BOOTHBAY REGISTER • February 24, 2021
A bird seen recently paddling in tidal water just off shore in the Midcoast area was a horned grebe sporting its subtle winter coat. In the breeding season, the horned grebe is not so subtle, with golden feather tufts sticking up like horns on the side of its black head and a rich, rufous neck and sides. Sometimes just before they leave us in April to head north for the summer, some will have molted fully in to this jazzy plumage, giving birders a feast for the eyes. The grebe family was long-considered closely related to the loons as they have many similarities. But modern genetic analyses has suggested that they are more closely related to flamingos! ~ Jeff and Allison Wells