Anhinga

Description:

Large bird with feathers of greenish-black; white feathers are on the wings starting with smaller feathers at the edge and large feathers below. The wing edges where the wings meet the back are white feathers edged in black. Tail is long and, when spread out is fan-shaped. Bill is long and olive-brown. Feathers on the top and back of the head and neck are short and rough.

Habitat:

Wetlands.

Notes:

This spotting is about an anhinga and a VERY large fish. Anhingas feed by stalking fish under the water. They go after the slower moving fish striking out with their long snaky neck and spearing the fish with the point of the bill. The anhinga then surfaces, tosses the fish off its bill and gulps it down head first. The anhinga in this spotting, however, caught a fish much too big for the usual procedure. I watched him struggle with it in the water and finally swim to shore. He went into a tree and again attempted to devour the fish. I watched for well over 20 minutes before leaving the Anhinga and his way-too-big-fish. He was still waiting for his dinner when I left.