Twitter has announced a new feature "Communities" as an alternative to Facebook's popular Groups where people can share discussions on a specific topic.

Twitter Community will have its own moderators who are able to set rules and invite or remove people. Twitter invited a handful of users to create the first Communities and will let anyone apply to create their own on its website.

"Communities are created and self-moderated by people on Twitter maybe even you! Like if you are passionate about birds of the Southern Hemisphere or soup, you could start a Community for that in the future," the company said in a tweet.

Twitter users can be invited to an initial batch of Communities that include #AstroTwitter, #DogTwitter, #SkincareTwitter, and #SoleFood (a group for sneaker enthusiasts).

"We are launching with a handful of Communities BUT we expect (and want!) new ones to be created every week. Our plan is to build and update Communities based on your feedback, so tell us how you *really* feel which honestly you're already very good at doing ," the company added.

Communities can be accessed through the navigation bar on iOS devices and on the web, there's a Communities option on the sidebar.

*Edited from an IANS report