Blue Eyed Shag
 - Phalacrocorax atriceps - Pair

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Blue Eyed Shag - Phalacrocorax atriceps - Nesting

Blue Eyed Shag - Phalacrocorax atriceps - On Nest


Blue eyed shags nest in colonies with other birds of the same type and sometimes with no other species there at all. Shag Rocks for instance, isolated rocks sticking out of the South Atlantic about 250 kilometres from the next nearest island of South Georgia are home to countless blue eyed shags and virtually nothing else. Likewise the aptly named Shagnasty Island in the South Orkneys is home to a large monoculture of these birds, and a very loud, smelly and nasty place it is too.

Like many types of penguins these shags are adept and compulsive thieves stealing the unguarded nest material from any neighbouring nests if at all possible. A habit that contributes to a raucous and very lively colony.



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Photo; © Paul Ward - Pictures taken on Signy Island, South Orkneys, Antarctica.