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Pied-billed
Grebe
Podilymbus podiceps
[Published
in 1919: Smithsonian Institution United States National Museum
Bulletin 107: 39-47]
This widely distributed and well-known bird, the little
"dabchick," is practically resident, or nearly so,
throughout the southern portion of its range, though probably
there is a general movement southward in winter and the summer
residents are therefore not the same individuals that are seen in
that region in winter. The dates given below show that this grebe
is an early migrant, pushing northward soon after the ice has left
our northern ponds and streams. Its favorite haunts when migrating
are small sheltered ponds and streams where it can paddle about in
comfort and seek shelter, when danger threatens, among the bushes,
reeds or grasses which line the shores or where it may hide under
the protecting vegetation of overhanging banks. In such situations
it seems to vanish mysteriously, skulking in some sheltered nook,
with only its bill above water, well deserving its common name of
"water witch."
Courtship.--Audubon's (1840)
spirited drawing of the "pied-billed dabchick," as he
calls it, shows this bird in the midst of active courtship, which
is a lively performance; the ardent suitor rushes about in the
most excited manner, splashing along over the surface of the water
or repeatedly diving below it and coming up again near his
intended mate and voicing his admiration in a variety of soft
cooing notes.
Nesting.--As soon as their love
affairs are settled the grebes begin to search for a suitable
nesting site. This is generally well chosen and the nest more
successfully concealed than is the case with the other grebes. The
nature of the nesting site varies considerably in different
localities.
Mr. William Brewster (1906) describes a former nesting site of
the pied-billed grebe in Massachusetts as follows:
One June 13, 1891, Mr. Walter Faxon found a number of
pied-billed grebes breeding at Great Meadow. There can be little
doubt that they had been established there for some time previous
to this, for the shallow brush-grown reservoir which they
inhabited had then been in existence for nearly 20 years. On the
occasion just mentioned, Mr. Faxon saw or heard at least six or
eight different birds, one of which was accompanied by chicks only
a few days old, and on April 27, 1892, he discovered a nest
containing five fresh eggs.
During the following eight years Great Meadow was frequently
visited by our local ornithologists, and the manners and customs
of the grebes were closely studied. One or two birds often
appeared in the pond as soon as it was free from ice--this
sometimes happening before the close of March--and by the middle
of April the full colony was usually reestablished. It was
difficult to judge as to how many members it contained, for they
were given to haunting the flooded thickets, and we seldom saw
more than three or four of them on any one occasion; but at times,
especially in the early morning and late afternoon when the
weather was clear and calm their loud cuckoo-like calls and odd
whinnying outcries would come in quick succession from so many
different parts of the pond that one might have thought there were
scores of birds. Probably the total number of pairs did not ever
exceed a dozen, while during some seasons there were apparently
not more than five or six. They built their interesting floating
nests in water a foot or more in depth, anchoring them to the
stems of the sweet gale and button bushes, and laying from five to
eight eggs, which usually were covered by the bird whenever she
left them. Although a few sets of eggs were taken by collectors,
the grebes reared a fair number of young every season, and without
doubt they would have continued to resort to Great Meadow for an
indefinite period had not the reservoir been abandoned, and its
water almost completely drained in the autumn of 1901; since then
the birds have ceased, of course, to frequent the place.
The pied-billed grebe is not easily driven from its favorite
nesting haunts by the encroachments of civilization and is
occasionally found nesting in suitable localities in thickly
settled regions or near our large cities. A striking instance of
this is shown in Mr. Clinton G. Abbott's (1907) account of the
nesting of this species in the Hackensack Meadows, near New York
City, in 1906, where an extensive cat-tail swamp offered a
congenial home for grebes and gallinules.
Mr. Arthur T. Wayne (1910) says of its breeding habits in South
Carolina:
This is an abundant permanent resident, breeding in
fresh-water ponds or large rice-field reservoirs, where the water
is generally from 4 to 10 feet deep. The birds are mated by the
last of February, and the nests, which are commenced about the
middle of March, are composed of decayed vegetable matter anchored
to buttonwood bushes or reeds.
