Clark's Grebe
A species of North American Long-necked Grebes Scientific name : Aechmophorus clarkii Genus : North American Long-necked Grebes
Clark's Grebe, A species of North American Long-necked Grebes
Botanical name: Aechmophorus clarkii
Genus: North American Long-necked Grebes
Content
Description General Info
Description
Clark's grebe closely resembles the western grebe and occurs in the same colonies together with it. Storer and Nuechterlein in 1992, following earlier morphological studies by Storer and others, define the species as being distinguished from the western grebe by an overall paler plumage on its back, as well as a larger portion of its face covered in white, as it extends above the eyes, rather than just below them. A distinguishing feature is its bill, which is bright yellow in the US, whereas the Western Grebe's bill is greenish-yellow in the US, which had been noted by others. Storer and Nuechterlein in 1992 claim that the bill is slightly upturned in this species whereas the western grebe has a straight bill, this was not noted in earlier studies. The grebe has a long, slender neck and the species ranges in size from 22–29 inches (56–74 cm), with a wingspan of 24 inches (61 cm). The Clarks' grebe has a weight range of 25.3-44.4 oz (718-1258 g). There are few changes between the sexes, the most notable feature that distinguishes males from females is the presence of a slight crest on the heads of males. In juveniles, the plumage is again similar to the Western Grebe, however it is also paler compared to the greyer Western species. Its relative size compared to the western grebe is confused. Dickerman showed that grebes from the south of the range were smaller than northern examples, irrespective of which color morph, with both morphs being the same size depending on location, and Dickerman originally reinstated the name A. clarkii in 1963 for the smaller, southern populations (irrespective of which color morph). Studies by Storer, Ratti, Mayr and Short in the 1960-70s did not find any size differences between morphs. Nonetheless, some publications now state the paler-coloured grebes are slightly smaller, which might be due to confusion with the species concept advocated by Dickerman (in which Clark's grebe doesn't not occur in the USA or Canada, pale-coloured grebes in the US and Canada are western grebes, and dark-colored morphs in Mexico are Clark's grebe). Although darker and lighter-colored morphs of grebes occur in the resident non-migratory populations occur in Mexico, it is unclear if these can be distinguished by the other morphological characteristics described above, as most studies have only looked at US populations. Lighter-colored morphs in Mexico are said to have orange-coloured bills, and the darker morphs have yellow bills. In the winter in California numerous examples of dark-colored western grebes displayed the mostly white face of Clark's grebe, although this was intermediate and thought to be possibly due to seasonal changes. 
Size
66 cm (26 in)
Life Expectancy
11-14 years
Nest Placement
Floating
Clutch Size
2 - 3 eggs
Incubation Period
1 brood
Feeding Habits
Clark's Grebe's diet consists primarily of fish, supplemented with salamanders, crustaceans, marine worms, grasshoppers, and aquatic insects. They dive and swim with closed wings to hunt, capturing prey using a spearing jab or by grasping it with mandibles, feeding throughout the water column and occasionally from the bottom.
Habitat
Clark's Grebe primarily inhabit freshwater lakes and marshes with open water surrounded by emergent vegetation like reeds and rushes. They prefer large lakes where colonies can number in the hundreds. Post-breeding, clark's Grebe relocate to lakes for molting where they become flightless. Once equipped with new flight feathers, they migrate to coastal habitats, including saltwater or brackish shores, bays, rivers, and estuaries. During winter, many remain on inland water bodies.
Nest Behavior
Both clark's Grebe parents build the nest collaboratively, using aquatic vegetation, with males gathering large stalks and females bringing wetter materials. Egg-laying and parental care are shared duties.
Nest Characteristics
Clark's Grebe's nest is a floating mound located among emergent vegetation near water's edge, less than a foot deep. It is anchored to underwater structures, measures 2-3 feet across, and features a central depression to hold eggs.
Dite type
Piscivorous
General Info
Behavior
Clark's Grebe's general behaviors revolve around their aquatic lifestyle. They spend much of their day resting on water or engaged in diving to deeper depths for food—sometimes far from shorelines. Rarely observed in flight, clark's Grebe exhibits a swift and direct aerial movement. Remarkably, clark's Grebe shares an elaborate courtship ritual with its close relative, the Western Grebe, featuring a stunning 'rushing ceremony' on the water's surface. This species is also known for synchronized 'weed ceremonies.' Both partners participate in territorial nesting duties, and demonstrate attentive parental care, with chicks often seen hitching rides on adult backs.
Distribution Area
Clark's grebes occur seasonally throughout the majority of Western America, with a distribution ranging as far south as Mexico, and reaching as far north as British Columbia and Saskatchewan. They avoid the cold and are only found in central USA and Canada during the summer breeding season. In the US and Canada breeding is done across a large portion of the west of these two countries, spanning from British Columbia to Texas, for which the grebes tend to favour larger bodies of water and congregate in large flocks. Storer and Nuechterlein in 1992 dubiously claim the birds winter in Central America, as well as in Mexico and some regions of California. Out of almost 100,000 records of this taxon logged at the Global Biodiversity Information Facility there are zero records found south of northern Oaxaca, Mexico. The range of this bird in Mexico is distributed in two streaks southward; one from the California border along the Pacific coast throughout Baja California and across the gulf along the coast to southern Sonora, the other a higher altitude, inland distribution running down from the Big Bend region behind the Texas border down the mountains of central Mexico, with the highest concentration in population in the south from Jalisco to Puebla and northern Oaxaca, where the distribution abruptly ceases. These two distributional areas representing where grebes have ever been seen only meet each other in the very north of Mexico in a strip along the USA border, to the south they do not come together and are separated by a very large distance. It is completely absent from the Atlantic coast.
Species Status
Not globally threatened.
Scientific Classification
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