Page 64 - Complete Birds of Britain and Europe (DK - RSPB)

DIVERS AND GREBES
Order Podicipediformes Family Podicipedidae Species Podiceps auritus
Slavonian Grebe flat crown

stiff golden-
yellow wedge
on black head
straight, short,
rust-red pale-tipped bill
flanks
dumpy shape
white patch
on small rust-red neck
wings
ADULT (SUMMER)
IN FLIGHT
ADULT
(SUMMER)
well-defined
white cheeks
black and
pale bill tip white head
large white
cheeks
white
flanks
white small whitish
foreneck spot in front
of eye
white
foreneck
ADULT and breast
IMMATURE (1ST WINTER) (WINTER)
bird of remote, upland, northern pools in
Asummer, the Slavonian Grebe is then easy to FLIGHT: low, quick; may patter across water surface.
identify. Its complex head pattern and plumes are
used in display: like other grebes, the sexes are alike.
In winter, in stark black and white plumage, it is
much more like some other grebes. It typically breeds
in loose groups of three or four pairs, and spends the
winter in twos and threes at most.These may be
seen near Black-necked Grebes in favoured spots.
VOICE High, fast, whistling trills in summer; usually
silent in winter.
NESTING Pile of weeds anchored to reed or sedge
stem; 4 or 5 eggs; 1 brood;April–July. NEST BUILDING
FEEDING Dives to find small fish; in summer, mostly Slavonian Grebes build soggy heaps of water weeds in which to lay their
feeds on insects and various aquatic crustaceans. eggs, covering them for safety when they leave the nest.
SIMILAR SPECIES OCCURRENCE
Breeds in cool, wild pools with
BLACK-NECKED GREBE winter, yellow bill-base some fringing vegetation in
similar to adult winter;
see p.63 Iceland, N Scotland, and N and
E Europe. In winter, mostly on
duskier cheeks
sea in NW Europe, especially
dusky on muddy estuaries, more rarely
uptilted bill foreneck on reservoirs and pits inland.
RED-NECKED GREBE winter,
similar to adult winter; Seen in the UK
see p.60 J F M A M JJ A S O N D
Length 31–38cm (12–15in) Wingspan 59–65cm (23–26in) Weight 375–450g (13–16oz)
Social Pairs/Small flocks Lifespan Up to 10 years Status Secure†
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