Bird of the Month April 2022- Eared Grebe

Photos courtesy of Jeff Bleam.

Our Bird of the Month for April 2022 is the Eared Grebe (Podiceps nigricollis). Eared Grebes are smaller grebe often found in freshwater lakes, ponds and sloughs in Western North America. In general, they avoid the ocean. Some populations of Eared Grebes depend on alkali lakes, therefore, large populations exist at the Great Salt Lake in Utah, the Salton Sea in Southern California and Mono Lake here in the Sierra Nevada.

We chose Eared Grebes as our Bird of the Month, as they are now appearing in the lakes and ponds here in Washoe County. Great places to find Eared Grebes are at Sparks Marina, the ponds at Idlewild Park, Virginia Lake, Rosewood Nature Study Area and Diamond Creek Pond.

For more information about Eared Grebes, visit their entry in the Audubon online Field Guide:

Eared Grebes at Audubon.org