Wild grebe duck. Interesting facts about grebes

Great grebe bird, and even a dive - so many names for a whole family of waterfowl, which currently includes 19 species!

In the old days, their plumage was used as “fur”, and the population of these birds was on the verge of extinction. Fortunately, these barbaric times have passed and now the grebes are in no danger.

The bird was called a grebe for a reason. Grebe among the birds, which have ever been exterminated by man, are distinguished by tasteless meat, which smells very strongly of fish, which makes it impossible to eat.

Today the most common type is big grebe. Bird also called the dive (for its ability to dive to great depths).

In the photo the bird is a great grebe

Features and habitat of the grebe bird

Grebes are colorful with a long, sharp beak and graceful body. Their neck, chest and belly are white, their back is brown, and their sides are red. What is noteworthy is that the sex of the bird does not affect its plumage and in appearance both sexes are exactly the same.

The chicks are greyish-black, which helps them to camouflage themselves well in the reeds, where grebes usually hide their broods. The young birds remain inconspicuous and gray until the first mating season, when their plumage finally blossoms.

Grebes are very uncomfortable on land due to the structure of their legs, which are strongly set back, so they move with great difficulty. However, this feature makes them excellent swimmers.

In the photo, the red-necked grebe

The Pogankov family has collected very different birds. Thus, a great grebe weighs up to 1.5 kg, and the length of its body can compete with its length - as much as 51 cm. At the same time little grebe - bird, surprisingly small, because its weight does not exceed 150 grams.

Habitat of the Great Great Grebe – Central Europe, Asia, South America, some areas of Africa and Australia and New Zealand. Dives are active regardless of the time of day. These are solitary birds and only during nesting or cold periods they gather in groups.

Character and lifestyle of the grebe bird

Grebe bird, photo which photo hunters love to take, is a waterfowl and can be found almost everywhere. Freshwater lakes, swamps, ponds - here favorite places her habitat.

In the photo there is a little grebe bird

Pochards like to settle in places where the shore is overgrown with reeds or any other dense vegetation. Grebes prefer to spend the winter in the south, if in the summer they settled in the north, so the ducks are partially migratory.

In order to nest, Great Grebes return closer to the north at the end of February and only late autumn tend to leave the nesting site and fly away.

During migration, Grebes stick to riverbeds large rivers. They live either alone or in small flocks of a maximum of 7-8 individuals, less often in pairs. The great grebe's voice is loud, bright, even harsh. The sounds it makes are croaking: “krooo”, as well as “kuek-kuek”.

It is not for nothing that this bird was nicknamed the dive, because it swims and dives well. When feeding, the grebe dives for 30-40 seconds, however, in case of danger it can spend up to 3 minutes under water.

It moves underwater solely with the help of its legs. It can only take off from the water and have a long run; it flies quickly and straight. The grebe's entire life is spent on the water or in flight. On land, any bird from the order of grebes is extremely clumsy, waddles and walks with great difficulty.

Grebe bird feeding

Toadstools are divided into two large groups: Some eat fish, others prefer arthropods. Large species of grebes feed on fish, for example, great grebe, bird like the little grebe, it will choose crustacean food or mollusks, as well as insects and their larvae. Large grebes are capable of swallowing fish up to 20-25 cm in length.

In addition to fish and arthropods, grebes are very fond of eating aquatic tadpoles. Among the insects they prefer are bedbugs, stoneflies, and also.

Bird of the grebes family will not disdain plants, stones, even his own feathers. Grebe feathers are eaten only to protect the stomach from sharp fish bones. The feathers envelop the bones and other indigestible food, and the bird regurgitates it all out in the form of lumps.

When searching for food, the dive dives completely into the water to explore the bottom. These amazing creatures are capable of diving up to 25 meters! Underwater, the dive moves noticeably more quickly than on the water, and therefore swimming a couple of tens of meters underwater is not difficult.

Reproduction and lifespan of the grebe bird

Grebes form pairs that are monogamous in most cases. Mating dance of the majority large species The toadstool is distinguished by its complexity and spectacle. The partners move synchronously and their movements are similar to a real dance. Some species exchange algae after such a ritual, others complete the dance by immersion in water.

They mate exclusively on the shore and then select a territory for the future nest and carefully guard it. However, some species of grebes nest next to them and get along quite well next to them. In such settlements, ducks also play an important role for grebes, warning them of approaching enemies.

