Most of the bigger birds I’ve watched nesting gather sticks off the ground or take easily snapped dead limbs for their nesting materials.

Anhingas prefer live branches.

It may have something to do with their feet and ability to land in live trees.

This fellow wasn’t having much luck and dropped at least one branch in the water below.

He made an empty trip back to the nest but pretty quickly returned to try again.

Magnolia Plantation & Gardens, Charleston, SC
February 23, 2023