Microcarbo coronatus
Silhouette: L. Shyamal · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~40% in a week ~70%
The crowned cormorant (Microcarbo coronatus) or kuifkopduiker, 'Fringe-head diver', is a small cormorant that is endemic to the waters of the cold Benguela Current of southern Africa. It is an exclusively coastal species and is not found more than 10 km (6 mi) away from land. This species is related to the reed cormorant, and was formerly considered to the same species.
It is found from Cape Agulhas north to Swakopmund along the coast of southern Africa. The population appears to be between 2500 and 2900 breeding pairs. It breeds in small groups, with fewer than 150 individuals per colony being typical. Ringing recoveries show that juveniles may disperse up to 277 km from their nests, and adults move between breeding sites over 500 km apart.
The crowned cormorant is 50–55 cm in length. Adults are black with a small crest on the head and a red face patch. Young birds are dark brown above, paler brown below, and lack the crest. They can be distinguished from immature reed cormorants by their darker underparts and shorter tail.
Crowned cormorants feed on slow-moving fish and invertebrates, which they forage for in shallow coastal waters... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Coast National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | Table Mountain National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | De Hoop Nature Reserve | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cape Town | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Crowned Cormorant sighting in Table Mountain National Park on a given day, based on 1,467 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 43rd most-seen of the 223 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 40%, and over a week to about 70%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February, June–July and September–October
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Crowned Cormorant in Table Mountain National Park on a given day, against about 10% in March–May, August and November–January, the lowest months.
Between 1 and 4 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Crowned Cormorant sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
2nd of 3
Of the 3 parks where we can rate Crowned Cormorant sightings, Table Mountain National Park ranks 2nd at about 20%. The best odds are in West Coast National Park (South Africa, about 30%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Crowned Cormorant is recorded against all the birds logged in Table Mountain National Park (1,467 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
