Grebe

Grebe, common name for any member of an order of water birds, superficially resembling ducks and loons, but entirely unrelated to either. The feet of grebes, unlike those of ducks and loons, have three unconnected, flattened, flaplike toes; the fourth toe is separate and very small. Their legs are placed far back on their bodies and are not suitable for walking but enable the birds to swim powerfully. The plumage, especially on the breast, is dense and silky. The body color of most grebes is brown or gray. In spring and summer, many have tufts of feathers on the head and reddish-brown patches on head and neck. In winter, most assume a plumage much like that of immature grebes—gray above and white below. Grebes are about 33 to 74 cm (about 13 to 29 in) long. The majority nest in swamps and on the edges of ponds. Some birds nest on plant matter floating near the edge of the water. The nests of all species are made of vegetation such as grass and reeds and lined with softer material. The eggs usually number from three to five.

When the stomach of a grebe is opened, it is often found to contain more than 50 percent feathers. Grebes not only eat feathers—apparently their own—but also feed them to their young. Ornithologists have speculated that the feathers perform a straining function for hard, ingested substances, such as fish bones.

Of the 21 species of grebes, seven breed in North America. The most widely distributed is the pied-billed grebe, which nests from central Canada to southern South America. It is named for the black band across its short, thick bill. The largest North American species are the western and Clark's grebes, which are so similar that they were long thought to be color phases of a single species. They differ in face pattern and in the color and shape of the bill.

Scientific classification: Grebes make up the order Podicipediformes. The pied-billed grebe is classified as Podilymbus podiceps, the western grebe as Aechmophorus occidentalis, and Clark's grebe as Aechmophorus clarkii.

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