In the North Dakota sloughs, in 1901, we found the pied-billed
grebe nesting abundantly, in company with canvasbacks, redheads,
ruddy ducks, and coots, and examined a large number of nests,
which may be considered as fairly typical of its normal nesting
habits throughout the greater portion of its breeding range. The
depth of water in which the nest is located varies greatly, but
most of the nests are placed in water not over 3 feet deep. The
nests are usually anchored to, or built up around or among, dead
or growing reeds or rushes. Sometimes they are well concealed in
thick clumps of reeds, but usually they can be easily seen,
although not so conspicuous as those of the horned or eared
grebes. The nests are generally scattered and only a few pairs of
birds were found in each slough. When located in deep water the
nest is strictly a floating affair, but otherwise it is more often
partially connected with the bottom. A large amount of material is
collected and piled up into a bulky mass, mostly below the surface
of the water, often large enough to fill a bushel basket; on top
of this, above the water, a smaller and neater nest is built. The
material consists of whatever the bird can conveniently find in
the vicinity in the way of decayed vegetable matter, dead reeds,
flags, rushes, or grasses; sometimes fresh, green flags are mixed
in with the rubbish and often the whole structure is plastered
together with a quantity of soft, green vegetable scum which grows
in stagnant water. This wet and slimy structure is built up but a
few inches above the water, usually from 2 to 4 inches, and
measures about a foot in diameter; the nest cavity is but slightly
hollowed and the eggs are partially buried in the soft material.
Eggs.--The pied-billed grebe lays
from 3 to 10 eggs, but the extremes are rare and the set usually
consists of from 5 to 7 eggs. In shape the eggs are
"elliptical ovate" or "elliptical oval,"
sometimes almost "fusiform." The shell is generally
smooth, with a slight luster, but sometimes dotted with small
excrescences or lumps. The color of the clean, freshly laid egg is
dull bluish white or pale olive white, but it soon becomes stained
or clouded with various buffy shades; some sets are uniformly
stained as dark as "wood-brown" or "Isabella
color"; generally more or less mud and bits of nesting
material sticks to the egg, giving it a mottled appearance.
The measurements of 48 eggs in the United States National
Museum collection average 43.4 by 30 millimeters; the eggs showing
the four extremes measure 47 by 30, 44 by 32, 39
by 29.5, and 44 by 28 millimeters.
Mr. C. H. Pease made some interesting observations on the
nesting operations of this species at Canaan, Connecticut, during
May and June, 1913. He sent the results of his observations
to Dr. Louis B. Bishop, who has given them to me. On May 22 he
found the nest completed and the first egg laid; on May 28 the
eighth and last egg was laid, one having been laid each day. The
first two eggs hatched on June 15, one in the forenoon and one in
the afternoon; and the last egg hatched at 9:15 in the morning of
June 21; the record shows that the period of incubation, in this
case, was from 23 to 24 days. On June 22, the day after the last
egg hatched, only one young bird was left in the nest. On July 3
he saw the whole family of eight, "half grown in less than
two weeks."
Both sexes incubate. So far as I know only one brood is raised
in a season; but there are some very early and very late dates for
nesting which may indicate two broods. The question of whether
this grebe regularly incubates its eggs or leaves them to be
hatched by the warmth of decaying vegetation has provoked
considerable discussion. Like all the smaller grebes, it
frequently covers its eggs, with the soft material of which the
nest is composed, when it leaves its nest; but this is not always
done and often, when the bird is surprised and forced to leave in
a hurry, it does not have time to do so. The pied-billed grebe is
seldom seen sitting on its nest. I have examined a great many
nests and have attempted to approach cautiously enough to catch a
glimpse of the incubating bird, but have never been able to see
one on its nest; some other observers have been more fortunate. I
believe that it incubates regularly during the greater part of the
time. It is one of the shyest of the grebes; it slips away from
its nest on the slightest alarm and keeps out of sight. I have
watched for an hour or more within sight of half a dozen nests and
not caught a glimpse of a single grebe, although they were
undoubtedly watching me all the time.
Young.--The young are very
precocious and leave the nest soon after they are hatched; usually
some of the young are swimming about before the last of the eggs
have hatched. They are expert swimmers and divers, by instinct,
though they cannot remain under water more than a few seconds. I
have taken recently hatched chicks out of a nest, which were too
young to have been taught by their parents, and seen them dive and
swim away or hide among the reeds with only their little bills
protruding above the surface. Sometimes the parent bird carries
them on her back where they cling tenaciously while she dives and
brings them up again, none the worse for their ducking. They are
truly little "water witches" by inheritance. Rev. Manley
B. Townsend writes to me that, on June 24, 1910, he saw an adult,
with young, chasing a muskrat on the surface of a slough in
Nebraska, and raises the question whether these animals, which are
generally considered to be strictly vegetarian in their habits,
kill young grebes. Undoubtedly many are killed by pickerel or
other large fishes and by snapping turtles or large frogs.
