Blue-Eyed Shag birds at Cooper Bay, South Georgia Island. Blue Eyed Shags are members of the cormorant family. They are unique within that family by virtue of the fact that they venture into the Antarctic peninsula - as far as 68 degrees south. Their colonies are found as far north as Shag Rocks - over 800 miles from South Georgia Island .

They are distinctive for their brilliant blue eyes and the orange/ yellow growth at the top of their beaks. The birds in this gallery were photographed from a Zodiac at the South end of Cooper Bay, South Georgia Island. These birds maintain a nest year round in this area, since the sea remains ice free in the winter. They feed mainly on fish, and are excellent divers, reaching depths of almost 400 feet.

Shag chicks are unique in the Antarctica region in that they are born with no down, and their susceptibility to bad weather makes them especially dependent on their parents.