The photo shows a toadstool's nest

Waterfowl grebe even makes the nest floating. Attach the grebe nest to a reed or other suitable vegetation. The diameter of the nest can reach 50 cm or more.

Female grebes can lay up to 7 eggs, which, depending on the species, can be white, yellow or blue. Bird eggs are small and, at best, constitute approximately 5% of the weight of an adult bird.

Small species of grebe manage to hatch up to three clutches, large species have a maximum of two clutches, and most often one. Hatching of eggs takes up to 30 days. If the grebe leaves the nest, it covers it with plants, which camouflages the nest from enemies.

After hatching, the chicks hide on the mother’s back and allow the female to finish the incubation process. The male has the opportunity to feed the already hatched chicks.

The chicks spend up to 80 days on their parents' backs, until the moment when the chick becomes completely independent of its parents. They fight for food and most often not all chicks survive.

Approximately half of the hatched chicks die in the first 20-30 days after they are born. Life expectancy different types Grebes are different and, depending on the size and habitat, vary from 10 to 30 years.

The grebe bird (or “Great Grebe”) belongs to a rather rare order of Grebes, and in fact has absolutely nothing to do with the variety of poisonous mushrooms.

They called it that because of certain characteristics of the meat, which has a repulsive odor and even less pleasant taste qualities. However, this distinguishing feature saves the bird from numerous attacks by hunters, who become especially active with the opening of the season, when the shooting of ducks is officially permitted.

Appearance of the noble grebes

It is not difficult to recognize a great grebe, even from afar. On the head in summer time vertical feathers grow that resemble horns or a crown. They have a multi-colored color, which makes the bird stand out from other representatives of the avifauna. The bird is considered quite large, its average weight is about a kilogram. The back of the great grebe is brown or red, and the belly, neck and head have white color. In the spring, on early stages plumage, a red collar forms around the neck, which disappears without a trace by winter.

Males differ from females primarily in size. The wing length of a male individual can exceed 20 cm. The body length reaches 50 cm, and the wingspan can reach up to a meter. The thin beak has a reddish color. A special feature of the great grebe is its paws, which work in the form of screws. With their help, the bird is able to quickly turn 90 degrees and change the direction of its movement both along and across the original trajectory. The grebe's paws have special membranes that allow it to dive several meters into the water, swim at depth, and generally control its body perfectly in the water column.

Today, ornithologists around the world know about 18 species of grebes. Due to the unfavorable environmental situation and widespread pollution of water bodies, 5 of these species are listed in the Red Book as an endangered species. A few decades ago, poachers encroached on the beautiful plumage of birds, when women's fur coats with similar fur inserts were in fashion. This also played a role decisive role in reducing the population of the grebe duck.

Habitat

Great grebes are found in fresh, quiet water bodies throughout almost all of Eurasia. It lives in reeds and river thickets, choosing low-flowing water bodies for life. This is important when the Great Grebe has offspring and starts building a nest.

The nests of Grebe ducks are one of the most original; their home looks like a raft, built mainly from reeds. The nest is either attached to reeds and thickets, or drifts freely through the water. Great grebes often have to strengthen the nest due to constant moisture in order to prevent it from flooding.

Lifestyle

The great grebe feels extremely uncomfortable within the confines of land. She moves poorly on it because she has short legs. Another thing is water, in which the bird moves excellently, since it can swim and dive perfectly. When diving under water, it uses only its paws, covering long distances under water. The grebe duck presses its wings to its body, which improves hydrodynamics. In case of danger, the great grebe immediately dives into the depths.

Great grebe is extremely rarely flies to Everyday life . These birds cover long distances in flight only for wintering. This duck spends almost its entire life in water. It can be seen underwater or in the water, very rarely in flight and almost never on the shore. They may only come ashore to stay warm or clean themselves. On land, grebes are clumsy and move heavily, so they rush to return to their familiar and comfortable environment.

Birds of prey are the main enemies of the grebe duck. These include:

crow;
marsh harrier.

These birds destroy the nests of grebes, feeding on eggs. When the chicks hatch, they should beware predatory fish large sizes.

