| Japanese cormorant | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Suliformes |
| Family: | Phalacrocoracidae |
| Genus: | Phalacrocorax |
| Species: | P. capillatus |
| Binomial name | |
|
Phalacrocorax capillatus (Temminck & Schlegel, 1850) |
|
The Japanese cormorant (Phalacrocorax capillatus), also known as Temminck's cormorant, is a cormorant native to East Asia. It lives from Taiwan north through Korea and Japan to the Russian Far East.
The Japanese cormorant has a black body with a white throat and cheeks and a partially yellow bill.
It is one of the species of cormorant that has been domesticated by fishermen in a tradition known in Japan as ukai (鵜飼). It is called umiu (ウミウ sea cormorant) in Japanese. The Nagara River's well-known fishing masters work with this particular species to catch ayu.