A lot of the stress is finally off and best of all, I am finally getting caught up on some badly needed sleep. The annual Haunt Event appears to be another successful venture and since the last post we have received a lot of positive feedback from the attendees (including Brad and Jan, but they may be biased as their annual performance review is coming up ha). The first night we ran out of time for some of the props thanks to an unfortunate late hour incident that took a bit to resolve, however, we were able to catch up on Saturday and get everything working and additional props deployed. I made a quick summary of this year’s efforts up on the mothership if you are interested (link here). Most surprising of all is the weather held for both days even though there was an over 60% chance of rain for both nights at the start of the week. Mother Nature either took pity on me or she is waiting to really hammer me during the fast approaching ultra-race.
Since I am sitting here trying to heal a few leg/foot kinks that developed while hauling all the props back out of the valley, thought I would feature a feathered friend that also has a kink …in its neck.
Hit the jump to read more about this turquoise-eyed beauty.
Taking you back to Florida, but before I do that, I want to extend our best wishes and prayers for all those recently affected by Hurricane Helene. Linda has family in the Brevard, NC area who were luckily not there at the time – that area went dark and last we checked in they had not been able to get an assessment of the damage to their homestead. If you recall, Brevard is the adopted home of the famous White Squirrels (link here). I’ve witnessed the damage left behind from tornadoes here in the heartland and can only imagine similar destruction resulting from the hurricane fallout. Worst of all, being absolutely ignored by their government in this time of need. Stay strong, persevere and let the goodness in society prevail.
As mentioned above, these shots were taken on our April 2023 trip through the upper portion of Florida (Panhandle and down to Gainesville). Our end destination was to catch the migration in Dauphin Island and opted for a wide turn to check out more of Florida on the way. This specific location was Sweetwater Wetlands Park in Gainesville (link here). I talked about this incredible birding place in a previous post featuring the Prairie Warbler (link here). There was only one Prairie Warbler spotted there on this particular trip, but there were plenty of Anhingas to keep my shutter finger busy.
All of my encounters with the Anhinga up to this point have been along the Texas Gulf and along the Rio Grande Valley. That also means those specimens were all in their winter duds as our time down there is during the winter months. This is the first time experiencing their breeding splendor – predominantly from the males.
For some reason, Cornell’s website doesn’t really cover just how stunning the male facial features become when it is time to impress the ladies. In fact, there is not one picture on their bio page that shows their ornate turquoise goggles. Luckily, this specimen was more than happy to show them off for the paparazzi. Add that bit of ornamentation to their overall jet black (with dark green) body feathering highlighted by the white/silver streaking along the back and across the wings and you have one fantastic looking bird. Their orangish bills and feet provide a nice bookend to the presentation.
Initially seen from afar, this particular specimen was performing their common practice of drying their feathers/wings. Similar to Vultures, The Anhinga will hold their wings out in the sun as if preaching to the other inhabitants of the park.
“Can you count suckers, I say the future is ours if you can count. Now look what we have here before us. We’ve got the [Herons] sitting next to the [Gators]. We’ve got the [Bitterns], right by the [Sunfish]. Nobody is wasting nobody. That … is a miracle … and miracles, is the way things ought to be.”
“Can you dig it!?!”
Couldn’t resist quoting one of my favorite movies of all time (link here). Now it was not at night nor in New York City, but you get the picture ha.
By the time I made my way over there to snap a few shots, it had folded its wings back in and looking more refined and stoic.
Lucked out and found another specimen not too far down the bank that had a ways to go before the dry cycle was finished. They have the ability to soar high in the thermals, but significantly impaired getting off the ground and in low flight if their wings are weighted down from their hunting swims. You will notice this second specimen does not have the breeding goggles on, so guessing it is in the first or second winter. Before that, the juvi feathering is similar to the adult females. They are distinct from the breeding males by their brown feathered necks
For comparison, here is a shot of a female/immature even further down the bank. Kind of looks like it is ready to rocket into space – maybe Boeing can look into that as an option the next time they abandon pilots in space.
Should point out that the Anhinga can often be misidentified in flight with the Cormorants as they have a somewhat similar profile. More so the Double-Crested variety as they have a longer tail than the Neotropics. To help distinguish the Anhingas, look at the shape of their outstretched wing profile. The Cormorants tend to look more like crosses with their shorter head relative to their tails. The Anhingas have a very long neck that that tends to give them more of a plus sign profile.
