Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Suliformes
Family: Phalacrocoracidae
Genus: Phalacrocorax
Species: P. carbo
Subspecies: novaehollandiae
Binomial name: Phalacrocorax carbo ssp. novaehollandiae
Common names: Black shag, Large black shag, Black cormorant, Great cormorant, Kawau, Great black cormorant,
Phalacrocorax carbo is a large, black, water bird of which there are six subspecies recognised. New Zealand birds are of the subspecies novaehollandiae which are also found in Australia and New Guinea.
New Zealand's black shag is found near coastal and fresh inland waters as small groups or as an individual.
Adults birds are black with a bluish sheen and at the base of the bill, there is an area of bare, yellow skin surrounded by white. Juvenile birds are dark brown and have a white area on the underparts.
They nest mostly in trees but occasionally on rock ledges, laying two to five blue-green eggs from June to October. The young fledge at about seven weeks. They are thought to live for up to 20 years.
For more details visit: http://nzbirdsonline.org.nz/species/black-shag
Thanks to Wikipedia for text and information https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
