Little Grebe (Tachybaptus ruficollis)
It’s easy to overlook the Little Grebe, the smallest member of its family in Europe. It is highly adept at concealment, both by disappearing among the masses of shoots and leaves of aquatic plants, and by its habit of diving repeatedly with very brief visits to the surface. In common with other grebes it can expel air trapped between its feathers (“sleeking”), and also empty its air sacs; both reduce its buoyancy, allowing it to surface at times with just its head and neck peeping above water, a bit like a submarine.
The smallest pools and ditches can support a pair of Little Grebes, so long as there is plenty of thick floating and fringing vegetation. These birds only dive to a depth of 1m or so, scouring the mud and shallows for insects and their larvae, crustaceans and some small vertebrates, including fish. The Little Grebe also eats more snails and other molluscs than any other member of the family.
Pairs will sometimes occupy a small territory all year. They maintain the pair pond with a subtle display in which both sexes adopt a hunched posture, and both give off tittering, whinnying calls. Other, more elaborate displays take place in season, including mutual presentation of weed – but these are often hidden from view.