photo credit – Ted Hein
The Flightless Cormorant (Nannopterum harrisi) is an adorable little bird. When we were touring the Galapagos, we saw many of them drying their wings in the sun. They look like they are waving at you when the wiggle their little wings.
Aptly named due to its complete inability to fly, the rare, endemic flightless cormorant is the only cormorant found in the Galápagos Islands. Its wings are no more than vestigial appendages. They have large, black, webbed feet with very short, but sturdy, black legs. When in the water, their bodies are almost entirely submerged with just their snake-like heads and necks visible.
We saw quite a few of these birds while we were snorkeling. When they are fishing, they shoot through the water, then jump out of the water to dry their wings. Today, flightless cormorants are vulnerable and only found on the islands of Fernandina and northern and western Isabela.
Sources:
IGOTA
Would you like to be part of Midge & Snig’s adventure in the Galapagos? Want to have your name (or any name you choose) in my next book? From now until the end of April, everyone who follows my blog, signs up for my newsletter, or leaves a comment, will be entered in a drawing for the chance to name the cruise ship featured in the book.
This post in part of the AtoZ Challenge. Please click on the sunflower AtoZ icon in the sidebar to go to the official list of participating blogs. This year my theme is the Galapagos Islands. I am in the process of writing the first of my Midge & Snig mystery series set in the islands. In my research, I have come across a plethora of interesting facts and images. The vast majority of my research won’t get included in the book, but it’s fun to share what I’ve learned with you all.
Scribbling In The Storage Room 
Really want to visit those island some day. Why are the cormorants vulnerable?
They are vulnerable because of presence of humans. The flightless cormorants don’t have natural predators. When people started populating the islands they brought pigs, goats, dogs, cats and rats. These predatory species seem to have wiped out the flightless cormorant colonies on some of the islands. Another risk to the birds is fishing nets. They get tangled in the nets and drown. The Charles Darwin Research Center has an excellent conservation program for the birds. They are making progress.
I keep forgetting that humans live there. Thought it was only a research area because of the rare species.
The islands have so much wildlife they are a great place to visit.
Can’t fly?? I wonder how the Cormorant feels about that.
~Visiting from AtoZ
Absolutely adorable!
Those might be cute, but the regular ones, that can fly, can be real pests… A bunch of them can eat the fish of quite a big lake…
The Galapagos would be a great place to visit. So much to see and discover.
Member of C. Lee’s Muffin Commando Squad
Story Dam
Patricia Lynne, Indie Author
Oh my! – the Galapagos is on my list of places I would LOVE to go. I can imagine that it was a lot of fun watching the antics of the cormorant while snorkelling. I was not familiar with the cormorant and this was really interesting read … they must have looked really odd swimming with just their heads above water!!
What a cute bird! I didn’t realize they didn’t fly.
betty
This specific species of cormorants can’t fly. There are many other species of cormorants all over the world that fly. There is a common species of cormorants that I used to see drying their long wings on the rocks along Cape Cod.
Beautiful bird – reminds me of the book Island of the Blue Dolphins – the first place I ever read that word in print when I was probably 7 or 8.
A perfect C! I loved watching these birds zip out of the water and land, flapping those little wings.
I love them!! Super cute!! Have you see the cute Quokaa’s? Check them out, they are friendly and like to take selfies!!!
I’ve only ever seen quokka’s in pictures. They are cute. I hope to make it Australia some day to see the unique wildlife there.
A fascinating part of the world, brilliant theme for your a to z.
So sweet! What an amazing experience to have toured the Galapagos Islands. I hope to see them one day. Great post.
I’m amazed at the adaptations that birds make. I would love to see a cormorant some day.
Thanks for stopping by my blog today.
Mary
The View from my World
Mary, there are many species of cormorants all over the world so there might be a species near where you live. The ones I used to see off the northeastern coast of the US were big black birds that would dry their wings on the rock jetties near the beaches. The little flightless cormorants in the Galapagos were much cuter.
The Cormorants I see in Calgary hang out with the Pelicans. I believe they follow the Pelicans as the migrate. We usually see the Cormorants before we see the Pelicans. It is an exciting event. In love and light Cheryle