Dr. Arthur A. Allen (1914) has written a very interesting
account of his studies into the family affairs of the pied-billed
grebe, illustrating it with some remarkable photographs of this
shy bird. It is well worth reading or quoting in full, but space
will permit only the following extract:
I was first directed to the spot by a friend who said that
"coots" were nesting there. I was not a little
surprised, therefore, when, after wading for a short distance
along the edge of the pond, my attention was attracted by a splash
in the water ahead, accompanied by a startled note like the
syllable 'keck,' and a few seconds later a grebe bobbed into
sight. Instead of immediately sinking again, as one learns to
expect of a grebe, it rose up on its legs and began beating upon
the water with its wings. Such behavior bespoke something very
unusual happening in the near-by nest. I looked just in time to
see the last of the striped young scramble from it and disappear
beneath the water. Then ensued a series of maneuvers on the part
of the bird which were evidently intended to distract my
attention. Each appearance above the water was announced by a
shake of the body, followed by a beating of the wings on the
surface, and a flip of the feet as it again dove, which sometimes
sprayed water for more than a yard. This performance took place
within 10 or 15 feet of me, and sometimes the bird swam in even
closer. At such times it rested rather high on the water, holding
its tail, if we may speak of it as such, erect, and nervously
flashing the light areas on the flanks, as do the gallinules.
Meanwhile the young birds had made their way toward the
center of the pond. The largest could not have been more than a
few days old, and yet, when I tried to catch them, they showed all
the ingenuity of the old birds, diving, doubling, swimming with
just the bill showing, or lying concealed in a bunch of water
weeds, with only the nostrils above the surface. Had the water
been less clear I probably should have been unable to catch any of
them; but, as it was, I could follow them as they escaped in
various directions. They were even conspicuous when attempting to
hide. I was reminded of the old story of the ostrich which buried
its head in the sand to escape detection; for, in spite of the
fact that only the bill was exposed above the water, the entire
body was nearly as conspicuous as though floating on the surface.
In diving, as in floating, the wings of the young projected nearly
at right angles from their bodies, even more so than in other
precocial birds.
The largest of the young had already reached the open water
beyond my depth, and when I returned to the shore the old grebe
swam toward it, changing her alarm note of 'keck, keck' to a
softer 'cup, cup,' as though calling to it. Swimming beyond it,
she turned her tail toward it and slightly raised her wings. This
was the signal for the young one to crawl upon her back, which it
repeatedly attempted to do until its mother, disgusted with such
clumsiness, clapped her wing on its neck and started off at a
great rate for the other end of the pond. When far enough away she
checked her speed and gave it another chance. Then with her wobbly
passenger she continued to the end of the pond, where she was
joined by her mate. Here they sported about for some time, the
young bird plunging from the back of one and swimming across to
the other, all seemingly forgetful of the rest of the family.
Finally they disappeared into the rushes, and I continued my
course around the pond.
Plumages.--The downy young is
prettily and quite strikingly marked with black and white; it is
mainly glossy black above, with longitudinal stripes of grayish
white on the neck and back; the crown is black, more or less
variegated with "walnut brown" or "burnt
umber," sometimes in the form of a central patch, and with
two broad superciliary stripes of white meeting on the forehead
and two white stripes above them; the sides of the neck and throat
are variegated with black and white and the sides of the body are
more or less washed with dusky; the under parts are grayish white,
lightest on the belly. The bird is fully half grown before the
real plumage appears, which shows first on the breast and then in
the wings; it is nearly full-grown before the down entirely
disappears. The large series of specimens in the United States
National Museum collection seems to indicate that the full adult
plumage is acquired during the first year. Many young birds retain
the black and white stripes on the head until late in October,
though some have completely changed before that time into the
brown plumage of the first winter, in which the bright russet
color of the neck, breast, and flanks is conspicuous. The black
throat of the adult and the black band on the bill are acquired
just prior to the breeding season. Some adults show traces of the
black throat in the fall or have it well developed, but partially
concealed by the whitish tips of the feathers.
Food.--The pied-billed grebe feeds
largely on animal matter such as small fish, snails, small frogs,
tadpoles, aquatic worms, leeches, and water insects; it also eats
the seeds and soft parts of aquatic plants to some extent. Balls
of its own feathers often occur in its stomach. Although this
grebe is more essentially a fresh water bird than the other
species, Audubon (1840) states that when its favorite ponds and
streams are frozen over, it may occasionally be seen in bays and
estuaries searching for shrimps and fry.
Behavior.--This species is less
often seen in flight than the other grebes, for it seems to prefer
to escape by diving or skulking, but it is well capable of rapid
flight, when necessary, in spite of its small wings. When rising
from the water it runs along the surface for a long distance,
beating the water with its broad paddles until it can rise into
the air, when it flies swiftly away in a straight line, moving its
wings very quickly and with its neck and feet outstretched. When
migrating it often flies high in the air. I seems to be incapable
of rising from the ground and its movements on dry land are so
awkward that it spends very little time out of the water; although
it sometimes crawls out onto lily pads or marshy shores to sun
itself or preen its feathers. The water is its natural element,
where it is completely at home. I can remember distinctly how much
ammunition I wasted in my old muzzle-loading gun, when I was a
boy, in vain attempts to bag the elusive "hell-diver,"
as we used to call it. My attempts were seldom successful and I
used to think that it dove at the flash of the gun; with a modern
gun and nitro powder the results might have been different.
