The anhingas (family Anhingidae) are a family of birds belonging to the order Suliformes. These birds inhabit large lentic bodies of freshwater, including lakes, ponds and wide rivers. They have extremely long necks and a dagger-like pointy bill that is used for spearing fish, which is aided by a hinge-like mechanisms in the cervical vertebrae. Often known as darters of snakebirds, these birds are often seen with their wings spread in poles and stumps on lakes while they dry their feathers after hunting.
The family comprises 4 species belonging to the genus Anhinga. Each of these species is confined to wetland habitats of different ecological realms: the Neotropics, Afrotropics, Indomalaya and Australasia. One of the species is classified as near threatened.
Rainforest Discovery Center near Sepilok, Sabah, Malaysia, 14 Jul 2024
Oriental darter
Anhinga melanogaster
Darter of large lakes, rivers and slow-flowing water bodies from the Indian Subcontinent, Southeast Asia and the Philippines and Indonesian archipelagos. I have observed this species in a lake in Madagascar.
Lac Ravelobe, Ankarafantsika National Park, Madagascar, 7 Dec 2023
African darter
Anhinga rufa
Anhinga found in lakes and slow-flowing water bodies in Subsaharan Africa and Madagascar. A disjunct population occurred in the Middle East from Turkey to the Mesopotamian marshes but has been largely lost during the last decades, only being found in an Iraqi wetland. I have observed this species in a lake in Madagascar.
