Horned Grebe

Podiceps auritus

ALSO KNOWN AS SLAVONIAN GREBE

Photo by Steve G Central Highlands, Scotland.

Identification

A medium-sized grebe that overlaps in range with similar Black-necked Grebe (P. nigricollis). Blackish above, breast and flanks chestnut, belly white. Head black, lores chestnut continuing in a line over the eye culminating in a golden-yellow tuft towards nape. Hindneck dark brown, sides and front of neck chestnut. Iris red, bill black with pale tip, legs blackish or grey. Dark grey-brown above and white below. Hindneck grey-brown but sometimes broken by white of neck sides. Forehead and slightly peaked crown blackish down to level of eye, remainder of face white. As non-breeding adult but with diffuse border between dark and white on sides of head. Shows bold white patches on leading and trailing edges of wing. Distinctive in breeding plumage but difficult to distinguish from Black-necked Grebe in winter. Best features are the more clear-cut demarcation between dark and white on head and the straight rather than upturned bill. Length 31-38cm. Wingspan 60cm. In winter plumage when the Slavonian Grebe stretches its wings you see a rectangular white speculum...very clearly. The rest of the wing is dark.

Distribution

Widespread in the Northern Hemisphere. In North America breeds from central and southern Alaska, in western and central Canada east to the Great Lakes and breeds in the northern USA from Washington to Minnesota and Wisconsin. In Eurasia breeds in Iceland, the Faroes and Scotland, in Scandinavia and from the Baltic States eastwards to northern China, Sakhalin and Kamchatka.

Winters from the Aleutians south to California, rarely Baja California and Sonora, and in the east from Nova Scotia south to Florida and the Gulf Coast. In Europe winters in the southern Baltic, in the British Isles, from Norway south to north-west France, in the northern Mediterranean and the Black Sea. In the Far East winters in Japan, Korea and eastern and southern China.

Habitat

Breeds on small-large lakes, ponds and slow-flowing rivers, usually with some marginal vegetation and often associated with Black-headed Gull (Larus ridibundus) colonies in Eurasia. Winters on larger freshwaters including reservoirs and gravel-pits but more often on estuaries, sheltered bays an sea inlets.

Behaviour

Breeding begins late May in south of range to July in north. Breeds singly or colonially, nest is a low mound of vegetation anchored to emergent vegetation in shallow water. Eggs: 4 (sometimes 3-5, rarely up to 8), whitish initially soon becoming stained (45 x 31mm, smaller in Africa). Incubated by both sexes but mainly female for 22-25 days. Young tended by both sexes but male may take over while female begins new nest. Single-brooded, possibly double-brooded at times. Aquatic insects and their larvae, small fish and crustaceans taken in 30-35 second dives.

Bird Song

Variety of calls when breeding including a long trill. <flashmp3>Podiceps auritus (song).mp3</flashmp3>
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External Links

Search for photos of Horned Grebe in the gallery

• View more images of this species on Orientalbirdimages