518 PODICIPEDID./E 



as Sweden, and southward to the Mediterranean. It is 

 abundant in parts of Kussia, Germany, and Hungary. Its 

 breeding-range extends to both sides of the Equator, from 

 North to South Africa, also to many countries of Asia, 

 including North India, Palestine, and China. Further 

 south it may be traced to Australia, Tasmania, and New 

 Zealand. It also visits Japan. 



DESCRIPTIVE CHARACTERS. 



PLUMAGE. 1 Adult male nuptial. In spring this Grebe 

 becomes adorned with a crest of dark brown feathers which 

 arises from the top of the head and is prolonged on either 

 side in the form of horns ; forehead and crown, blackish ; 

 cheeks, throat, and chin, white tinged with rufous ; over the 

 eye is a stripe of the same colour ; encircling the throat is 

 a ' tippet ' or ' frill,' capable of erection, and composed of 

 chestnut-brown feathers margined with black ; back, scapu- 

 lars, wings, rump, and upper tail-coverts, dark brown ; lower 

 part of the hind-neck, dark greyish-brown ; lesser wing- 

 coverts, white forming a band along the edge of the wing ; 

 carpals and secondaries, white, conspicuous when the bird 

 is flying ; primaries, dark brown ; fore-neck, breast, and 

 abdomen, silvery-white ; flanks, reddish-brown. 



Adult female nuptial. Similar in plumage to the male, 

 but the head-ornaments are less developed. 



Adult winter, male and female. Kesembles the nuptial 

 plumage except that the head- garniture is absent in both 

 sexes. 



Immature, male and female. Resembles the adult 

 winter-plumage except that the head and neck are marked 

 with longitudinal stripes of ash-brown ; crest and chestnut 

 tippet not marked until about the second year. 



Nestling. The nestlings are very beautiful creatures, 

 richly striped with dark brown and black on a yellowish- 

 white ground-colour. Their beaks are tinted brilliant orange. 



BEAK. Reddish, tip pale horn-colour. 



FEET. Light olive-brown, becoming blackish on the 

 outside ; adjacent toes webbed but not connected with one 

 another. 



IRIDES. Crimson ; narrow golden circle round pupil. 



1 In all Grebes the plumage is composed of short, closely-set feathers, 

 very silky in texture ; the skins at one time were in large demand for 

 the manufacture of muffs, collarettes, and other articles of apparel. 