There was a time when the great grebe was often hunted for its feathers. This is due to the fashion for fur decorations made from the feathers of the great grebe. This extermination led to a reduction in the number of the species. Now the problem has been solved and the bird is not in danger of extinction.

Bird nutrition and natural enemies

The grebe duck spends almost all its time in the water. Accordingly, this is where he gets his food. Insects, frogs, mollusks, and crustaceans are used. Fish is considered the main food. Ornithologists have not yet established the reason for one of the feeding features - the duck regularly swallows feathers. As a result, several feather clumps accumulate in the stomach. Some scientists claim that this way the grebe digests food better. Others agree that the lumps are a kind of strainer for fish bones.

Natural enemies include the marsh harrier. But even such a seasoned predator is not easy to catch a crested bird. If a harrier appears in the field of view, the duck, together with the brood, dives under the water and swims up 20 meters from its original location. The babies hold the feathers on their backs tightly with their claws and perform the maneuver together with their mother.

The grebe duck is a very interesting bird, which ornithologists never tire of admiring, noticing more and more new features.

Reproduction

Great grebes live in permanent mated pairs. Having appeared at the nesting sites at the end of winter, the birds begin lekking rituals, which present a very picturesque spectacle. First, the grebes swim towards each other with their heads down, and then, straightening their necks, they show their collars and double crests on their heads to their partner. In the second part of the ballet, one of the birds opens its wings and bends down to the water, while its partner continually plunges headlong into the water. From time to time, the grebes spread out to the sides and converge again.

Another figure of the mating ritual is the “penguin dance”: swimming up to each other, the partners vigorously row with their paws and stretch out vertically, putting their chest and belly forward. Sometimes grebes perform this complex trick while holding a bunch of torn plants in their beaks.

In April, it’s time to start building a nest, which is a raft made of reed stems and branches and either floats among the reeds or rests on the bottom. The female lays from 2 to 6 (usually 4) whitish eggs, and both spouses incubate the clutch in turn. When leaving the nest in danger, birds hastily cover it with plant material.

After 27-29 days, the eggs hatch into chicks, which, barely dry, leave the nest and swim and dive well from the first days of life. A striped children's outfit perfectly hides them from prying eyes in the thicket of reeds. For up to 3 weeks, parents carry their babies on their backs and hide them in their feathers from danger. At first, adults feed the chicks with fish and small aquatic life. After 10-11 weeks, young grebes leave the care of their elders and gain independence. At favorable conditions a pair of grebes produces two broods per season.

The Lesser Grebe is the smallest of the entire series, weighing no more than 150 grams.
The Great Grebe occasionally swallows its own feathers. This has no nutritional value, however does important function, enveloping sharp fish bones with fluff, protects the stomach and intestines from damage.
The Latin name of the genus is given because the grebe's legs are carried far back, so the birds have problems moving on land.

There are many waterfowl in the world. The great grebe can be called unusual and surprising. This bird also has another name - the great grebe.

Why is it called that, what does the bird look like, what are the features of its way of life will be discussed in this article.

Description of appearance

The grebe bird belongs to the aquatic birds of the Grebe family, which is considered quite rare. It is slightly smaller in size than an adult duck. The body length is 46-61 cm, and with a wingspan it reaches 85-90 cm. It has a thin neck and an elongated straight beak of red color. Its weight can be from 700 g to 1.5 kg. Males are always a little larger than females and they also weigh a little more.

In birds, the entire body is adapted for swimming. Their legs work like screws and only the great grebe has this feature. The fingers are equipped with special skin folds. They can turn 90°, stand along and across the movement. The bird easily dives under water, like a submarine. It sinks to a depth of 6-7 meters without any problems and can swim 50-60 meters in just half a minute. She owes this to her unique legs.

In winter, the bird's head is dark gray with two light spots on the back of the head. On the back there are dark feathers with light edging at the ends. The chest and belly of the great grebe are white. With the onset of mating season, a dirty orange collar appears around the neck. Dark feathers similar to ears grow on the head.

It got its name great grebe because of its tasteless meat. It has a pungent and unpleasant odor.

Habitat

This species of birds is widespread, but most grebes nest in the following areas:

Australia;
Africa;
New Zealand;
Europe;
Asia.

She leads sedentary lifestyle only in the southern regions. For the winter, it flies to warmer places. They mainly move to the southern part of Europe and Asia. Great grebes migrate to southern regions with warm climates, if in the places where they live, water bodies are covered with ice in winter.

