Cormorants

Cormorants appear during the fishing trip as active participants in the coastal feeding scene and as a visible sign of where salmon may be found. Their circling and dives bring the boat toward a school of small fish, turning the birds’ activity into a practical clue for the fishermen.

Observed in the Fishing Grounds

When George Sorensen calls attention to the water ahead, Chief Bromden first sees a drifting log surrounded by black birds circling and diving. As the boat moves closer, the birds plunge among churning minnows, breaking the smooth surface and revealing the feeding activity beneath it. Their presence is not decorative background: it marks a concentrated food source in the water.

Ecological Role in the Scene

George Sorensen explains that cormorants feed on schools of candlefishes, small fish that can be dried and burned like candles and are also used as chum. Where those fish gather, he says, silver Salmon feed. The birds therefore make a feeding relationship visible to the fishermen: the cormorants pursue the smaller fish, while their activity points toward the larger fish sought by the boat. Once the boat enters the birds’ feeding ground, salmon backs appear among the diving birds and minnows, and all four fishing poles take a strike. The cormorants remain animals engaged in feeding, even as their behavior becomes information the fishermen can use.