LC
Long-tailed Cormorant Microcarbo africanus



Taxonomy

Taxonomic note
Microcarbo africanus (del Hoyo and Collar 2014) was previously placed in the genus Phalacrocorax.

Taxonomic source(s)
AERC TAC. 2003. AERC TAC Checklist of bird taxa occurring in Western Palearctic region, 15th Draft. Available at: http://www.aerc.eu/DOCS/Bird_taxa_of_the_WP15.xls.
Cramp, S. and Simmons, K.E.L. (eds). 1977-1994. Handbook of the birds of Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The birds of the western Palearctic. Oxford University Press, Oxford.
del Hoyo, J., Collar, N.J., Christie, D.A., Elliott, A. and Fishpool, L.D.C. 2014. HBW and BirdLife International Illustrated Checklist of the Birds of the World. Volume 1: Non-passerines. Lynx Edicions BirdLife International, Barcelona, Spain and Cambridge, UK.

IUCN Red List criteria met and history
Red List criteria met
Critically Endangered Endangered Vulnerable
- - -

Red List history
Year Category Criteria
2024 Least Concern
2016 Least Concern
2012 Least Concern
2009 Least Concern
2008 Least Concern
2004 Least Concern
2000 Lower Risk/Least Concern
1994 Lower Risk/Least Concern
1988 Lower Risk/Least Concern
Species attributes

Migratory status not a migrant Forest dependency low
Land-mass type Average mass 545 g
Range

Estimate Data quality
Extent of Occurrence (breeding/resident) 29,500,000 km2 medium
Severely fragmented? no -
Population
Estimate Data quality Derivation Year of estimate
Population size 134000-802000 mature individuals poor estimated 2023
Population trend stable - suspected -
Generation length 7.17 years - - -

Population justification: The global population size is estimated at 200,500-1,202,500 individuals (Wetlands International 2023), which equates to 134,000-802,000 mature individuals. The overall population trend is considered to be stable over three generations (21.51 years) (Wetlands International 2023).

Trend justification:   .


Country/territory distribution
Country/Territory Presence Origin Resident Breeding visitor Non-breeding visitor Passage migrant
Angola extant native yes
Benin extant native yes
Botswana extant native yes
Burkina Faso extant native yes
Burundi extant native yes
Cameroon extant native yes
Central African Republic extant native yes
Chad extant native yes
Congo extant native yes
Congo, The Democratic Republic of the extant native yes
Côte d'Ivoire extant native yes
Djibouti extant vagrant yes
Egypt extinct vagrant yes
Equatorial Guinea extant native yes
Eritrea extant native yes
Eswatini extant native yes
Ethiopia extant native yes
Gabon extant native yes
Gambia extant native yes
Ghana extant native yes
Guinea extant native yes
Guinea-Bissau extant native yes
Kenya extant native yes
Lesotho extant native yes
Liberia extant native yes
Madagascar extant native yes
Malawi extant native yes
Mali extant native yes
Mauritania extant native yes
Mozambique extant native yes
Namibia extant native yes
Niger extant native yes
Nigeria extant native yes
Rwanda extant native yes
São Tomé e Príncipe extant native yes
Senegal extant native yes
Seychelles extant vagrant yes
Sierra Leone extant native yes
Somalia extant native yes
South Africa extant native yes
South Sudan extant native yes
Sudan extant native
Tanzania extant native yes
Togo extant native yes
Uganda extant native yes
Yemen extant vagrant yes
Zambia extant native yes
Zimbabwe extant native yes

Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBA)
Country/Territory IBA Name
Mali Koumbé Niasso
Mali Lac Débo - Lac Oualado Débo
Mauritania Banc d'Arguin National Park
Mauritania Diawling National Park
Senegal Delta du Saloum
Senegal La Petite Côte
Senegal Parc National de Basse Casamance
South Sudan Sudd (Bahr-el-Jebel system)
Tanzania Wembere steppe
Uganda Musambwa islands
Zambia Barotse Floodplains
Zambia Kafue Flats

Habitats & altitude
Habitat (level 1) Habitat (level 2) Importance Occurrence
Artificial/Aquatic & Marine Artificial/Aquatic - Ponds (below 8ha) suitable resident
Forest Subtropical/Tropical Mangrove Vegetation Above High Tide Level suitable resident
Forest Subtropical/Tropical Swamp suitable resident
Marine Coastal/Supratidal Coastal Freshwater Lakes suitable resident
Marine Coastal/Supratidal Sea Cliffs and Rocky Offshore Islands suitable resident
Marine Neritic Estuaries suitable resident
Marine Neritic Macroalgal/Kelp suitable resident
Marine Neritic Seagrass (Submerged) suitable resident
Marine Neritic Subtidal Loose Rock/pebble/gravel suitable resident
Marine Neritic Subtidal Rock and Rocky Reefs suitable resident
Marine Neritic Subtidal Sandy suitable resident
Marine Neritic Subtidal Sandy-Mud suitable resident
Wetlands (inland) Bogs, Marshes, Swamps, Fens, Peatlands suitable resident
Wetlands (inland) Permanent Freshwater Lakes (over 8ha) suitable resident
Wetlands (inland) Permanent Freshwater Marshes/Pools (under 8ha) suitable resident
Wetlands (inland) Permanent Rivers/Streams/Creeks (includes waterfalls) suitable resident
Wetlands (inland) Permanent Saline, Brackish or Alkaline Lakes suitable resident
Wetlands (inland) Seasonal/Intermittent Freshwater Lakes (over 8ha) suitable resident
Wetlands (inland) Seasonal/Intermittent Freshwater Marshes/Pools (under 8ha) suitable resident
Wetlands (inland) Seasonal/Intermittent Saline, Brackish or Alkaline Lakes and Flats suitable resident
Wetlands (inland) Shrub Dominated Wetlands suitable resident
Altitude 0 - 1750 m Occasional altitudinal limits  

Threats & impact
Threat (level 1) Threat (level 2) Impact and Stresses
Biological resource use Fishing & harvesting aquatic resources - Unintentional effects: (subsistence/small scale) [harvest] Timing Scope Severity Impact
Ongoing Minority (<50%) Slow, Significant Declines Low Impact: 5
Stresses
Species disturbance
Biological resource use Hunting & trapping terrestrial animals - Persecution/control Timing Scope Severity Impact
Ongoing Minority (<50%) Negligible declines Low Impact: 4
Stresses
Species mortality

Utilisation
Purpose Scale
Pets/display animals, horticulture international

Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Long-tailed Cormorant Microcarbo africanus. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/long-tailed-cormorant-microcarbo-africanus on 26/12/2024.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2024) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/search on 26/12/2024.