NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Great Cormorant
Phalacrocorax carbo (Linnaeus, 1758)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The great cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo), also known as just cormorant in Britain, as black shag or kawau in New Zealand, formerly also known as the great black cormorant across the Northern Hemisphere, the black cormorant in Australia, and the large cormorant in India, is a widespread member of the cormorant family of seabirds. It breeds in much of the Old World, Australasia, and the Atlantic coast of North America.
Wikipedia contributors, Great cormorant; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T04:45:08.401155+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Phalacrocorax carbo (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Name authority
- (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Common name
- Great Cormorant
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Suliformes
- Family
- Phalacrocoracidae
- Genus
- Phalacrocorax
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderSuliformes
- familyPhalacrocoracidae Reichenbach, 1849
- genusPhalacrocorax Brisson, 1760
- speciesPhalacrocorax carbo (Linnaeus, 1758)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Phalacrocorax. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese CormorantPhalacrocorax capillatus (Temminck & Schlegel, 1850) | PhalacrocoracidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Australian Pied CormorantPhalacrocorax varius (J. F. Gmelin, 1789) | PhalacrocoracidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Socotra CormorantPhalacrocorax nigrogularis Ogilvie-Grant & H. O. Forbes, 1899 | PhalacrocoracidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Little Black CormorantPhalacrocorax sulcirostris (J. F. Brandt, 1837) | PhalacrocoracidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Pitt ShagPhalacrocorax featherstoni Buller, 1873 | PhalacrocoracidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Black-faced CormorantPhalacrocorax fuscescens (Vieillot, 1817) | PhalacrocoracidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Indian CormorantPhalacrocorax fuscicollis Stephens, 1826 | PhalacrocoracidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Bank CormorantPhalacrocorax neglectus (Wahlberg, 1855) | PhalacrocoracidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Spotted ShagPhalacrocorax punctatus (Sparrman, 1786) | PhalacrocoracidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Phalacrocorax lucidus (M. H. C. Lichtenstein, 1823) (M. H. C. Lichtenstein, 1823) | synonym |
| Pelecanus carbo Linnaeus, 1758 Linnaeus, 1758 | synonym |
| Phalacrocorax carbo lucidus (M. H. C. Lichtenstein, 1823) (M. H. C. Lichtenstein, 1823) | synonym |
| Halieus lucidus M. H. C. Lichtenstein, 1823 M. H. C. Lichtenstein, 1823 | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Australia
Europe & Northern Asia (excluding China)
North America
Oceania
Southern Asia
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=174715 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:4FQQC. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.