Neotropic Cormorant at Sutherland Reservoir

On 2 May, 1998, I observed a Neotropic Cormorant (Phalacrocorax brasilianus) at Sutherland Reservoir in Lincoln County, Nebraska. When I arrived at the lake, I noticed a large number of gulls and cormorants resting on some dead logs near the northwest end of the lake. I scanned the cormorants several times and kept returning to one cormorant that seemed smaller than the nearby Double-crested Cormorants. The bird was sleeping, so size was the only mark I could see well. I studied the bird from 1:54 to 2:20 p.m. I estimated the body was at least 25% smaller than a Double-crested Cormorant. A couple of times, the bird raised its head, and I noted that the bill was darker, thinner, and shorter; and there was no bright orange throat pouch. Finally, I succeeded in getting some of the birds to take flight