 Breeding evidence |
 Relative abundance |
 Probability of observation |
Click for a larger version or to add map overlays |
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Click on plot to view table of mean abundance
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Number of squares
Long-term BBS trends
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3.46 (0.963 - 5.97)|
Mean abundance (number of birds detected per 5 min. point count) and percentage of squares occupied by region Bird Conservation Regions [abund. plot]
[%squares plot]
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Atlas Results
Atlas results coming soon
Note: During all years of the Saskatchewan Breeding Bird Atlas drought conditions persisted and the Atlas range maps for all waterfowl, waterbirds, and wetland-associated species should be viewed as characteristic of distribution and abundance during dry conditions. Read the full drought statement here.
Excerpts Adapted from the Birds of Saskatchewan:
The Double-crested Cormorant is the only cormorant that nests in the central part of the continent. The name comes from the 2 inconspicuous tufts or crests of feathers on each side of the head of adults during the early part of the breeding season. Cormorants dive under water to catch fish while American White Pelicans, which often accompany them, feed at the surface. This colonially nesting bird also breeds along the east and west coasts of North America, and winters from Alaska, the lower Mississippi Valley, and the Maritimes, south to Baja California and the Gulf of Mexico.
Cormorants feed in any water body with fish, crayfish, or, especially in southern Saskatchewan, tiger salamanders, including lakes, reservoirs, rivers, and even dugouts if they are stocked with fish. Most colonies are on the ground on islands in lakes and reservoirs, including "Perry's Point,? a peninsula at the north end of Last Mountain Lake, in 1983. A few have nested in trees along with Great Blue Herons in Moose Mountain Provincial Park at Rock (1924) and Jabe (1948 and 1959) Lakes.
The Double-crested Cormorant is an uncommon spring and fall transient, and a fairly common summer visitor on lakes and rivers away from their nesting colonies (Smith 1996). Colonies are found north to Preston Lake, Lac la Ronge (Doucette et al. 2010), and Suggi Lake.
Original text by Barbara A. Hanbidge. Text adapted by Daniel J. Sawatzky
Read more about the Double-crested Cormorant in the Birds of Saskatchewan here.
Recommended citation: Latremouille, L. M. 2025. Double-crested Cormorant in Latremouille, L. M., S. L. Van Wilgenburg, C. B. Jardine, D. Lepage, A. R. Couturier, D. Evans, D. Iles, and K. L. Drake (eds.). 2025. The Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Saskatchewan, 2017-2021. Birds Canada. Saskatoon, Saskatchewan https://sk.birdatlas.ca/accounts/speciesaccount.jsp?sp=DCCO&lang=en [09 Nov 2025]
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