What am I?
I am a very small grebe. People often mistake me for a duckling!
Little grebe
Little grebe
Where do I come from?
I live on the Solent coast all year round.
A bit about me
I am a fantastic underwater swimmer, you can spot me diving under the water in search of food. If you are lucky enough to see me then why not watch me dive under and try and guess where I will bob up again? Don’t underestimate me though, I can go far, especially when the currents are strong! My feet are positioned far back on my body which is great for swimming but makes waking on land tricky, so I only really leave the water to breed. We nest on floating platforms made of waterweed and we carry our chicks on our backs!
Local spotlight
I am fairly common in lakes, ponds, rivers and estuaries around the Solent but my small size can make me tricky to spot. Watch closely!
Conservation status
My name might not be listed in the Solent’s Special Protection Areas but I am still definitely important for the coastal ecosystem and form part of the non-breeding waterbird assemblages which these regions are protected for.
Fun fact
Some people call me ‘dabchick’ and this is the only bird name to contain the first three letters of the alphabet in order – ABC!
