The Double-Crested Cormorant: Plight of a Feathered Pariah

The tragic history of the cormorant’s relations with humans and the implications for today’s wildlife management policy

The double-crested cormorant, found only in North America, is an iridescent black waterbird superbly adapted to catch fish. It belongs to a family of birds vilified since biblical times and persecuted around the world. Thus it was perhaps to be expected that the first European settlers in North America quickly deemed the double-crested cormorant a competitor for fishing st...