Anhinga in Breeding Splendor

by Dawn Currie

Title

Anhinga in Breeding Splendor

Artist

Dawn Currie

Medium

Photograph - Digital

Description

Photographic artwork by Dawn Currie. A male Anhinga showing off his breeding plumage.

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Anhinga (Anhinga anhinga): A bird of southern swamps, the Anhinga is known as the Snake-Bird for its habit of swimming with just its long head and neck sticking out of the water. It spears fish with its long beak. Sometimes it has to swim to shore and pry the fish off its beak by rubbing on a rock or tree limb.

The Anhinga does not have oil glands for waterproofing its feathers like most water birds. When it swims, it gets wet which allows it to move more efficiently under water. When it leaves the water, it must spread its wings and dry in the sun.

The Anhinga lives in shallow, slow-moving, sheltered waters and uses nearby perches and banks for drying and sunning. It's rarely found out of freshwater except during severe droughts.

The male begins nest construction before it has a mate, by placing large sticks and green material in the forks of trees. The male collects nearly all nesting the material, and the female then finishes building nest. The nest is a bulky platform of sticks, somewhat more compact than heron nests. It is often lined with fresh leaves, green twigs, willow leaves, and catkins. With age, excrement can build up on the outer rim of the nest giving it a white appearance.

I have seen these birds throughout central and south Florida. Some of my favorite spots to photograph them are the Ritch Grissom Memorial Wetlands (also known as the Viera Wetlands), Wakodahatchee Wetlands, and Gatorland Florida.

Uploaded

January 20th, 2014

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