Out-of-Place ‘Devil Bird’ Wows Spectators in Maine, the First Anhinga Ever Seen in the State

A large water bird usually found in Central and South America and Florida recently made its way to Maine—and birders have been flocking for a chance to see the unusual visitor.

Last week, wildlife enthusiasts were surprised to find an anhinga resting on a log in Somerville, a small town in the south-central part of the state about 70 miles northeast of Portland.

Anhingas are conspicuous birds with long, slender necks and turkey-like tails. Though their feathers are not waterproof, they spend much of their time swimming and stabbing fish with their pointy bills. When they resurface, they clamber onto sun-bathed logs, rocks and other places, spread their wings and let the warmth dry their plumage.

The species’ striking aesthetic and eye-catching poses have earned it several nicknames over the years, including “water turkey” and “snake bird.” (Some onlookers have even compared anhingas to the fictitious Loch Ness monster.) Their name comes from the Indigenous Tupi people of Brazil, who called them “devil birds” or “evil spirit of the woods.”

They look similar to double-crested cormorants, but can be distinguished by their appearance and their range, according to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Anhingas live year-round in northern South America, Central America, Florida and Cuba, as well as along the coastlines hugging the Gulf of Mexico in the southern United States. During breeding season, their range extends northward along the Atlantic coast, but they rarely travel beyond Maryland. So, spotting one in Maine was “totally unexpected,” says Charles Duncan, a Maine birder and co-author of Birds of Maine, to the Portland Press Herald’s Ella Spitz.

“Anhingas have no business being in Maine,” he adds. The sighting is the first recorded instance of an anhinga in the state.

The out-of-place creature started making waves on July 23, when a woman posted a photo of it in a local Facebook group. It was hanging out in a flooded meadow next to a narrow dirt road.

Soon, other birders began showing up to take a look at the interloper. The last reported sighting of the anhinga in the meadow was on July 26, so it appears to have moved along.

“Who knows when we might ever see another anhinga up here?” says Doug Hitchcox, staff naturalist for Maine Audubon, to the Bangor Daily News’ Jules Walkup.

Based on its plumage, birders say the anhinga is a young female that was likely born last year. So, what was it doing so far north? It’s possible the bird overshot its migration target and accidentally flew farther than it intended. It may also have traveled into Maine for a temporary abundance of food, or because it’s scoping out the area as a possible new habitat.

Other North American birds—including blue-winged warblers, Carolina chickadees, inca doves and orchard orioles—have been expanding their ranges northward in recent years, possibly because of human-caused global warming.

“Climate change is a big driver in northward expansion of bird ranges, and this fits within that pattern,” Hitchcox tells the Portland Press Herald. “It is definitely a factor, but it’s hard to know with a sample size of one. A lot of these waterbirds have weird expansions and retractions.”

The anhinga isn’t the first rare bird to make an appearance in the Pine Tree State in recent years. In 2018, a great black hawk showed up in Biddeford, marking just the second known U.S. sighting of the species, which normally dwells in Central and South America. In late 2021, a Steller’s sea eagle—a massive bird of prey that hails from Asia—touched down in Georgetown after traversing the continent. That bird came back in February 2023.

As summer gives way to autumn over the next few months, Mainers—and birders in other parts of the country—might experience even more memorable sightings.

“The fun thing to think about this time of year, fall migration is already upon us,” Hitchcox tells WGME. “A bunch of birds are already starting to head south for the winter, so that usually means this tends to be what we call our rarity season, when it seems like just about anything can show up anytime, anywhere.”

Sarah Kuta | READ MORE

Sarah Kuta is a writer and editor based in Longmont, Colorado. She covers history, science, travel, food and beverage, sustainability, economics and other topics.