Grebes on Klamath Lake

Thank you to Dr. Lynda Goff for this great information and photos. I know I've seen the grebes dance in Julya few years ago, and this confirms what I saw.
Cindy Deas
KLMS
541-892-0596


Release Date: 7/18/2008 6:47 AM
It was worth the extra 120 miles drive yesterday coming back to Davis from Eugene as I got this shot.Late in the season for this kind of action but maybe they are practicing for next year!This was taken at Moore Park on the south end of Klamath Lake (the big one at Klamath falls). Water is filled withgreen algae and grebes! Thanks to Charlotte for the information of where to photograph this.
male baby-sitter.
Proud Parents. The baby did not manage to eat this big fish that the Mom (on left) had just delivered. After struggling thedad took the fish and the two parents ripped it into small pieces and gave some to the chick. This little chick was not morethan a few days old. He/she spent most of the time on the parent's back (parents took turns being either the nest for thechick or the fisher). The chick only left the back to change parents or to poop in the water. At this point, they do not havedeveloped glands that provide waterproofing to their feathers. The parents rub their heads on the chicks to providesome waterproofing but even with that, the chick only is able to stay in the water (pretty warm about 70F) for 3-5 minutesat a time. I came back 8 days later and this same chick was still on the back but only occasionally. He/she was in the waterfor 10-20 minutes.
Feather eating is really interesting in Grebes. All grebe species seem to do this. Their gizzards are not sufficient tocrush the bones of the fish they eat. The feathers form a partial plug in their pyloric region of the stomach, slowingdown the transfer of the food into the intestine. This provides more time for digestion of the material before it passesinto the intestine where if it were not digested, it could puncture the intestine. Parent start feeding chicks feathersalmost immediately after hatching. The stomachs of some grebe species may be half filled with feathers whichform a dense stomach pellet.
Lynda J. Goff
Professor of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
UC Santa CruzOffice/Voicemail: 831 459 5114Cell 530 574 4409