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Great Crested Grebe
(Podiceps cristatus)
: "Crested Grebe", "Tippet Grebe", "Loon", "Gaunt";
Misnomer: "Carr Goose"
Size: 46-51 cm; wing span 59-73 cm
Weight: 0.6-1.5 kg
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Physical description |
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Click here for a physical description
Great Crested Grebes are large grebes.
Both sexes have the same
plumage, but
breeding
and non-breeding
plumages are different.
The non-breeding
plumage is rather
plain, with a dark grey-brown back (cap, nape of neck, mantle, wings)
and a whiteish-grey front (face, frontal neck, breast & belly).
The crest is very small in the non-breeding season.
During the breeding
season the black crest is much more prominent, especially in
combination with the black-edged, rufous-brown neck frill that
Great Crested Grebes feature then.
The eyes are red, the bill is yellow and pointed; in the breeding
season it takes on a darker, orange hue.
Juveniles
have a bold stripe pattern on their heads and necks.
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Taxonomy, classification |
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See Great
Crested Grebe at Wikipedia .
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Range, habitat |
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Click here for information on habitat
and range
The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and
specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found,
based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to
ebird.org
.
The global distribution of the Great Crested Grebe is available
HERE
.
There are 3 extant races of Great Crested Grebes, which are
a widely-distributed partly migratory, partly sedentary
species.
Nominate race "cristatus" is found in Europe, southern, central
and eastern Asia; race "infuscatus" resides in southern Africa
and race
"australis" populates parts of Australia and New Zealand.
Great Crested Grebes, nominate race
"cristatus",
are found as winter visitors in northern Arabia, including the northern
coastal fringe of Oman.
Great Crested Grebes have a strong preference for fresh water aquatic
habitats, such as rivers and lakes.
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Sightings |
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Click here for sighting information
Race "cristatus"
We have not seen any Great Crested Grebes in Oman yet, but
in the past we used to see Great Crested Grebes, nominate race
"cristatus",
infrequently in Germany, e.g. near Mölln, Schleswig-Holstein,
in July 1991.
Race "australis"
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Photos |
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No photos from Oman available yet. To go to the European page, click
here.
Photos of race
"australis"
are available here.
More Great Crested Grebe sound recordings are available at
xeno-canto.org
.
These pages are largely based on our own observations and those of our
contributors. The structure of these bird pages is explained HERE. For more salient facts on any bird species
please refer to a field guide.