plants in Alabama

Avian Diet Database (Hurlbert Lab), CC0 1.0.

Also found in its main habitats

Its main habitats in Alabama, by how much of its habitat model each one is, with the birds most characteristic of each and the plants that grow wild there. Shared habitat, not food.

Double-crested Cormorant uses many habitats in Alabama; these are its 3 most characteristic.