Oriental Darter
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| Oriental Darter Conservation status: Lower risk (nt) | ||||||||||||||
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| Anhinga melanogaster (Pennant,, 1769) |
The Oriental Darter or Indian Darter (Anhinga melanogaster ), sometimes called Snakebird, is a water bird of tropical southern Asia and Indonesia. It is a cormorant-like species that has a very long neck. It often swims with only the neck above water. It is a fish-eater.
The Indian Darter differs in appearance from African and American darters most recognisably by its white lateral neck stripe. It builds a stick nest in a tree and lays 3-6 eggs
The Oriental Darter is a member of the darter family, Anhingidae, and is closely related to American (Anhinga anhinga), African (Anhinga rufa), and Australian (Anhinga novaehollandiae) Darters.