DIVERS, GREBES, AND CORMORANTS. 169 



Examples occasionally occur on our eastern and 

 southern coasts especially, but the bird is too rare 

 to form any feature in the ornithology of the 

 British seaboard. It may be readily distinguished 

 from the other European Grebes by its decidedly 

 up-curved bill, and by the large amount of white 

 on the primaries and secondaries. In the nuptial 

 plumage the head and neck are black. In its 

 habits generally it differs little from the other 

 species. 



SCLAVONIAN GREBE. 



Along the eastern coasts of England, and round 

 most of the Scottish littoral, as well as off Ireland, 

 this species, the Podicipes cornutus of most 

 naturalists, is of tolerably frequent occurrence 

 during winter. It requires all the skill of an 

 expert ornithologist to distinguish this Grebe in 

 winter plumage, so closely does it resemble the 

 Red-necked species. It is a shorter winged bird, 

 and has the three outermost secondaries dusky 

 brown, instead of white, as in that bird, whilst the 

 previous species is always distinguishable by its 

 up-curved bill. There is nothing in the habits 

 of this Grebe to call for special remark : it keeps 

 exclusively to the water, dives to escape danger 

 and to capture prey, and swims beneath the surface 

 as adroitly as a frog. The Sclavonian Grebe is 

 a wide ranging species, inhabiting during summer 

 the Arctic and sub-Arctic regions of Europe, Asia, 

 .and America, retiring southwards in winter. This 