For nesting they choose bodies of water with standing water or very slow currents. Dense vegetation along water bodies is prerequisite for nesting of the grebe duck.

Lifestyle

Great grebe is extremely rarely flies in everyday life. These birds cover long distances in flight only for wintering. This duck spends almost its entire life in water. It can be seen underwater or in the water, very rarely in flight and almost never on the shore. They may only come ashore to stay warm or clean themselves. On land, grebes are clumsy and move heavily, so they rush to return to their familiar and comfortable environment.

Birds of prey are the main enemies of the grebe duck. These include:

crow;
marsh harrier.

These birds destroy the nests of grebes, feeding on eggs. When chicks hatch, they should beware of large predatory fish.

What does it eat?

Because big toadstools spend almost all their time in the water, it is the most convenient living environment for them. This also affected the diet of birds. In the diet small and medium-sized fish predominate. Grebes also feed on other inhabitants of water bodies:

frogs;
aquatic insects;
crustaceans;
aquatic vegetation.

Grebe ducks obtain food by diving under water. They can stay there for up to 17 seconds. However, there have been cases when great grebes, diving into the depths, became entangled in fishing nets. They were found at a depth of 30 meters. IN winter time they are forced to dive deeper to get food. It happens that grebes swallow their own feathers along with food. After eating, they regurgitate them along with fish bones.

Reproduction

Great grebes have an unusual and surprising mating ritual. During this period, two tufts of dark feathers similar to horns appear on the back of their heads. Long feathers in the form of sideburns are formed at the bottom of the head.

Birds display various postures with their wings unfolded. They stretch their necks, stand in a column one in front of the other, holding a pinch of algae in their beaks. Grebe ducks make very loud sounds during the mating season that can be heard from afar.

After choosing partners, the birds begin to arrange a rather unusual nest. It is built on a small pile of dry vegetation or on an island of floating peat. For construction, leaves and stems of reeds floating on the water surface are selected. The nest looks like a pile of rotten vegetation floating on the water. Inside the structure there is a special recess for laying eggs.

The female lays 5-6 eggs white. They are elongated in shape with pointed edges. Due to the putrefactive vegetation in which the eggs lie, they gradually acquire a brown color. Such a nest is not only located on the water, but also drifts. Usually after a while the nest becomes half flooded. If the female needs to leave the nest, then she covers the eggs with vegetation.

Rotten vegetation contributes to flooding of the birds' homes, but such a nest is very warm. This helps to hatch offspring quickly and safely. The chicks are born after 24 days, but not at the same time. The chicks hatch at intervals of 1-2 days.

The offspring that are born have fluff and can swim. The chicks immediately hide under their mother's feathers. The offspring often sits on her back. The mother swims with the chicks and often dives under water.

Grebe - order of Grebes, a bird of the Grebe family

Great grebe (Podiceps cristatus). Habitats - Australia, Asia, Africa, Europe, New Zealand. Body length 50 cm Weight up to 1.4 kg

Grebes have long been called grebes in Rus'. But why are they called toadstools? The name is given to this beautiful and interesting birds because of the disgusting taste of their meat. This fairly large family includes about 20 species leading an exclusively aquatic lifestyle. They are widespread throughout both the Old and New Worlds, with the exception of their coldest regions. The great grebe spends its entire life on the water - here it rests, feeds, and breeds chicks. The bird swims beautifully and dives superbly, reaching depths of several meters. Its prey is various aquatic animals, mainly fish. During the mating season, grebes have a large collar on their necks, and the feathers of two crests, similar to horns, lengthen on their heads.

These birds nest exclusively on the water, constructing either floating nests from reeds or placing them on hummocks. The grebe also successfully nests even in reservoirs with an excessively high anthropogenic load on the banks, but only under the condition of minimal human visits to the reservoirs during nesting time, since otherwise the clearly visible and easily accessible clutches of the grebe become easy prey for children, domestic animals and corvids. As a result, nesting of the great grebe is possible only in bodies of water that are closed to boating and swimming: in fish ponds, in settling tanks, water intake areas of reservoirs, etc.

