NESTING HABITS OF THE GREBE 261 



set so tightly in a very tough skin that the evil-eyed mil- 

 liners once used Grebe's breasts for hat trimmings. A few 

 years ago the Klamath Lake region of northern Oregon 

 literally swarmed with Grebes, but the agents of "the feather 

 trade" slaughtered them so fiercely and persistently that they 

 were almost exterminated. Now that region has been con- 

 verted into a national bird refuge, and all its bird life is for- 

 ever under the protection of the National Government. 



The nesting habits of the Grebe are remarkable and in- 

 teresting. Instead of choosing a dry situation, where incu- 

 bation might proceed under the best possible conditions, it 

 frequently chooses a clump of rushes in deep water and builds 

 a floating nest, attached to the rushes. Sometimes, however, 

 it selects a spot where the water is very shallow, and builds 

 from the bottom up, using rushes when it is possible to pro- 

 cure them. In either case, the sodden mass rises only two 

 or three inches above high-water mark, and how the eggs ever 

 receive warmth sufiicient to hatch them is a mystery. 



Occasionally a clump of rushes with a floating nest breaks 

 loose from its moorings, and floats away. Some friends of 

 mine once discovered a derelict nest, with the Grebe sitting 

 serenely upon it, floating about in Lake Ontario, whither it 

 had evidently been borne on the current of Johnson's Creek. 

 Doubtless it is a real grief to Grebes that they cannot hatch 

 their eggs under water! 



The Pied-Billed Grebe, also called Dabchick, and Diedipper, 

 is a Pan-American bird, being found throughout North and 

 South America from Cape Horn to the Mackenzie River, and 

 from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Its phenomenally wide 



