Although I have photographed a Horned Grebe (Podiceps auritus) several times in the past, I had never seen one in colorful breeding plumage until yesterday. According to the range maps on the Cornell Lab of Ornithology website, Horned Grebes do not breed in my area, so this one, who was swimming by himself, may just be passing through as he migrates northward.
The colors and patterns on this bird are amazing. The gold circles in the grebe’s red eyes really grab a viewer’s attention, though I must admit that I find them to be a little bit creepy—it is definitely worthwhile to click on the photos to get a closer look at those eyes. The bird’s distinctive “horns” appear to be tufts of long golden feathers behind each eye in a pattern that is reminiscent of the haircut of a medieval monk, particularly in the middle photo. My favorite photo may well be the final one that captures some of the grebe’s spunky personality.
Like most other grebes, Horned Grebes have compact bodies, relatively short necks, blocky heads and straight, narrow bill that is very different from a duck’s bill. I observed the grebe as it repeatedly made short dives in search of food yesterday in the waters off of Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. According to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, during the breeding period Horned Grebes also feed heavily on insects and larvae, some caught in the air, others in or on the water.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
I love grebes. We get a couple on our lake from time to time. So hard to get a picture though as they duck under the water just as I’m about to try. These are wonderful photos, Mike. Thank you for sharing.
Thanks, Tricia. Most of the time, the grebes that I see are in deeper water farther from shore, but this one was marginally closer, so I was able to get some shots in between the frequent dives.
Fantastic.
So unique looking. My favorite is the middle, so much personality, but the beads of water on the feathers in the last photo is pretty amazing!
Thanks. The second shot has a really distinctive look–normally it’s not good to photograph a bird straight on like that, but it worked out pretty well with both red eyes visible in the shot. 🙂
Wow, excellent photos. I only remember seeing them once, and yes those eyes are creepy 😂😂
Horned Grebes are pretty nondescript when not in breeding plumage–it is hard to believe they are the same birds (see my posting from 2018 https://michaelqpowell.com/2018/11/19/horned-grebe-in-the-autumn/ ). However, even in that case, the red, devil eyes were shining brightly. 🙂
First time I saw them was under the bridge, Mystic CT… Down the block from the ‘Mystic Pizza’. We were completely confused as to what they were.
Love that 3rd shot … in conversation with a fellow grebe? or gasping in awe of the gorgeous day?
There were no other grebe’s around. I think that the grebe was gasping for air after he resurfaced from a dive. The weather was awesome, mostly sunny and a bit cooler after a couple of unseasonably hot days. Whatever the reason, I really liked the way that he posed for me. 🙂
Nicely decorated bird.
Thanks, Sherry.
Beautiful photographs!
We only see them down here in Florida during migration in their “winter clothes”.
I am fortunate to live in an area where we get a pretty good number of migrating species coming through in the spring and in the fall. This is the only time that I have seen a grebe in its spring finery, though I must confess that at this time of the year I tend to focus more on dragonflies than on water birds, so I may have missed them previously.
First time seeing a grebe in breeding plumage for me! Excellent shots, Mike, and those eyes!
A very striking bird!
Grebe in his fancy pants! Yep creepy expression in that one photo.
Very nice Mike! Great Images!!