BIRDS FOUND IN BAYOUS AND MARSHES 83 



garious, like all the grebes, it nests in colonies sometimes 

 numbering a hundred. A marshy place where there is 

 water from two to four feet deep is chosen, so that 

 safety from storm may be secured for the nest among 

 the strong rushes, and escape from pursuit may be found 

 for parent and young by diving directly from the nest 

 into the water. Knowing their helplessness on land, 

 the wise grebes avoid all travel on it for themselves 

 and their broods. The nest platform of rushes is made 

 by pulling the reeds down one by one until they lie 

 criss-cross on the surface of the water. Upon this 

 foundation is placed decaying vegetation of all sorts, 

 picked out of the water, — apparently the wetter the 

 better. The eggs when first laid are a pale blue-green, 

 but soon become a dirty brownish color from contact 

 with the slime of the nest. 



Naturalists assert that all grebes cover their eggs 

 during absence both for purposes of concealment and 

 to assist incubation. I believe, however, that this is 

 less the practice of Western Grebes than of any other 

 variety, for out of many nests I visited only one was 

 covered, while I have never found the nest of either 

 a pied-billed grebe or an American eared grebe where 

 there had not been at least an attempt at covering. 

 The eggs of the Western species also are invariably less 

 stained than those of either of the others, a fact which 

 may support the theory that they are not so fully covered. 



Eggs of the American eared grebe are often found in 

 the nest of a Western Grebe, but never, to my knowl- 

 edge, vice versa. I believe this is to be accounted for 