Koўra vyalikaya, or grebe (previously - Paganka vyalikaya)

The entire territory of Belarus

Family Grebes - Podicipedidae

In Belarus - P. c. cristatus (a subspecies that inhabits the entire Palearctic part of the species' range).

Breeding, migratory and transit migrating and in small numbers wintering species. Distributed throughout Belarus. The most common and largest of our 5 types of grebes. Common in nesting grounds and on migration in all regions of the republic where suitable stations are available. It is most common in the Vitebsk, northwestern parts of the Minsk and Grodno regions, as well as in the lake areas of the Brest region. In the eastern regions of Mogilev and Gomel regions. great grebes appear mainly on passages, nest rarely due to the lack of necessary land (lakes overgrown with reeds at the edges and with open areas waters, large backwaters and river branches).

Waterfowl, the largest of the grebes, smaller domestic duck, the size of a mallard. The body is well adapted to aquatic environment: streamlined, roll-shaped, covered with dense feathers. The neck is long and thin, almost vertical in a swimming bird. The legs are carried far back. The toes are not connected by a continuous membrane, but each toe is bordered along the sides along its entire length by a wide paddle blade. The claws are flat, nail-shaped. The wings are short and narrow.

The tail feathers are rudimentary, the tail is very short, almost invisible in a swimming bird. The beak is straight, pointed. The tarsus is strongly compressed laterally, flat.

In Belarus, only one species is similar to the grebe - the gray-cheeked grebe, which is listed in the Red Book of the Republic of Belarus. The great grebe is different from it large sizes, a bright “collar” and (adult) reddish beak, in winter - a white neck.

Males and females have the same coloration. In breeding plumage, the top is blackish-brown, the belly and neck in front are satin-white. The feathers on the sides are rusty-red. There is a dark cap on the head, white cheeks, a well-developed chestnut-red “collar” on the neck, black at the edges. On the crown there are 2 long tufts (“ears”) of black feathers. In the first winter plumage there is no “collar” or “ears” and, in general, young birds are more dull in color, with a yellow-green beak. The beak in adults is dark horny in color, the edges and base of the beak are red. Legs olive-greenish in color. The rainbow is bright red. Downy chicks are motley, with longitudinal white stripes remaining on the sides of the neck and on the chest.

The weight of males is 0.95-1.6 kg, females 0.8-1.1 kg. Body length of males is 53-59 cm; wing length of males 18-20 cm, females 17.5-19 cm; tarsus of male tarsus 6-7 cm, females 6 cm; beak of males 5-5.5 cm, females 4.5-5 cm. Wingspan 81-90 cm.

The great grebes spend almost all their time on the water. The landing position on the water is low, with a long straight neck rising above the elongated body. Swims and dives well, moving tens of meters under water.

In case of danger, it dives instantly, without the slightest splash. Can stay under water for up to 3 minutes. It takes off only from the water after a long run. The flight is straight, fast, with frequent wing beats. However, it is not often possible to see a flying bird - the grebe is extremely reluctant to take to its wing. On land it moves with difficulty and hobbles.

The voice is very loud and varied. Voice (Fedyushin and Dolbik) - a rather loud croaking cry “krroo”, as well as a repeated “kuek-kuek”. Other authors (Kozulin and others) indicate that in the spring it makes a guttural cry “kkua”, and the call is a jerky “kuik”.

During migration, grebes stick to the beds of large rivers, feed and rest on the open reaches of lakes. On the Dnieper, Pripyat, Berezina, Sozha they can be seen at this time alone, in pairs or small flocks of 3-4, less often 5-8 birds.

Spring migration begins at the end of March - beginning of April, after the opening of reservoirs and continues until the end of the month. In early springs, birds arrive 10–14 days earlier than average, in cold and long springs - about the same number of days later. Nests on ponds(lakes, fish ponds, reservoirs, river backwaters), but with the obligatory presence there of both a sufficient width of a strip of thickets of surface vegetation and areas of open, sufficiently deep water. As a rare exception, nesting on the sandy shores of reservoir islands, devoid of vegetation, is known. Avoids small forest reservoirs, rare on small floodplain lakes.

It settles in monogamous pairs, but in favorable places it can form nesting aggregations of several to two dozen pairs, sometimes up to 100 pairs. On small bodies of water it often nests in separate pairs.

