Eared grebe
Podiceps nigricollis
Identification Tips:
- Sexes similar
- Small, stocky-bodied grebe with short, thin bill
with lower mandible beveled upwards at the tip
- Black bill with no pale tip
- Feet set far back on body and trail awkwardly behind body in
flight
- Head triangular, with a peak towards the center of the head
- White secondaries visible in flight
Adult alternate:
- Black head with a golden ray of feathers radiating from behind
eye
- Black neck and back
- Reddish flanks
Adult basic:
- Slate-gray head, face, hindneck and back
- White chin contrasts with dark face and dusky foreneck
- Whitish flanks and belly
Similar species:
Pied-billed Grebe has thick, horn-colored bill and brown
plumage. Red-necked Grebe is much larger, and has a longer bill that
is yellow at the base. Horned Grebe is similar, but has a straighter
bill without an uptilt at the tip and a blockier head without a
peak at the center of the crown. In basic plumage Horned Grebe has
a white face, while in alternate plumage it is separated by the
golden eyeline and reddish neck. Birds in transition between basic
and alternate plumage are best distinguished by structural features,
as the plumage can be quite variable.