Thelittle grebe(Tachybaptus ruficollis), also known asdabchick,is a member of thegrebefamily ofwater birds.The genus name is fromAncient Greektakhus"fast" andbapto"to sink under". The specificruficollisis fromLatinrufus"red" andModern Latin-collis,"-necked", itself derived from Latincollum"neck".[2]
| Little grebe | |
|---|---|
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| Two adults in breeding plumage, below with feathers pressed against the body, for lowbuoyancy | |
Scientific classification
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Podicipediformes |
| Family: | Podicipedidae |
| Genus: | Tachybaptus |
| Species: | T. ruficollis
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| Binomial name | |
| Tachybaptus ruficollis (Pallas,1764)
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| Synonyms | |
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Podiceps ruficollis | |
At23 to 29 centimetres (9 to11+1⁄2inches) in length it is the smallestEuropeanmember of its family. It is commonly found in open bodies of water across most of its range.
Taxonomy
editThe little grebe was described by the German naturalistPeter Simon Pallasin 1764 and given thebinomial nameColymbus ruficollis.[3][4][5]Thetricolored grebewas formerly considered conspecific, with some taxonomic authorities still considering it so.
Subspecies
editSeven subspecies are currently accepted, four widespread, and three with restricted ranges; they are separated principally by size, eye colour, which varies from dark to light from west to east, and extent of white on the secondary feathers of the wing, which varies from none in temperate northern regions, to extensive white in tropical regions.[6][7][8]
| Summer | Winter | Scientific name | Distribution | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Brussels, Belgium |
 Lac de Tunis, Tunisia |
T. r. ruficollisPallas,1764 | nominate,Europeto westernAsia,south to northern Africa; northeast European birds migratory, others resident. | Eye dark brown; secondaries with no or minimal white. |
 Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India |
 Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India |
T. r. albescens(Blanford,1877) | Southern and central Asia fromTurkmenistanto southernKazakhstan,south toSri Lanka,and east throughPakistan,India,Nepal,BhutanandBangladeshtoMyanmar;central Asian birds migratory, south Asian birds resident. | Eye orange to yellow; bill short; secondaries with extensive white. |
 Al Jahra, Kuwait |
 Kuwait |
T. r. iraquensis(Ticehurst,1923) | Tigris–Euphrates river systemin southeastern Iraq, southwestern Iran, and Kuwait; resident. | Eye dark brown; bill short; secondaries with extensive white. |
 Marievale, Gauteng, South Africa |
 Marievale, Gauteng, South Africa |
T. r. capensis(Salvadori,1884) | Sub-SaharanAfrica,Madagascar,Comoros. | Eye reddish brown; secondaries with extensive white. |
 Sakai, Osaka, Japan |
 Kihoku, Mie Prefecture, Japan |
T. r. poggei(Reichenow,1902) | Eastern Asia, inChina,Korea,Taiwan,Japan,and the southKuril Islands. | Eye pale yellow to white; bill long; secondaries with no or minimal white. |
| T. r. philippensis(Bonnaterre,1790) | NorthernPhilippines(Luzonand nearby islands),Borneo. | Eye pale yellow to white; bill long; secondaries with white. | ||
| T. r. cotabato(Rand,1948) | Southern Philippines (Mindanao). | Eye pale yellow to white; bill long; secondaries with white. |
Description
editThe little grebe is a small water bird with a pointed bill. The adult is unmistakable in summer, predominantly dark above with its rich, rufous colour neck, cheeks and flanks, and bright yellowgape.The rufous is replaced by a dirty brownish grey in non-breeding and juvenile birds.
Juvenile birds have a yellow bill with a small black tip, and black and white streaks on the cheeks and sides of the neck as seen below. This yellow bill darkens as the juveniles age, eventually turning black in adulthood.
In winter, its size, buffplumage,with a darker back and cap, and “powder puff” rear end enable easy identification of this species. The little grebe's breeding call, given singly or in duet, is atrilledrepeatedweet-weet-weetorwee-wee-weewhich sounds like ahorsewhinnying.
