Western grebe
| Western grebe | |
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A. occidentalis
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| Binomial name | |
| Aechmophorus occidentalis (Lawrence, 1858)
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| File:Western grebe range.png | |
| Range of A. occidentalis Breeding range Year-round range Wintering range | |
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The western grebe (Aechmophorus occidentalis[2]) is a species in the grebe family of water birds. Folk names include "dabchick", "swan grebe" and "swan-necked grebe".
Western grebe fossils from the Late Pleistocene of SW North America were described as a distinct species,[3] but later ranked as a paleosubspecies Aechmophorus occidentalis lucasi.[4] More recent study found them to fall within the variation now known to exist in today's birds.[5][6]
Description
The western grebe is the largest North American grebe. It is 55–75 cm (22–30 in) long, weighs 795–2,000 g (1.753–4.409 lb) and measures 79–102 cm (31–40 in) across the wings.[7][8][9] It is black-and-white, with a long, slender, swan-like neck and red eyes. It is easily confused with Clark's grebe, which shares similar features, body size, behavior and habitat, and hybrids are known.
The western grebe has black around the eyes and a straight greenish-yellow bill whereas the Clark's grebe has white around the eyes and an up-turned bright yellow bill. The downy young of Western are grey; Clark's downy young are white.
Subspecies
There are two subspecies of the western grebe:
- A. o. occidentalis, (Lawrence, 1858), western Canada & USA
- A. o. ephemeralis, (Dickerman, 1986), western Mexico
Breeding
Western grebes nest in colonies of hundreds on large inland lakes, sometimes using coastal marshes, in western North America. It has a spectacular courtship display; two birds will rear up and patter across the water's surface. Northern birds migrate west to coastal ocean in winter; birds in the southwest and Mexico may be permanent residents.
Food and feeding
This bird dives for carp, herring, mollusks, crabs, and salamanders.
References
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- ↑ Etymology: Aechmophorus, "spear-bearer", from Ancient Greek aichme (a spear) + phoros (one who bears something around), in reference to its bill; occidentalis: Latin for "western".
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- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Western Grebe. All About Birds
- ↑ CRC Handbook of Avian Body Masses by John B. Dunning Jr. (Editor). CRC Press (1992), ISBN 978-0-8493-4258-5.
- ↑ Burnie D and Wilson DE (Eds.), Animal: The Definitive Visual Guide to the World's Wildlife. DK Adult (2005), ISBN 0789477645
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Western Grebe. |
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Wikispecies has information related to: Aechmophorus occidentalis |
- Western Grebe Species Account - Cornell Lab of Ornithology
- Western Grebe - Aechmophorus occidentalis - USGS Patuxent Bird Identification InfoCenter
- Stamps (for Canada) at bird-stamps.org
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- Western Grebe videos, photos, and sounds at the Internet Bird Collection
- Western Grebe photo gallery at VIREO (Drexel University)
