A small chunky brown diver with a pale chicken-like bill ringed in black in summer. Famously secretive — dives at first sight of danger and surfaces in cover.
§ Quick facts
§ Encyclopedia
The pied-billed grebe is a species of the grebe family of water birds primarily found in ponds throughout the Americas.
Source: Wikipedia — Pied-billed grebe Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
§ Identification
Field marks. Small chunky brown waterbird with thick chicken-like bill (white with black vertical band in breeding adults), black throat, no obvious tail. Often dives rather than flies.
Similar species. Other grebes (longer thinner bills, sharper face patterns). Ducks (flatter bills, different shape).
Voice. Loud "kuk-kuk-kowp-kowp" — sounds like distant hooting.
§ Diet & behavior
Diet. Crayfish, small fish, aquatic insects, leeches, frogs, small invertebrates.
Behavior. Most widespread grebe in the Americas. Can adjust its buoyancy at will — sinking slowly until only the head shows above water like a periscope, an escape behavior more like a submarine than a duck. Mostly silent for the first month of breeding, then becomes startlingly vocal with hollow "kuk-kuk-kowp-kowp-kowp" calls. Hatchlings ride on parents' backs and dive underwater while clinging on, often with only legs visible.
§ Range
Across most of North America
§ Habitat
Marshes, ponds, slow rivers
§ Threats
Wetland drainage, eutrophication, vehicle strikes.
§ Conservation status
According to the IUCN Red List, the pied-billed grebe is currently classified as Least Concern.
§ What helps
Support wetland protection. Reduce shoreline development. Don't feed waterfowl (algal blooms).
§ Further reading
- Wikipedia — Pied-billed grebe
- www.allaboutbirds.org — authoritative profile of Podilymbus podiceps
- IUCN Red List · taxon 22696586
- iNaturalist · taxon 3902
- eBird · pibgre
- GBIF occurrence records
- Encyclopedia of Life — Podilymbus podiceps
§ Sources cited
- Cornell Lab — All About Birds
- National Audubon Society
- iNaturalist
- IUCN Red List 2018
