A Great Crested Grebe (Podiceps cristatus) sits upright on its nest and hatches the cubs. Elegant feathers adorn the head on the long, thin neck.
At the beginning of spring, harsh screams came from the reeds. On silent days one could hear the deep cries far over the smooth water of the lake. A couple of Great Crested Grebes had settled on the edge of the lake.
At the end of February / beginning of March, at the courtship time of the grebes, there is a busy time on the lake. The males argue loudly about their territories. In courtship, males and females face chest to breast, shake their headdress, present each other nesting material and align themselves with each other with lowered beaks. Early in the morning at dawn, the spectacle begins and only after the sun has set, action calms down at the lake.
Once a couple has found each other, they start to build a nest that they either hide in the reeds or in the middle of the water. For several days they build together on the floating raft of reeds, leaves and water lilies. They then eagerly haul plant material and swim up Continue reading Great Crested Grebe in breeding season