Bird name:

Anhinga

Anhinga anhinga

Order

PELECANIFORMES

Family

Anhinga (Anhingidae)

Code 4

ANHI

Code 6

ANHANH

ITIS

174755

Breeding Location:

Swamps, Coastal bays, Lakes, Marshes, freshwater

Breeding Type:

Monogamous, Colonial

Breeding Population:

Fairly common to common

Egg Color:

White to pale blue.

Number of Eggs:

2 - 5

Incubation Days:

25 - 29

Egg Incubator:

Both sexes

Nest Material:

Sticks, leaves, and grasses.

Migration:

Most do not migrate

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General

Anhinga: Large, dark waterbird with long tail, snake-like neck, small head, red eyes, and long olive-brown bill. Male is green-black overall with silver-gray feathers appearing speckled and grizzled on upper back and forewings. Female has pale brown breast and neck. May swim with only head and neck above water; often perches with wings outstretched to dry feathers.

Range and Habitat

Anhinga: Breeds near Atlantic and Gulf coasts from North Carolina to Texas, in Florida, and in Mississippi Valley north to southern Missouri and Kentucky. Spends winters along the Gulf Coast north to South Carolina. Also occurs in tropical America. Preferred habitats include freshwater and coastal water bodies with thick vegetation and large trees, which it uses for roosting and nesting.

Breeding and Nesting

Anhinga: Two to five white to pale blue eggs are laid in a loose nest made of sticks and lined with grass and leaves. Incubation ranges from 25 to 29 days and is carried out by both parents.

Foraging and Feeding

Anhinga: Feeds primarily on fish; also eats aquatic invertebrates. Targets slower-moving species of fish and stalks them underwater, striking snake-like with long neck and spearing prey with pointed bill. Prey is eaten above water after tossing it off the bill and positioning it for swallowing headfirst.

Vocalization

Anhinga: Mostly silent, but makes low grunts similar to that of cormorants. When quarreling, makes a distinct, rapid clicking sound, "guk-guk-guk-guk-guk."

Similar Species

Anhinga: Neotropic Cormorant has yellow face and throat, shorter neck, and hooked bill. Double-crested Cormorant is larger with yellow throat patch, shorter neck, and hooked bill.

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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.

Breast

The upper front part of a bird.

4 and 6 letter alpha codes

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

Field Guide to Birds of North America