During our two weeks in Florida last month, I had opportunity to photograph many birds. Today, I'm featuring the Anhinga, also known by several other names, including Snakebird, because of its habit of swimming with only its neck and head above water, looking very much like a snake.
Unlike ducks, the Anhinga feathers are not waterproofed. As a result, feathers can become waterlogged, making the bird barely buoyant. However, this allows it to dive easily and search for underwater prey, such as fish and amphibians. But it also means that the birds have to spend a lot of time drying out those waterlogged wings and feathers.
One afternoon, we saw an Anhinga swimming to shore with a rather large fish it had just speared. The following series of photos record the resulting action. (These photos aren't the best. I was too excited to worry about camera settings.)
Struggling to get its catch to shore.
Gulp!
Going down.
Ahhhh!
