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Slavonian Grebe
last update: Mar 24, 2009 04:02 PM
Also known as the Horned Grebe
Latin name: Podiceps auritus
Population: 160,000-1,200,000 individuals
Cites classified: Least Concern
Where found: Northern Scandinavia, southern Russia, across the Bering Sea in Alaska, and central Canada
Age/ life expectancy: 5 years
Wingspan: 45-60 cm
Length: 18-25 cm
Weight: 350-450 cm
Mating/Breeding: The Slavonian Grebe breeds from April to August in solitary isolated pairs, small loose colonies occasionally forming on lakes with rich extensive feeding areas. Like all grebes, it nests on the water's edge, since its legs are set very far back and it cannot walk well. The nest is a platform of aquatic vegetation either floating and anchored to emergent vegetation, built from the lake bottom (where water is shallow), or built on rocks at water level. Usually 4-5 eggs are laid, and the striped young are carried on the adult's back.
Eggs: 4-5 white eggs, often red- or brown-stained
Hibernation: migrate to the coasts in winter
Hunting Habits: dives underwater for food and picks insects off water surface
Feed on: aquatic insects, fish, crustaceans, and other small aquatic animals
Predators: raccoons, crows, magpies, American coots, and gulls are the main predators of eggs while mink are the main predators of incubating adults
Colour/Body: Breeding adults have a reddish neck, breast, and flanks. The back and throat are dark, and the head is nearly black. Conspicuous orange-buff to golden ear plumes distinguish the species from other grebes and give it its name. The bills of horned grebes are dark and the breast is white. The winter plumage of horned grebes is rather drab. The cheeks, throat, and breast are white, with a dark crown, nape, and back. The bill is duller than in the breeding plumage. Male and female horned grebes are similar in appearance, but males are slightly larger, heavier and more brightly colored.
Interesting Trivia:
- The Horned Grebe regularly eats some of its own feathers, enough that its stomach usually contains a matted plug of them. This plug may function as a filter or may hold fish bones in the stomach until they can be digested. The parents even feed feathers to their chicks to get the plug started early.
