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75 cm. Aquatic with narrow beak curved in the tip. The feet are webbed. The body is black and sometimes the throat is yellow. In the breeding season the male has some white feathers in the throat and ear region. The immature is fuliginous.
Distribution:
From Mexico to Southern South America
Habitat:
Lives in lakes, swamps and estuaries.
Diet:
Feeds on fish, even spiny ones. The gastric acids dissolve the spines.
Reproduction:
The nest is built on tall trees near lakes, sometimes mixing with heron flocks.
Natural history:
It is an excellent diver. When in flocks may pen fish schools, leading them to shallow water where they catch the fishes in frenzy. When it goes out of the water stretches the wings to dry the plumage and for thermoregulation. The flocks fly in ``V´´ shape. Are very noisy when perched in flocks.