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Loons are aquatic birds the size of a large duck, to which they are unrelated. Their plumage is largely gray or black and they have spear-shaped bills. Loons swim well and fly adequately but, because their legs are placed towards the rear of the body, are clumsy on land. Red-throated loon, Gavia stellata; Arctic loon, Gavia arctica (A) [71]
Loons are aquatic birds the size of a large duck, to which they are unrelated. Their plumage is largely gray or black and they have spear-shaped bills. Loons swim well and fly adequately but, because their legs are placed towards the rear of the body, are clumsy on land. Red-throated loon, Gavia stellata; Common loon, Gavia immer
The word anhinga comes from a'ñinga in the Brazilian Tupi language and means "devil bird" or "snake bird". [3] 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.
Anhingas are water birds larger than ducks but smaller than geese who live in warm waters of the southern United States and Gulf of Mexico all the way down through Central America, northern South ...
These South Carolina birds look like snakes when they swim to hunt. Here are four things to know about them.
Males and females look alike, but females are smaller. Body mass in females ranges from 427 to 628 g (0.941 to 1.385 lb) and in males from 576 to 848 g (1.270 to 1.870 lb). [17] [18] [19] Juvenile birds have olive-brown crowns and a gray body. They become adult-colored around 4 months of age. [5]
These diving birds forage underwater. They prefer water depths of 1.2–4.5 m (3.9–14.8 ft). [ 8 ] In freshwater habitats, they eat primarily insects , and in saltwater, they feed predominantly on crustaceans and mollusks .
The high haemoglobin concentration in their blood gives them a capacity to store oxygen greater than that of other birds, allowing them to remain underwater for 30 seconds or more, [9] whilst their basal metabolic rate is approximately one-third slower than typical terrestrial passerines of similar mass. [14]