Anhinga
AnhingaAnhingaAnhingaAnhinga

Anhinga

Anhinga anhinga

Silhouette: Emily Willoughby · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
at Houston

In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%

1,400 Verified sightings at Houston
36,638 In all 50 parks From 2019 to 2026
July Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Anhinga

The anhinga (Anhinga anhinga), sometimes called darter, American darter, snakebird, or water turkey, is a water bird of the warmer parts of the Americas. The word anhinga comes from a'ñinga in the Brazilian Tupi language and means "devil bird" or "snake bird". The origin of the name is apparent when swimming: only the neck appears above water, so the bird looks like a snake ready to strike. They do not have external nares (nostrils) and breathe solely through their epiglottis, via small opercula at the corners of the beak.

The anhinga is placed in the darter family, Anhingidae, and is closely related to the Oriental (Anhinga melanogaster), African (Anhinga rufa), and Australasian (Anhinga novaehollandiae) darters. Like other darters, the anhinga hunts by spearing fish and other small prey using its sharp, slender beak.

Members of the Anhinga genus live in warm, shallow waters and swamplands worldwide. Wikipedia →

Sounds

Call0:04

United States · 2022

© Paul Driver · XC705562 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Begging call0:09

United States · 2011

© Simon Elliott · XC593172 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Call0:42

Colombia · 2021

© Mauricio Cuellar Ramirez (@Birding.travel) · XC689445 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas 🇧🇷 Brazil
~90%
2 Big Cypress National Preserve 🇺🇸 United States
~70%
3 Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge 🇺🇸 United States
~70%
4 Tortuguero National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~60%
5 Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve 🇪🇨 Ecuador
~50%
6 Everglades National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~50%
7 Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
~40%
8 Palo Verde National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~40%
9 Anavilhanas National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~30%
10 Yasuní National Park 🇪🇨 Ecuador
~30%
11 Carara National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~30%
12 Soberanía National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~20%
13 Caroni Swamp 🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago
~20%
14 Ciénaga de Zapata 🇨🇺 Cuba
~20%
15 Celestún Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
~20%
16 Iguaçu National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~20%
17 Tambopata National Reserve 🇵🇪 Peru
~10%
18 Iguazú National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
~10%
19 Iberá National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
~10%
20 Congaree National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
21 El Impenetrable National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
~10%
22 Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
~10%
23 Manu National Park 🇵🇪 Peru
~10%
24 San Lorenzo Protected Forest 🇵🇦 Panama
~10%
25 Braulio Carrillo National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
26 Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
27 Bastimentos Island National Marine Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~10%
28 Calakmul Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
~10%
29 Manuel Antonio National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
30 Amacayacu National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%
31 Arenal Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
32 Arrecifes de Cozumel National Park 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
33 La Amistad International Park (Panama) 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
34 Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
35 Sierra de la Macarena National Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%
36 Main Ridge Forest Reserve 🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago
<5%
37 Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary 🇧🇿 Belize
<5%
38 Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
39 Chagres National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
40 Santa Rosa National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
41 Cahuita National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
42 Las Baulas Marine National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
43 Ostional Wildlife Refuge 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
44 Parque Natural Metropolitano 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
45 Marino Ballena National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
46 Cabo Blanco Absolute Nature Reserve 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
47 Piedras Blancas National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
48 Corcovado National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
49 Tenorio Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
50 Poás Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Miami 🇺🇸 United States
~40%
2 Orlando 🇺🇸 United States
~40%
3 Goiânia 🇧🇷 Brazil
~20%
4 Campinas 🇧🇷 Brazil
~10%
5 São Paulo 🇧🇷 Brazil
~10%
6 Santa Cruz de la Sierra 🇧🇴 Bolivia
~10%
7 Guayaquil 🇪🇨 Ecuador
~10%
8 Campo Grande 🇧🇷 Brazil
~10%
9 Houston 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
10 Caracas 🇻🇪 Venezuela
<5%

Zoos & Centres Where Found

# Zoo / Centre Country
1 Zoo Miami 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
2 Bronx Zoo 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
3 Audubon Zoo 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
4 Gatorland 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
5 Bali Bird Park 🇮🇩 Indonesia In captivity

Closest Relatives at Houston

Bigua cormorant
LC

Bigua cormorant

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Phalacrocorax brasilianus

Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible
Double-crested Cormorant
LC

Double-crested Cormorant

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Phalacrocorax auritus

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
Magnificent Frigatebird
LC

Magnificent Frigatebird

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Fregata magnificens

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Blue Jay
LC

Blue Jay

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Cyanocitta cristata

Daily sighting probability ~90% · Very likely
Northern Cardinal
LC

Northern Cardinal

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Cardinalis cardinalis

Daily sighting probability ~90% · Very likely
White-winged Dove
LC

White-winged Dove

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Zenaida asiatica

Daily sighting probability ~70% · Very likely
Northern Mockingbird
LC

Northern Mockingbird

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Mimus polyglottos

Daily sighting probability ~70% · Very likely
Carolina Chickadee
LC Endemic

Carolina Chickadee

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Poecile carolinensis

Daily sighting probability ~60% · Likely
Downy Woodpecker
LC

Downy Woodpecker

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Dryobates pubescens

Daily sighting probability ~60% · Likely
Carolina Wren
LC

Carolina Wren

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Thryothorus ludovicianus

Daily sighting probability ~60% · Likely
Red-bellied Woodpecker
LC

Red-bellied Woodpecker

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Melanerpes carolinus

Daily sighting probability ~50% · Likely
American Crow
LC

American Crow

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Corvus brachyrhynchos

Daily sighting probability ~40% · Likely

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing an Anhinga in Houston?

With luck

About 10% of wildlife watchers report an Anhinga sighting in Houston on a given day, based on 1,400 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 76th most-seen of the 302 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see an Anhinga in Houston?

April to September

In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report an Anhinga in Houston on a given day, against under 5% in October to March, the lowest months.

What time of day is best to see an Anhinga?

Between 9 am and noon

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Anhinga sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Houston the best place to see an Anhinga?

9th of 27

Of the 27 cities where we can rate Anhinga sightings, Houston ranks 9th at about 10%. The best odds are in Miami (United States, about 40%), Orlando (United States, about 40%) and Goiânia (Brazil, about 20%).

Which relatives of the Anhinga live in Houston?

Same order: Suliformes

The closest relatives of the Anhinga that you can see in Houston (order Suliformes, Gannets, Cormorants, and Allies) are Bigua cormorant (about 20%) and Double-crested Cormorant (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Anhinga sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Anhinga is recorded against all the birds logged in Houston (1,400 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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