Subject: Re: a grebier year
Date: Dec 23 13:19:13 1997
From: Jane Hadley - jhadle at halcyon.com


In the Palix River in Bay Center in Pacific County, we have noticed many
more horned grebes than usual this year. Normally, we see mostly Western
grebes with a few horned. Though we have not looked at all
systematically, this year it seems to me that we are seeing more horned
than Westerns -- or at least close to 50-50.

betty estes wrote:
>
> The numbers of eared grebes that I've seen from my home on Eld Inlet (west
> of Olympia) recently certainly support the idea that this is "a grebier
> year." Most winters I'll see one or two with some regularity (maybe 50% of
> the time if I really search with the scope). This year I'll almost always
> see one or more whenever I check closely. A couple of weeks ago there was
> a group of eight, and today I counted 15 (yes, fifteen) close together, and
> they were clearly eared, not horned. Sometimes I've seen small groups of
> perhaps four or five during migration, but absolutely nothing like this in
> winter.
>
> If there are increases in the numbers of horned, western, or red-necked
> grebes, it's not apparent to me.
>
> Betty Estes
> Olympia
> brestes at worldnet.att.net

--
Jane Hadley
jhadle at halcyon.com
Seattle, WA