Nesting is preceded by mating games with demonstrations of various lekking poses. The main function of mating games is the formation of the most harmonious pairs and therefore it is not necessary that they end in mating. As nest construction begins, the intensity of mating ceremonies decreases.

Birds do not begin nesting soon, usually from the end of May,

when young reeds or reeds rise above the water. However,

The timing of nesting and egg laying of grebes depends on their habitat.

On lakes where dry reeds and nests from last year are preserved

can be immediately hidden in it, clutches appear earlier than in the open

covered lakes or where reeds are mowed down.

The laying of eggs is also preceded by complex mating games between the male and female, during which both birds first dive simultaneously and, having emerged, quickly swim towards each other, raising the crests on their heads and protruding the feathers of their collars. Having approached, the birds seem to stand on the water, giving their bodies vertical position. When diving, they take out bunches of greenery from the bottom and, holding them in their beaks, shake their prey, trying to strike each other.

Mating of great grebes, however, does not occur on the water, but on a floating flooring made from the remains of last year's reeds or on an unfinished nest.

Alexander Eslikov, Shchetinka quarry, Orsha

The nest is located, as a rule, among tall coastal thickets, in the absence of a breakwater - often along their very edge. They avoid nesting in the middle of continuous thickets. The nests are located at such a distance from the edge of the thicket that a strong wave cannot destroy them. Most nests are found among reeds, although they can often be found in reeds, cattails, or among flooded bushes. Sometimes, at the border of vast dense thickets, the bird makes nests in a very small clump of vegetation or even completely openly in shallow water.

Near colonies of gulls, grebes sometimes build nests directly on the sand under the cover of sparse reeds.

Both members of the pair build nests together. At the nesting site, the pair usually first builds several nesting platforms, but uses only one to build the nest, and mates or rests on the rest. The nest floats or rests on the bottom of the reservoir. Building one nest usually takes from 3 to 8 days, sometimes up to 10–11 days. When building it, the bird, as a rule, places several strong stems between plants protruding from the water as a base. The composition of the building material largely depends on the nature of the surrounding vegetation. They can serve as last year's stems, leaves, rhizomes, roots, and algae. Nest height 24-49 cm, height of the above-water part of the nest 3-7 cm, diameter 41-55 cm; tray depth 2.5-4 cm, diameter 11-17 cm. There are sometimes bunches of green plants in the tray. In nests found on open sandy shores, in building material

turned out to be fragments of tree branches.

Alexander Eslikov, Shchetinka quarry, Orsha

Under the weight of the brooding bird, the warmed masonry often ends up partially submerged in water. The heat from decomposing plant debris creates a special microclimate for incubating eggs.

The great grebe, despite its early arrival, coinciding with the release of ice from water bodies, begins nesting late and breeds offspring once a year. In general, the egg-laying period lasts approximately one month. In some reservoirs, as a result of significant fluctuations in water level, strong waves or other reasons, the first clutches often die. In such cases, the bird resorts to repeated nesting.

The nesting period in Belarus extends from the beginning of May to the end of July. The laying of eggs in the great grebe usually occurs in the first half of the day; the interval between egg laying is 1–2 days. Incubation begins with the first or second egg. The duration of incubation is 25–28 days. Disturbed during incubation, the bird covers the clutch with nest material and dives, surfacing far to the side. In various parts of the range, one egg in a clutch is usually unfertilized.

Both parents incubate alternately. The chicks hatch on the 27-28th day of incubation; they are of the brood type and, having barely dried, go to the water. Chicks hatch one at a time every 1–2 days.

Mass appearance of chicks occurs in the third ten days of June - the first ten days of July. In some pairs, the chicks hatch in the first - second ten days of June, in others in the third ten days of July - first ten days of August. The average size of a brood with downy chicks is 1-5 chicks. The hatched chicks, having dried, immediately climb onto the back of the incubating parent and bury themselves in the feathers. In the same way, small chicks travel through a pond. They do this even when they reach half the height of an adult bird. For the first ten weeks they cannot obtain food themselves. Their parents feed them first with insects and then with fish. At this time, the squeak of chicks begging for food from adult birds is constantly heard in the pond. The chicks swim well, but grow slowly and stay with their parents for a long time. If there is one chick in the brood, then only one parent remains with it. If there are more chicks, then after 1–1.5 months the brood is divided, and each parent leads his own group.