Anything which even looked like a duck was considered legitimate
game in those days and the silky grebes' breasts were proudly
presented by my girl friends. The pied-billed grebe is no less
expert than others of its tribe in diving; ordinarily, in a
hurried dive, it plunges forward and disappears like a flash,
swimming away for a long distance under water, to appear suddenly
at some unexpected spot or perhaps to vanish and keep out of
sight; it also has the power to so contract its displacement that
it can swim along with only its head and neck above water, or it
can gradually sink down backward, like a disappearing frog,
without making a ripple. I have always supposed that the grebes do
not use thier wings under water, but Audubon (1840) had a good
chance to study them in captivity and says:
We placed them in a large tub of water, where we could see
all their sub-aqueous movements. They swam round the sides of the
tub in the manner of the puffin, moving their wings in accordance
with their feet, and continued so a much longer time than one
could suppose it possible for them to remain under water, coming
up to breathe, and plunging again with astonishing celerity.
Except during the breeding season this grebe does not associate
much with other species; it is usually seen singly, in pairs, or
in very small parties Dr. Frank M. Chapman's (1912) experience
shows that it is not always so solitary; he says:
On Heron Lake, Minnesota, in early October, I have seen
pied-billed grebes, in close-massed flocks, containing a hundred
or more birds cruising about in open water.
Prof. Lynds Jones writes me that:
On small bodies of water they mix somewhat with the other
water birds, more from necessity than from choice. Threatened
danger will almost always result in the separation of the grebes
from the ducks with which they may be associated.
Rev. W. F. Henninger reports that he has seen them associated
with blue-winged teal and black duck and playfully chasing around
with them.
The vocal powers of the pied-billed grebe
are limited to a few notes, heard mainly in the breeding season,
for at other times it is generally a silent bird. Dr. Chapman
(1908) describes its love notes as follows:
Its notes, as I have heard them in the Montezuma marshes,
are very loud and sonorous with a cuckoo-like quality, and
may be written "cow-cow-cow-cow-cow-cow-cow-cow-cow-cow-uh,
cow-uh, cow-uh-cow-uh.' These notes vary in number, and are
sometimes followed by prolonged wailing 'cows' or 'uhs,' almost
human in their expressiveness of pain and fear. This is apparently
the love song of the male, in which his mate sometimes joins with
a 'cuk-cuk-cuk,' followed by a slower 'ugh, ugh, ugh.'
Mr. W. L. Dawson (1909) designates the notes as "an odd
bubbling giggle, keggy, keggy, keggy, keggy, keggy, keggy,
keggy, etc., rendered with great rapidity"; he also
refers to a single excited aow, uttered from time to time.
Mr. E. E. Thompson (1890) describes a peculiar call note "pr-r-r-r-
tow tow tow tow tow" which he ascribed to this species in
Manitoba.
The pied-billed grebe may be
distinguished in the field from other grebes by the absence of
white in the wings, by the general brownish tinge, and by the
short, thick, henlike bill.
Rev. C. W. G. Eifrig has sent me the following account of an
incident, which well illustrates the ability of this species to
conceal itself:
It had been very dry for a long time. The sloughs were dry
or nearly so. While walking through one, I saw a grebe in the
fringe between the plant growth of the center and the outer shore
where there was hardly enough cover for a grasshopper to hide. Nor
could it find cover in the center, for that is where I came from.
It could not dive, because the water was only 3 or 4 inches deep.
So being forced to adopt desperate means, it threw itself over a
tussock in the shallow water, where at once it became invisible at
a distance of 10 to 15 feet. And the tussock was only as large as
2 or 3 hands. Its neck was lying across, the body pressed against
the side as closely as possible and so its colors harmonized
exactly with the blackish brown of the tussock.
Two somewhat similar incidents are related by Mr. Delos E.
Culver (1914) which show that these and similar hiding poses are
probably frequently used by pied-billed grebes.
Fall.--On the fall migration these
grebes proceed slowly through September and October, lingering on
the inland ponds and small streams in family parties, in pairs or
even singly, sojourning regularly in certain favorite spots, but
working gradually coastwise. They show a decided preference for
fresh water at all seasons, but as the ponds and streams become
frozen, they are forced to resort to the open tidal creeks and
estuaries. In such places they spend the winter on our southern
Atlantic and Gulf coasts and as far north as Washington on the
Pacific coast. They also winter to some extent in the rivers and
open lakes of the interior, particularly in the southern States
and Mexico.
Pied-billed Grebe*
Podilymbus podiceps
*Original Source: Bent,
Arthur Cleveland. 1919. Smithsonian Institution United
States National Museum Bulletin 107: 39-47. United States
Government Printing Office
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