Great Crested Grebes are slender, elegant birds, the size of a duck. White underside with grey-brown backs, bill and neck long. In the breeding season they are very distinctive in the breeding season for their head gear: a tufted crest atop their heads and on the sides of the head. These are chestnut and black and can be raised and fanned when the birds are alert, or courting. The young have dark stripes on their head. The elaborate courtship display takes place in the open water in the spring: partners mirror each others movements, including mock preening, head turning and much head shaking, which shows off the crest plumes. The display finishes by the pair first diving to collect weed and they emerging while raising their bodies over the water, chest to chest, in what is known as the 'penguin dance'. Great Crested Grebes feed mostly on fish, which they obtain by diving, and require small fish to feed their young, so they tend to live in lakes with plenty of marginal vegetation.
Status and distribution in Hull
Great Crested Grebes are scarce in Hull, but a pair or two usually nest at East Park and are present year round, so they are easy to watch. Other sites where single individuals are recorded occasionally are Oak Road Lake, Roebank Reservoir and Noddle Hill Lake.
Adult carrying one young on its back, being followed by three other young, 27 April 2014
A juvenile at East Park, 10 September 2019.
A parent bringing a fish to a juvenile, 18 June 2019.
An adult trying to manage a fish while chased by a juvenile, East Park, 5 October 2017.
When emerging from a dive the plumes are pressed against the head. East Park, 15 June 2021.
A Great Crested Grebe with a large fish, which it managed to swallow after a while. East Park, 9th September 2021.
Conservation and management
Great Crested Grebe populations are generally stable and they are Green listed.
More information
Broughton, Richard K. Birds of the Hull Area. Kingston Press. Hull, UK.
No comments:
Post a Comment