ANHINGID.«— THE ANHINGAR. 207 



Family ANHINGID-ffi.— The Anhingas. 



Chabacteks. Bill slpiider, pointed, compressed, and very heron-like in shape, the 

 culmen and commissure almost straight, the eonvs slightly ascending; terminal half of 

 the tomia finely serrated, the serrations dirueted backward, and forming a series of 

 olose-set, sharp-pointud. flue bristly teeth; nostrils obliterated. Head small, neck slender 

 and greatly elongated (nearly as long as the wing): outer toe about as long as the 

 middle, or slightly shorter. Tail very long, fan-shaped, rounded, the feathers widened 

 toward the ends, the outer webs of the intormediie in fully adult birds transverely cor- 

 rugated or "fluted." 



This sing-ular family consi.sts of but one f?enus, Anhinga, which 

 has a repre.sentative in the warmer parts of each of the great 

 divisions of the earth. 



Genus ANHINGA Biusson. 



Anhinga Bbiss. Orn. vi. 1760, 476. Type, Anhinga ilLiLBoaa.,=Plotus anhinga Link. 

 Plotua Linn. Syst. Nat ed. 12. i. 1766, 218. Type, P. anhinga Linn. 

 Sen. Chab. The same as those of the family (see above). 



Only one species of this genus occurs in America. This is rep- 

 resented in -Africa b^' the A. levaiUantii, Light.; in India by 

 A. melanog oxter, CiMEL.; and in Australia by A. twvce-hollaridiix, 

 Gould. They all closely re.semble A. anhinga, but are quite 

 distinct. 



Anhinga anhinga Linn. 



Foonlar BTnomyms. American Anhinga: Snake Bird; Black-bellied Darter: Darter: 



Water Crow (moulh of the MIsslHsippi); Water Turkey: Grecian Lady (Florida): 



Bee & Lancotte (Louisiana French). 

 }'lotu» anhinga LiNN. S. N. e<l. 12. i. 1766. 218.— NuTT. Man. 11. IKU. 507.-rioNAP. Consii. 



II. KV,. 180.— AUD. Orn. Biog. iv. 18:«. 136; Synop. 1839, 306; B. Am. vi. 1813, 443, pi. 



420.— Lawb. Id Baird's B.N. Am. 18S8, 883.— Uaibd, Cat. N. Am. B. 1869. No. 628.- 



CouES. Key, 1872.306; Check List, 1873. No. 636; 2ii cd. 1882, No. 760.— KiDOW. Nom. 



N. Am. B. 1881. No. 619.-B. B. & R. Water B. N. Am. 11, 1881, 166. 

 ^n/itn(;a an/tinva Stejn. Stand. Nat. HlHtiv, 1885. 11)3.-A.U.U. Check List, 1886. No. 



1I8.-RIDOW. Man. N. Am. B. 1887,77. 

 JPlotut melanogaiter Wilr. Am. Orn. iz, 1824. 79. 82. pi. 74 (not of Okxi..). 



