Post by John Parry on Feb 23, 2009 21:56:44 GMT -5
It isn't the first time that my monitor (and ignorance) has got me into trouble. I spotted this on one of our local lakes while out for a walk yesterday.
After consulting our birding databases (mainly the RSPB one), I concluded that it was a Black-Throated Diver (Arctic Loon), which made it about 800 miles off course. So I asked for second opinions on another wildlife site. The answer came straight back - it's a Great Crested Grebe. When I looked again on my laptop screen (ironically, much better than my desktop monitor), I could indeed see the crest protruding from the rear of the head. On the other monitor it had just merged into the wave behind the bird.
What threw me is the fact that the grebe only develops the crest and ruff around the neck in summer. It's winter plumage is totally different. So I was pretty disappointed! The last time I'd found something so out of the ordinary was a dragonfly that I'd never seen before. When I got confirmation of the species it turned out to be a Southern Darter - a couple of hundred miles north of its usual habitat (amazingly, the South of England).
The Great Crested Grebe isn't common on our local lakes, although it is widely distributed across the whole country. So my initial excitement was a bit of a let down. The one question my ornithologist friends weren't able to answer was what a Great Crested Grebe was doing on a boating lake in Lancashire in full summer plumage in the middle of February. Oh well !!
Regards - John
ps The Great Crested Grebe was hunted almost to extinction in Victorian times when the crest feathers were the height of fashion for ladies' hats. Fortunately fashions change...
After consulting our birding databases (mainly the RSPB one), I concluded that it was a Black-Throated Diver (Arctic Loon), which made it about 800 miles off course. So I asked for second opinions on another wildlife site. The answer came straight back - it's a Great Crested Grebe. When I looked again on my laptop screen (ironically, much better than my desktop monitor), I could indeed see the crest protruding from the rear of the head. On the other monitor it had just merged into the wave behind the bird.
What threw me is the fact that the grebe only develops the crest and ruff around the neck in summer. It's winter plumage is totally different. So I was pretty disappointed! The last time I'd found something so out of the ordinary was a dragonfly that I'd never seen before. When I got confirmation of the species it turned out to be a Southern Darter - a couple of hundred miles north of its usual habitat (amazingly, the South of England).
The Great Crested Grebe isn't common on our local lakes, although it is widely distributed across the whole country. So my initial excitement was a bit of a let down. The one question my ornithologist friends weren't able to answer was what a Great Crested Grebe was doing on a boating lake in Lancashire in full summer plumage in the middle of February. Oh well !!
Regards - John
ps The Great Crested Grebe was hunted almost to extinction in Victorian times when the crest feathers were the height of fashion for ladies' hats. Fortunately fashions change...