14 BULLETIN 107, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 
in the collection of Dr. Jonathan Dwight, in nearly full nuptial 
plumage, collected November 25, but I can only regard this as an 
exceptional case of retarded or suspended moult. A partial prenup- 
tial moult occurs early in the spring involving mainly the plumage 
of the head and neck and producing the clearly defined black crown, 
gray cheeks, chin and throat and the brilliant red neck and breast of 
the nuptial plumage. I have seen specimens in which this moult was 
complete before the end of February and others in full winter 
plumage in March; I think the moult usually. occurs in April. 
Food.—Holbeell’s grebe feeds to some extent on small fish or min- 
nows which it obtains by diving, but its food consists largely of other 
things and it can live perfectly well in lakes where there are no fish 
at all. In the lakes of Manitoba it lives largely on crawfish, ambly- 
stomae, and aquatic insects; its bill of fare also includes various 
aquatic worms, insects, and their larve, small crustaceans, fresh 
water mollusks, tadpoles, and some vegetable substances. An adult 
bird caught on the ice near my home was fed on small live shiners 
which it ate readily. Mr. Robert J. Sim (1904), who made a care- 
ful study of a captive Holbell’s grebe, gives the following account 
of its feeding habits: 
On the second day I placed a 4-inch wild fish (shiner?) in a dish filled with 
water. This was set on the floor in front of the bird. He gave the fish a slight 
poke whereupon it swam around violently. Making a quick thrust he caught 
it, grasping it crosswise with the bill—not impaling it. The fish then went 
through a course of pinching from head to tail, being hitched along from side 
to side in the bill. It was then turned about and gulped down head first. Later 
in the day three out of four strips of raw whitefish were eaten, each about the 
size of a man’s finger. These the grebe bruised and shook until small fragments 
flew several feet around. At this time of the year live food was scarce, but 
we succeeded in finding a few small aquatic animals. By the 27th of February 
the grebe had eaten—all voluntarily—the following: 10 live goldfish (2 to 5 
inches long), 2 pieces raw steak (taken from water), 1 4-inch wild fish, 2 large 
tadpoles, and 7 medium sized dragon-fly larve. 
In swallowing the large goldfishes the bird’s jaws seemed to be distended 
laterally, and he gulped so violently that the back of his head struck his back 
with a hollow “tunking” sound. This operation apparently jarred the fish 
past the sticking point. When very hungry the grebe swallowed the fishes alive. 
Of the crawfishes offered him only the small or soft ones were eaten, and no 
great relish was shown. Earthworms, when their season came, were eaten 
with avidity, but raw beefsteak (lean) was the principal article of diet with 
the bird during his stay with us. 
The stomach of this bird is sometimes wholly or partially filled 
with feathers. 
Behavior—In flight Holbeell’s grebe is easily recognized in any 
plumage; its size is distinctive, being halfway between a loon and 
one of the smaller grebes; in the full nuptial plumage the red neck 
and gray cheeks are conspicuous if the bird is near enough to see 
