DARTER NEWSLETTER

DARTER is the quarterly newsletter published by the Salem Ornithological Foundation. It features important sightings, notable observations, and information about birding and related activities in Salem, Tamil Nadu.

LIST OF ISSUES

2025

2024

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

WHY WAS DARTER CHOSEN?

“By not choosing any generalized name of a common bird that is already known (like Eagle, Woodpecker), we thought we would use this opportunity to introduce a new name to people. We wanted to select a bird that is bigger, charismatic, fairly common, easily identifiable, threatened (or near-threatened), and the one that has good distribution in many parts of the district. After analyzing all the species recorded in Salem district, the ORIENTAL DARTER Anhinga melanogaster fits perfectly in the above criteria. It was quite a task to select the species. On a lighter note, the shape of the neck resembles ‘S’ and we took it like S for Salem. It is also a favorite bird for many of us.” –Team SOF.