Snake Bird
Anhingas are adapted to swim underwater, but they've got to dry their wings afterward.
By Bill Rhodes
In East and Southeast Texas, hikers or canoers venturing into cypress swamps or paddling along slow-moving freshwater rivers might spot an unusual-looking bird with a long, sinuously curved neck, wings outstretched, sunning itself on the banks or perched on low-hanging branches.
They may also see it quietly gliding on the water's surface, its snakelike neck held arched, only to abruptly dive, completely submerging itself and popping up several moments later, some distance from where it went under. If all went well, it will have a wriggling fish held tightly in its beak; if not, the search begins anew.
This is the anhinga, Anhinga anhinga, a water bird found along the Gulf Coast, its range extending into Cuba and Central and South America. It has a long, daggerlike bill, which it uses to literally stab unwary fish it finds beneath the surface. Some call the anhinga the “water turkey” for its turkey-like tail, or the “snake bird” because of its most distinctive feature: its long, serpentine neck.
The anhinga is superbly adapted for swimming underwater. Unlike other water birds with oil-coated feathers that repel water and keep them buoyant and dry, an anhinga's feathers are not coated, and they become wet as the bird swims in the water. With its denser bones and wet feathers, the anhinga can easily submerge and swim gracefully underwater while kicking its webbed feet in search of prey. Once a meal is spotted, it literally stabs the fish. If successful, the anhinga holds it in its bill, rises to the surface, tosses it backward and swallows it head-first.
The name “anhinga” is thought to come from the Tupi tribe in Brazil, meaning “devil bird” or “evil spirit.” This is likely because they look like large snakes on the water when viewed while swimming — their bodies submerged and just their heads and necks sticking above the water line. The adult male is a shiny blackish green, with the very end of the tail tipped in white. The female, while similar to the male in shape and size, has a pale gray chest, neck and head, sharply demarcated from its black body and wings.
The anhinga is often mistaken for the double-crested cormorant, which visits the same areas, fishes for its dinner and also holds its wings out to dry. The most noticeable difference is in the shape of the bill. The cormorant's bill is hooked at the end, and not daggerlike like the anhinga's.
While the anhinga is adapted for swimming underwater, it cannot fly when wet — when you do paddle by and see one sunbathing, you can be confident it will be there long after you slip away.
Common name:
Anhinga (or snake bird or water turkey)
Scientific name:
Anhinga anhinga
Habitat:
River bottoms, swamps and other water bodies. In Texas they are most concentrated along the Gulf Coast.
Diet:
Fish, with the occasional invertebrate such as insects and crustaceans.
Did you know?:
Anhingas are usually quiet, but when necessary they can communicate vocally with clicks, rattles, grunts and croaks.
