Cormorants and Shags are foot-propelled divers that grasp their piscine prey with sharply hooked bills.
Possessing poorly waterproofed plumage, they never wander far from shore, but they can be found on all but the most polar coasts, and inland on freshwater rivers and lakes. The plumage of Northern Hemisphere Cormorants is mostly dark brown or black, but in the Southern Hemisphere there is a radiation of Shags in boldly patterned grays and white and black. Some species have bright red, yellow, or blue feet or facial skin. Their eyes, often of a beguiling blue or blue-green color, apparently focus very poorly under water, perhaps explaining why they often take such large fish.
Divers or Loons (North American English) are a group of aquatic birds found in much of North America and northern Eurasia.
The Darters, Anhingas, or Snakebirds are mainly tropical waterbirds in the family Anhingidae, which contains a single genus, Anhinga. There are four living species found in the Americas, Africa, Asia and Australasia.
