anhinga in MA?

[Stan Lyness]

A bird on a warm cove on a sluggish river in MA 2001/8/10 resembled anhinga
descriptions & pictures much more than doublebreasted cormorant which we
have here. Extremely long straight orange bill, very long neck, thin head,
sits low in water - top of back just breaks surface - and apparently swims
underwater. Color very dark, possibly green or brown, did not notice
anhinga silver wing patches.

Any ideas? I'm a rank amateur here. Anhingas are subtropical. It had been
very hot for a week but not that hot!

Thanks,

Stan

[Katrina Knight]

Anhingas have been known to wander. There was one in Ontario for quite a
while not that long ago. Most supposed Anhinga sightings out-of-range seem
to be cormorants though. Did you see your bird fly? If so, what did the
tail look like? Anhingas have a tail that is fairly long and spreads out,
looking narrower where it joins the body and broader at the end.
Cormorants have tails that look kind of pointy at the end. Not all
ANhingas have silver wing patches, so not seeing them doesn't tell you
much. I wouldn't call their bill color orange though. It is more of a dull
yellow, but people vary quite a bit in how they see yellow/orange/red
colors. D-c cormorants can show quite a bit of orange on the face at the
base of the bill with some color on the bill as well. Both of them can sit
low in the water and both swim under water. Anhingas look "snaky" with
their long thin neck and head sticking out of the water though and the way
they swim around with their head sticking forward sometimes is pretty
distinctive if you're familiar with it. If the bird is still there, it
would be good to get someone who is familiar with both species to look at
it, because it is certainly possible that it could be an Anhinga.

--
Katrina

[Jim Barber]

Greetings from Gloucester!

Yes, an Anhinga has been reported here in Massachusetts and New Hampshire
off annd on this summer. As Katrina noted these birds are known to wander.
To keep up on what is being seen locally check out Massbird at
http://www-stat.wharton.upenn.edu/~siler/MASS.html
New postings daily.

enjoy

--
http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=1625697&a=12908725
Jim Barber
Gloucester, Massachusetts
USA
42 38 57 N
70 40 26 W