Brown cormorants - juveniles?

[loripo]

I saw these today and noticed that some were brownish rather than the usual glossy black - are these young birds?
Also there was one with a grey 'mane' - on the video I took it looks as though it has a black tuft down the back of its head - is this breeding plumage?
( I have tried to get an answer but nothing definate.)

[Dogghound]

The lighter birds in the 1st photo are 1st winter birds (note the pale belly/breast and pale brown back/wings). However even none breeding adults/and breeding to an extend show a more browny, green, purple back and wings.

Two things could be going on with the second picture.
1. Cormorants get a white nape, head colouration as they gain their breeding plumage this becomes more prevelent with the birds age so thatsome older individuals have heads like the one in your photo.

2. It is a continental bird sinensis which show more of the white head colouration in comparison to British birds.

I personally can't see enough of the Gular patch to tell from this photo which it is. sinensis also tend to be smaller than carbo (British) and tend to show more green in the wing.

[loripo]

Thanks - that's very helpful. I haven't noticed colour variations before, so I will be having a closer look. I've just read about the gular patch, not something I knew of before. We have hundreds of cormorants around on the river and in our local park for me to study