Western Grebe
A large, elegant, black-and-white grebe, the Western Grebe breeds in lakes and ponds across the American West and winters primarily off the Pacific Coast.
Grebs have a dramatic, choreographed courtship display, in which the birds rush across the water with their long necks extended.
Western Grebes breed on freshwater lakes and marshes with extensive open water bordered by emergent vegetation. During winter they move to saltwater or brackish bays, estuaries, or sheltered sea coasts and are less frequently found on freshwater lakes or rivers.
Western Grebes eat mainly fish, catching them by diving in open water. They either spear prey or capture it with a forceps-like motion of the bill, taking larger prey items to the surface before swallowing. They also occasionally consume bottom-dwelling crustaceans and worms.
Western Grebe
A large, elegant, black-and-white grebe, the Western Grebe breeds in lakes and ponds across the American West and winters primarily off the Pacific Coast.
Grebs have a dramatic, choreographed courtship display, in which the birds rush across the water with their long necks extended.
Western Grebes breed on freshwater lakes and marshes with extensive open water bordered by emergent vegetation. During winter they move to saltwater or brackish bays, estuaries, or sheltered sea coasts and are less frequently found on freshwater lakes or rivers.
Western Grebes eat mainly fish, catching them by diving in open water. They either spear prey or capture it with a forceps-like motion of the bill, taking larger prey items to the surface before swallowing. They also occasionally consume bottom-dwelling crustaceans and worms.