Little Pied Cormorant
Phalacrocorax melanoleucos
Adult intermediate phase - Kawau Island, New Zealand - November 2005
The polymorphic New Zealand race brevirostris is possibly a distinct species from the monomorphic forms that occur elsewhere.
Adult pied phase - Sandspit, New Zealand - November 2005
Its population has declined significantly due to the effects of disturbance from guano extraction from its breeding colonies and overfishing. Natural phenomena have also had drastic effects on its population. For example, the Niño conditions of 1982-1983 reduced the Peruvian population from over 3million to under 900,000.
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Adult black phase - Lake Benmore, New Zealand - November 2005
They do, however, exhibit a remarkable ability to recover their population numbers dramatically. Only three years after the Niño crash of 1982, the population had increased by 150% and was back up to just under 1.4million birds.
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