Pygmy Cormorant (Microcarbo pygmaeus)
Snowy Owl (Bubo scandiacus)
Only about half the size of Great Cormorant.Diagnostic profile with long tail and short, thick neck. Steep forehead and short, dark bill. Adult breeding with fine white speckles on chest and neck. Immatures with varying degree of white breast or underparts. Bare skin in gular area only faintly yellow of pinkish. Flight usually low with rapid wingbeats and interspersed glides (often recalling coot). Perches upright.
Sound:Mostly vocal at breeding ground. Short, nasal croaking sounds in series. Often alternating between deep and high note.
Contact call:
Distribution:
Xeno-canto: map
Ecology:Birdlife ecology
Links:
Observation.org Latest observations
Image search Flickr NB! May give other species
CCLargely unmistakable. Male almost pure white with black dots. Female and juveniles white with heavy black barring, and may seem grey at a distance. Juveniles more finely barred than adult females, giving them a greyer appearance, with white neck and face. Body barrel-shaped, head small and rounded. Wing-tips more pointed than in other owls. Flight action both buzzard and owl-like, with surprising agility. Note that several species of owls may seem completely white to the untrained eye when suddenly appearing in car headlights etc.
Sound:Song consists of single utterances or series of "aooo", recalling Great Black-backed Gull, and is far carrying. Male warning call a deep and harsh "groat grat grat", with accented endings of each syllable. Female warning call higher pitched. Also various other high pitched calls.
Alarm call:
Distribution:
Wikipedia: map (se also Xeno-canto below)
Ecology:Birdlife ecology
Links:
Observation.org Latest observations
Image search Flickr NB! May give other species
CCCC-sound:Niels Krabbe, Licence,Link.