THIS wonderful picture of a cormorant having a rest on a rock at the edge of Embsay Reservoir was taken by Pauline Greenough.

"Doesn't its plumage look stunning," says Pauline. We could not agree more.

The RSPCA describes the cormorant as a 'large and conspicuous waterbird, with an almost primitive appearance'.

It says cormorants are supreme fishers which can bring them into conflict with anglers, and they have been persecuted in the past. The UK holds internationally important wintering numbers.