After the striped downy plumage (individual downy feathers remain until autumn), the young put on a juvenile plumage, generally similar to the adult, but with a barely outlined “collar” of nape feathers. There are still brownish-black stripes on the sides of the head, which gives the plumage of the head a resemblance to a downy outfit. After juvenile

Moulting birds put on a winter prenuptial plumage, almost indistinguishable from the mating plumage of adult birds.

The change from breeding plumage to winter plumage occurs in birds from June to the end of July. Adult molting begins immediately after the nesting period, mostly in July, and continues until November. The flight feathers apparently change simultaneously. In winter, from February to April, only small feathers change. Winter plumage is replaced by breeding plumage at the end of wintering - in March - April.

Great grebes are active during the daytime. They forage for food during daylight hours. During the breeding season (leok), they are also active at night. They also migrate at night. They rest afloat; during the breeding season, they often use for rest the nests left behind after the eggs are incubated and the chicks emerge, or additional ones built.

Valery Kiselev, reservoir microdistrict. "Gomselmash", Gomel

The main food of great grebes is fish, mainly small sizes(3-8 cm). In their diet, fish takes up a much larger part than other types of grebes. IN different seasons year, the percentage of fish consumption by poultry always remains quite high. In addition to fish, it catches aquatic insects (swimmers and other bugs), amphipods, and mollusks. They swallow their own small feathers, not only adult birds, but also downy chicks that swallow the feathers of adults.

The chicks are fed insects and fish. Great grebes dive, get food and swim to the chicks with food in their beaks. In addition, grebes also collect food from the surface of the water; in a semi-submerged state, with their head and neck lowered under the water, they grab flying insects in the air.

The main method of obtaining food for grebes is diving. Great grebes dive up to three times per minute and swim 6–25 m underwater in 10–30 seconds. On average, 1 out of 5 attempts to catch fish is successful.

Autumn departure and migration of birds in southwestern Belarus occurs mainly in half of September - October, in some years until mid-November. As an exception, during autumn migration there are flocks of several tens and even hundreds of individuals, often in flocks of 3-5 birds. In autumn, the bulk of grebes arrive in the second half of September and October. Individuals are also found later. In the Grodno region. some individuals even spend the winter in ice-free areas of the Neman. In the southwest of Belarus, up to 10–20 individuals winter in some years in the non-freezing sections of the Mukhavets, Western Bug and wastewater treatment plants.

Alexander Eslikov, Shchetinka quarry, Orsha

It is not a hunting species (like other grebes) - m clear them although edible, it has dark color and an unpleasant fishy taste and smell. Grebes are sometimes shot while hunting ducks. The harm caused by eating fish fry can only be really noticeable in the nursery ponds of fish farms.

The main enemies of the great grebe during the nesting period are marsh harrier, magpie, hoodie, which peck at the masonry. A certain part of the puffballs die from marsh harriers and large birds of prey, pike. Many nests also die from fluctuations in water levels and strong waves. Birds are dying in fishing nets.

However, in Lately, despite high percent death of nests, the number of great grebes is progressing, which is facilitated by the expansion of the network of fish farms and other artificial reservoirs.

The number of great grebes in Belarus in the 1990s. was estimated at 8–10 thousand breeding pairs. It remained the same in the early 2000s. When wintering on non-freezing reservoirs, no more than 50-60 individuals are recorded. Over the past 20 years, there has been a slight increase in numbers, which is associated with the expansion of the network of fish farms and other artificial reservoirs.

3. Nikiforov M.E., Yaminsky B.V., Shklyarov L.P. "Birds of Belarus: A guide to nests and eggs" Minsk, 1989. -479 p.

4. Gaiduk V. E., Abramova I. V. "Ecology of birds in the southwest of Belarus. Non-passerines: monograph." Brest, 2009. –300 p.

5. Kozulin A.V., Yaminsky B.V., Zuenok S.V. “Hunting birds of Belarus.” Reference guide. Smolensk, 2002. -100 p.

6. Nikiforov M. E., Kozulin A. V., Sidorovich V. E. “Hunting birds and animals of Belarus.” Minsk, 1991. -240 p.

7. Fransson, T., Jansson, L., Kolehmainen, T., Kroon, C. & Wenninger, T. (2017) EURING list of longevity records for European birds.