450 A PBACTICAL HANDBOOK OF BRITISH BIRDS. 



upper-part of lores tinged buff) ; back of neck blackish-grey ; rest 

 of upper-parts darker, almost black, with a tinge of brown, some 

 outer scapulars with more or less white on basal portions and outer 

 webs and some with chestnut on outer webs ; throat below tippet 

 and under -parts silky-white ; sides of neck with varying amount 

 of rufous -buff tinge, flanks more rufous intermixed with brown- 

 black, tips and often shafts of feathers being black or blackish ; 

 axillaries white, a few often with dusky tips ; under wing-coverts 

 white, a few feathers along edge of wing brown ; tail black some 



The Great Crested Grebe (Podiceps c. cristatus). First winter. 



feathers partially white and chestnut ; primaries grey-brown, paler 

 on inner webs, bases white or whitish, inner feathers tipped white ; 

 secondaries white, outer ones usually marked brown on outer webs 

 and sometimes with shafts blackish at bases, inner ones with brown 

 patches on outer webs and occasionally with some rufous, inner- 

 most blackish as scapulars ; greater and median coverts black- 

 brown sometimes tipped rufous, outer greater usually with some 

 white at base of inner webs ; lesser coverts white. This plumage is 

 acquired by a moult of all body- and tail-feathers and innermost 

 secondaries and innermost greater coverts but not rest of wing 

 Feb. to May, while even in June feathers of mantle are still 

 growing though crest and tippet are complete. Winter. — A com- 

 plete moult commences July or Aug., so that birds with some body- 

 moult may be found in all summer months, and moult of body 

 seems, as in summer, very gradual and extends to Dec. Moult of 

 wings very rapid, all wing-feathers and wing-coverts being shed 

 simultaneously Aug.-Oct. New plumage as summer but fore-head 

 and crown not so black, more brownish, tufts of sides of crown 

 much shorter, no definite " tippet," feathers of sides of head some- 

 what elongated and mostly white but a varying number blackish 

 or rufous (pale chestnut) usually with white fringes and bases ; 

 upper lores whiter than in summer ; flank-feathers dark brown 

 with very little pale rufous. N.B. — Very exceptionally there is 

 considerable amount of chestnut on upper -parts. 



Nestling (Plate 7). — Head, neck, upper -parts and sides of 

 body striped, head and neck black and white, upper -parts and 

 sides of body brown-black and dull bufflsh -white. On lores and 