Just to leave you with a few interesting facts in appreciation for your reading time, the Anhinga conjures visions of a speargun underwater. Their heavy water logged feathers and long dagger tipped necks allow them move effortless through the water and stab unsuspecting fish. From there it is a water ballet as they go about transitioning their victim from their bill into their throats. Brad was able to capture this behavior on his trip to Harris Neck (link here).
Lastly, according to Cornell, Anhinga comes courtesy of the Brazilian Tupi Indians “meaning ‘devil bird’ or ‘evil spirit of the woods'”. What a fitting bird now that we are in the official haunt month.
After next weekend all the late year stress will be officially over and we can get back to normal operations here at Intrigued. Take care everyone and have a hauntingly good time during this official Halloween season.
Wildlife Intrigued 
Just wanted to let you know you know I stopped by your hunting grounds of Huntington Beach earlier today. It was mid day, windy, and the critters were all tucked in sleeping in the woods. A quick drive though and I was back on my way.
BTW, the reason I stopped by was I passed the entrance on my way back from North Carolina. Supplies, workers, planes, and choppers are everywhere. No body is being ignored. Some of the regional airports that serve a handful of landings a week have 70-80 landings a day. Just sayin…
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Thanks Ted, I’ll let Brad know. I know he enjoyed that area and based on the posts he was able to make from those visits, I’d say he was quite productive. Good to hear that area is getting attention, but based on the reports I am seeing along with the countless videos being released there are still plenty in need – to hear Mayorakas claim FEMA is out of money is quite infuriating https://apnews.com/article/hurricane-helene-congress-fema-funding-5be4f18e00ce2b509d6830410cf2c1cb. Also getting a lot of these reports: https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2024/10/04/north-carolina-hurricane-victims-where-is-our-fcking-government and https://townhall.com/tipsheet/saraharnold/2024/10/05/hurricane-helene-victims-lash-out-at-biden-harris-disgraceful-n2645772
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Striking blue goggles on this one. We must have missed that, oh yeah, the fish on its bill was in the way. I was completely unaware that performance reviews were coming up (wink wink nudge nudge).
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I am sure you completed your quarterly assessments so the annual review should be little work!
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Yup, they are “in the mail”.
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Cool, we’ll be checking the mailbox daily so we don’t miss ’em.
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Beautiful bird. I can see how they can be misidentified as cormorants. I’m happy to hear the Haunt Trail was a success. Is it Murphy who has the law that if anything can go wrong, it will go wrong at the worst time possible? Do you have the ghost of Murphy on your Haunt Trail?
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Definitely, those turquoise eyes of the Cormorant and the similar goggles of the breeding Anhinga can be easily confused. Murphy’s ghost is most definitely present for all our haunt events – laying in wait until the worst possible time to play his hand. So far we’ve been able to get him back in the Ecto-Containment System before the guests start arriving. I tell everyone that the key to putting on a successful haunt is the ability to wear lots and lots of hats, electrician, mechanical engineer, landscaper, computer engineer, industrial engineer, art director and project manager to name just a few. Key is just to make it to the haunt start with everything working and in safe order so no one experiences any injuries and has a fun time.
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It’s enough to turn you into a mad hatter.
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Yes! Although now I have vision of Johnny Depp from Alice in Wonderland crossed with Willy Wonka with green goggles – shudder.
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Like a Depp Willy.
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Yes, now I have to go take a shower as I feel all dirty like
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💚
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Thank you and appreciate you stopping in!
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Terrific images of the “Snake Bird”. Growing up in Florida, we had many occasions to be frustrated with an Anhinga snatching a bluegill right off our hook.
The breeding male is quite a sight. Another surprise for many is to find young ones in the nest and discover they are all-white!
Sounds like the haunting was a success. Good show!
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Thanks Wally – had quite the accommodating subjects. While verifying some facts about this bird I noticed their newbies were white. Had to do a quick verification thinking someone swapped in some Egret babies. We are declaring the haunt a complete success. There were some glitches and a few unexpected “happenings” but I doubt the guests even noticed those. We’ll make sure those learned lessons are added to the project plan and addressed next year. Murphy will always be there so these things are expected. Appreciate you dropping in a hope you didn’t get hit too hard by Helene or Milton.
