DARTERS 181 



though I have seen them fishing in the surf at Virginia Beach. They are 

 splendid birds and when on the wing exhibit a striking combination 

 of power and grace. They are most 'impressive when diving, as with 

 half-closed wings, like great spearheads they strike the water with a 

 force which takes them wholly out of sight and splashes the spray ten 

 feet or more into the air. 



1900. CHAPMAN, F. M., Bird Studies with a Camera, 139-145, 181, 

 189. 1908. Camps and Cruises, 408. 



11. FAMILY ANHINGID^E. DARTERS. (Figs. 29, 30.) 



There are four species of Darters, Snakebirds or Water-Turkeys, 

 one each in Africa, southern Asia, Australia, and tropical and sub- 

 tropical America. They are silent birds, generally living in pairs or 

 colonies on bodies of fresh water with wooded shores. They select a 

 perch over the water, and when alarmed sometimes drop into the ele- 

 ment below and disappear beneath its surface, or fly upward to a con- 

 siderable height and circle about like sailing Hawks. They swim well, 

 and when approached too closely ? sink quietly backward, frequently 

 leaving the long, thin neck and narrow, pointed head above the surface, 

 when one at once observes the origin of the name "Snakebird." They 

 obtain their food by pursuing it under water, and their finely serrated 

 bill assists them in retaining their hold upon it. The young are born 

 naked, but are soon covered with close, short, buff down. They obtain 

 their food from the throat of the parent, and remain in or near the 

 nest until they are able to fly. 



118. Anhinga anhinga (Linn.). WATER-TURKEY. (Fig. 13.) Ad. 

 cf in summer. General plumage glossy black with greenish reflections; 

 back of head and neck with scattered grayish plumes; upper back with 

 numerous elongated silvery white spots, which on the scapulars become 

 streaks; lesser wing-coverts spotted like back; exposed portion of median 

 and greater coverts silvery gray; tail tipped with whitish, outer webs of 

 middle pair of feathers with transverse flutings. Ad. <? in winter. Similar, 

 but without grayish plumes on head and neck. Ad. 9. Similar to cf, but 

 with whole head, neck, and breast brownish, darker above. Im. Similar 

 to 9, but with black parts of plumage brownish. L., 34'00; W., 13'50; T., 

 10-50; B., 3-25. 



Range. Tropical Am. n. to w. Mex. (Tepic), Tex., Fla., s. Ills., and N. 

 C., and casually to Kans. ; accidental in N. Mex. and Ariz. 



Nest, well formed, of sticks lined with moss, rootlets, etc., over the water 

 in a low bush or high tree. Eggs, 2-5, bluish white with a chalky deposit, 

 2'15 x 1'35. Date, Tampa, Fla., Mch. 21. 



This singular bird is a permanent resident in Florida but migratory 

 farther north. They nest in isolated pairs, or in colonies of as many as 

 two hundred birds. Although they soar with great ease they alight 

 clumsily, tumbling on to their perches, with much flapping of wings 

 before gaining their balance. When not alarmed, they seem to take 

 flight with much hesitation, opening and closing their wings repeatedly 

 before they trust themselves to their support. When alighting near the 



