cormorant

cormorant
/kawr"meuhr euhnt/, n.
1. any of several voracious, totipalmate seabirds of the family Phalacrocoracidae, as Phalacrocorax carbo, of America, Europe, and Asia, having a long neck and a distensible pouch under the bill for holding captured fish, used in China for catching fish.
2. a greedy person.
[1300-50; ME cormera(u)nt < MF cormorant, OF cormareng < LL corvus marinus sea-raven. See CORBEL, MARINE]

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Any of the 26–30 species of water birds, constituting the family Phalacrocoracidae, that dive for and feed on fish, mainly those of little value to humans.

In the Orient and elsewhere, these glossy black underwater swimmers have been tamed for fishing. Their guano is valued as a fertilizer. Cormorants live on seacoasts, lakes, and some rivers, nesting on cliffs or in bushes or trees. They have a long, hook-tipped bill, patches of bare skin on the face, and a small throat pouch (gular sac). The most widespread species is the common, or great, cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo), which grows up to 40 in. (100 cm) long and breeds from eastern Canada to Iceland, across Eurasia to Australia and New Zealand, and in parts of Africa.

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bird
also called  Shag,  
 any member of about 26 to 30 species of water birds comprising the family Phalacrocoracidae (order Pelecaniformes). In the Orient and elsewhere these glossy black underwater swimmers have been tamed for fishing. Cormorants dive for and feed mainly on fish of little value to man. guano produced by cormorants is valued as a fertilizer.

      Cormorants inhabit seacoasts, lakes, and some rivers. The nest may be made of seaweed and guano on a cliff or of sticks in a bush or tree. The two to four chalky eggs, pale blue when fresh, hatch in three to five weeks, and the young mature in the third year.

      Cormorants have a long hook-tipped bill, patches of bare skin on the face, and a small gular sac (throat pouch). The largest and most widespread species is the common, or great, cormorant, Phalacrocorax carbo; white-cheeked, and up to 100 cm (40 inches) long, it breeds from eastern Canada to Iceland, across Eurasia to Australia and New Zealand, and in parts of Africa. It and the slightly smaller Japanese cormorant, P. capillatus, are the species trained for fishing. The most important guano producers are the Peruvian cormorant, or guanay, P. bougainvillii, and the Cape cormorant, P. capensis, of coastal southern Africa.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Cormorant — Cor mo*rant (k[^o]r m[ o]*rant), n. [F. cormoran, fr. Armor. m[=o]r vran a sea raven; m[=o]r sea + bran raven, with cor, equiv. to L. corvus raven, pleonastically prefixed; or perh. fr. L. corvus marinus sea raven.] 1. (Zo[ o]l.) Any species of… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • cormorant — index rapacious Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • cormorant — early 14c., from O.Fr. cormarenc (12c., Mod.Fr. cormoran), from L.L. corvus marinus sea raven + Germanic suffix enc, ing. The t in English probably is from confusion with words in ant. It has a reputation for voracity …   Etymology dictionary

  • cormorant — ► NOUN ▪ a large diving seabird with a long neck, long hooked bill, and mainly black plumage. ORIGIN Old French cormaran, from Latin corvus marinus sea raven …   English terms dictionary

  • cormorant — [kôr′mə rənt] n. [ME cormoraunt < OFr cormareng < corp marenc < L corvus marinus < corvus,RAVEN1 + marinus,MARINE] 1. any of a family (Phalacrocoracidae) of large, voracious, pelecaniform diving birds with webbed toes and a hooked… …   English World dictionary

  • Cormorant — Cormorants and shags Temporal range: Late Cretaceous? – Recent …   Wikipedia

  • Cormorant — Zeichnung des Cormorant Der Cormorant (offizieller Name: Cormorant Multi Purpose Unmanned Air System [1] ; deutsch etwa: Kormoran (benannt nach einer tauchenden Vogelart) Vielzweck Drohne) ist ein militärisches Projekt der Skunk Works… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • cormorant — [13] In early medieval times the cormorant was named ‘sea raven’ – that is, in Latin, corvus marīnus. This passed into Old French first as cormareng, which later became cormaran. English adopted it and added a final t. The word’s origins are… …   The Hutchinson dictionary of word origins

  • cormorant — UK [ˈkɔː(r)mərənt] / US [ˈkɔrmərənt] noun [countable] Word forms cormorant : singular cormorant plural cormorants a large dark coloured bird with a long neck that lives near the sea and eats fish …   English dictionary

  • cormorant — /ˈkɔmərənt / (say kawmuhruhnt) noun 1. any of various large, web footed, black or pied waterbirds of the genus Phalacrocorax, family Phalacrocoracidae, having a long neck and a pouch under the bill in which fish are held; often seen standing in… …  

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