Distribution
editThis bird breeds in small colonies in heavily vegetated areas of freshwater lakes across Europe, much ofAsiadown toNew Guinea,and most ofAfrica.Most birds move to more open or coastal waters in winter, but it is onlymigratoryin those parts of its range where the waters freeze. Outside of breeding season, it moves into more open water, occasionally even appearing on the coast in small bays.[1]
Behaviour
editThe little grebe is an excellent swimmer and diver and pursues itsfishand aquaticinvertebrateprey underwater. It uses the vegetation skilfully as a hiding place.
Like all grebes, it nests at the water's edge, since its legs are set very far back and it cannot walk well. Usually four to seveneggsare laid. When the adult bird leaves the nest it usually takes care to cover the eggs with weeds. This makes it less likely to be detected by predators.[9]The young leave the nest and can swim soon after hatching, and chicks are often carried on the backs of the swimming adults.[10]InIndia,the species breeds during the rainy season.[11]
Gallery
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T. r. ruficollisin Spain; no white in the wing -
T. r. poggeiin Japan; no white in the wing -
T. r. albescensin India; extensive white in the wing -
Nest at edge of lake in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India -
Grebe displaying its webbed feet -
Diving atDelta del Llobregat,Barcelona -
Chick -
Eggs, CollectionMuseum Wiesbaden
References
edit- ^abBirdLife International (2017) [amended version of 2016 assessment]."Tachybaptus ruficollis".IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.2017:e.T22696545A111716447.doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-1.RLTS.T22696545A111716447.en.Retrieved27 February2022.
- ^Jobling, James A (2010).The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names.London:Christopher Helm.pp.341,377.ISBN978-1-4081-2501-4.
- ^Mayr, Ernst;Cottrell, G. William (1979).Check-list of Birds of the World. Volume.Vol. 1 (1 Second ed.). Cambridge, Massachusetts: Museum of Comparative Zoology. p. 143.
- ^Sherborn, C. Davies (1905)."The new species of birds in Vroeg's catalogue, 1764".Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections.47:332–341 [339 No. 281].Includes a transcript of the 1764 text.
- ^Rookmaaker, L.C.; Pieters, F.F.J.M. (2000)."Birds in the sales catalogue of Adriaan Vroeg (1764) described by Pallas and Vosmaer".Contributions to Zoology.69(4):271–277.doi:10.1163/18759866-06904005.
- ^Ogilvie, Malcolm; Rose, Chris (2003).Grebes of the World.Bruce Coleman.ISBN978-1-872842-03-5.
- ^Mlíkovský, J. (2010)."Systematic notes on Asian birds: 74. A preliminary review of the grebes, Family Podicipedidae".British Ornithologists' Club Occasional Publication.5:125–131.Retrieved4 November2024.
- ^Gill, F.; Donsker, D. & Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (2024)."Grebes, flamingos".IOC World Bird List (v 14.2).doi:10.14344/IOC.ML.11.1.
- ^Prokop, Pavel; Trnka, Alfréd (2011)."Why do grebes cover their nests? Laboratory and field tests of two alternative hypotheses"(PDF).Journal of Ethology.29:17–22.doi:10.1007/s10164-010-0214-4.S2CID24531647.Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2012-04-14.
- ^Finn, Frank (1905)."Notes on the nesting of the Indian Dabchick".Bird Notes.4:10–17.
- ^Dalgliesh, Gordon (1906)."Notes on the Indian Podicipedidae".The Avicultural Magazine.5(2):65–72.
External links
edit
- Blasco-Zumeta, Javier; Heinze, Gerd-Michael."Little grebe"(PDF).Identification Atlas of Aragon's Birds.
- BTO BirdFacts - Little Grebe
- Grebes of the Worldby André Konter
- Information and Illustration on Little Grebe from A Field Guide to Birds of Armenia
- BirdLife species factsheet forTachybaptus ruficollis
- "Tachybaptus ruficollis".Avibase.
- "Little grebe media".Internet Bird Collection.
- Little grebe photo galleryat VIREO (Drexel University)
- Audio recordings of Little grebeonXeno-canto.
