GREBES 



(2) 



{Reinh.) 

 HolboeLl). 



Colymbus holbcelli 



(Lat., a diving bird; to 



HOLE CELL'S GREBE; RED- 

 NECKED GREBE. Bill straight 

 and pointed, black, shading to yellow- 

 ish at the base. Iris red. Ad. in 

 summer — Colored as shown; the 

 silvery-gray cheeks are quite puffy 

 owing to the density of the plumage 

 and the slight lengthening of the 

 feathers; crests short and black; Uning 

 of wings and axillars white. In 

 winter — No crests; under parts 

 entirely white, slightly tinted with 

 grayish or pale rufous on the neck. 

 L, 19.00; W., 7.60; Tar., 2.50; B., 

 2.20. 



Range — Breeds in the interior 

 from Minn, northward. Migrates 

 south to Neb. and along the Atlantic 

 coast to S. C. 



and decidedly concavo-convex. The tail is very rudimentary, 

 consisting only of downy feathers. 



The habits of all our grebes are practically identical, 

 except that Pied-billed Grebes, the species most commonly 

 found in the east, are less gregarious than the others. All 

 kinds are usually known by gunners as "Hell-divers " because 

 of the quickness with which they can disappear under water. 

 Of course, however, there is no truth in the common belief 

 that they can dodge shot or dive at the flash of a gun. If one 

 escapes the charge from a modern firearm it is either because 

 of a poor aim or on account of the small portion of a grebe's 

 body that appears above water when the creature is alarmed. 



The large Western Grebe commonly swims with the body 

 almost entirely submerged, the only visible portions being a 

 slender head perched at right angles to a more slender neck. 

 By the way, this is the species that furnished most of the 

 "grebe breasts" of commerce until the traffic was wisely 

 stopped, chiefly through the efforts of the Audubon Society. 



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