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Beautiful bird and great captures! I’m still seeing videos of people posted recently saying no help got to their town yet.
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Thank you Sharon, these subjects were quite accommodating to my intrusion on their sunbathing. I am definitely hearing some bad reports coming out of the damaged area from Helene and suspect similar accounts coming out of Milton once that gets done ravaging more of the interior of Florida. The most disgusting video I saw was the NC National Guard rotor-washing an independent supply depot. I wonder what it takes to lose one’s humanity, especially in times like these. Take care and appreciate you dropping in.
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So with a second hurricane bearing down on Florida, does that throw a wrench into plans for the winter? Or is it mostly west and southwest these days when it begins to get chilly out?
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When the temps start hitting the teens we head south/southwest. We definitely prefer that region over the eastern front for the true winter months. Florida is usually just a pass through during our Spring migration trips versus a true snowbird destination. For the coming year we will head west soon after the xmas holidays and then plan on going back to Arizona in the spring rather than doing the eastern loop. Our winter trip to Arizona earlier this year did not go so well, so Linda wants to give that state one more chance before we write it off. Based on the two weather events hammering the Florida area, a good thing we had already planned a different option or we would be scrambling to get our reservations switched. Beyond the human toll, I am also very worried about the fate of a number of rarity birds we met on last year’s trip to the Panhandle/northern Florida. Those feathered residents were struggling as it was and having their small ecosystem destroyed will probably have a dramatic impact on them. There are upcoming posts on those finds in the queue as I’m finally getting those shots processed. Take care Jerry and good luck out in the field!
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I’ve never seen this bird – what a gorgeous specimen! Hard to believe the devastation Helene caused. Hard to believe the people who need the most help are still suffering. And last night, Milton went over the Florida Peninsula in a fury. Climate change deniers must be questioning their position. Best of luck in the race, Bri! And enjoy your Halloween preparations! ☀️
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The Haunted Trail was a lot of work this year, but from what we are hearing everyone enjoyed it. Still have weeks to go before get everything de-batteried, broken down and stored away. Managed to cross the finish line of the race, but it was an absolute battle of wills from the first steps to the very end. If it could have gone wrong, it went wrong. Once I get myself back on my feet I’ll start working to address the mishaps for next year. From the images we are seeing, Helene and then Milton left a definite path of destruction. Hopefully they can get the help they need to get back on their feet as well. Unfortunately, I do not have enough data/facts to weigh in on the global warming (prior name under hockey stick lie) impact. Would be interesting to go back and compare these two new weather events with the severity of those in the past (by assumption they would have to be significantly worse than those in the past to lend credibility) and somehow equate their level of destruction – account for likely more people in that area now, increased amount of man-made structures (concrete) that impact the absorption rates and more concerning from a bird perspective, habitat clearing. Now if we can just get that objective analysis done void of agenda and politics we can start addressing the findings in a systematic and concise way. As always, appreciate you coming by Lisa – looking forward to new recipes!
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Living here along the Gulf Coast, I’ve gotten to see the Anhinga’s turquoise eyes, but never as vividly as you’ve captured – great job! And, thanks to Wally for pointing out the nestlings are pure white – I had zero idea! Always something to learn from your posts 🙂
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Isn’t it amazing how white those Anhinga chicks are – I had no idea as well until I stumbled on a picture of them while prepping for the post. At first I thought they hijacked an Egret nest. I really enjoyed spending the April in Texas for a change this year as I got to experience birds like this in their breeding plumage for the first time. We’ve decided to switch the order for the coming year – back to Texas for January and then to Arizona in the spring. Linda wants to give AZ a second chance as our January experience was pretty awful this year with all the snow and cold weather. The good news is I will get to see all my +1s from our AZ trip in their breeding colors – yeah! Glad I would repay you on the learning front from all the good information you bestow on us in your posts. Take care.
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Those blue-eyed males in breeding plumage are absolutely stunning.
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Aren’t those amazing! I’ve taken to calling them Eltons in tribute to the flamboyant eyewear worn by Elton John over the years. Luckily they haven’t taken up the pink boas hehehe. Have a great weekend Tanja – already missing those awesome trails in Colorado.
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