Tachybaptus ruficollis
Silhouette: Tisha Mukherjee · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
The little grebe (Tachybaptus ruficollis), also known as the dabchick, is a member of the grebe family of water birds. The genus name is from Ancient Greek takhus "fast" and bapto "to sink under". The specific ruficollis is from Latin rufus "red" and Modern Latin -collis, "-necked", itself derived from Latin collum "neck".
At 23 to 29 centimetres (9 to 11+1⁄2 inches) in length it is the smallest European, Asian, and African member of its family. It is commonly found in open bodies of water across most of its range. The little grebe was formally described in a sales catalogue by the German naturalist Peter Simon Pallas in 1764 under the binomial name Colymbus ruficollis. The type locality is the Netherlands. The specific epithet is Modern Latin meaning "red-necked", from Latin rufus meaning "red", "ruddy" or "rufous" and Modern Latin -collis meaning "-necked". The little grebe is now one of five species placed in the genus Tachybaptus that was introduced in 1789 by German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin.
Ten subspecies are currently accepted, four widespread, and six with restricted ranges; they are separated principally by size, eye colour, which varies... Wikipedia →
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dresden Zoo | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 2 | Zoo Pilsen | 🇨🇿 Czechia | |
| 3 | Tama Zoological Park | 🇯🇵 Japan | |
| 4 | Inokashira Park Zoo | 🇯🇵 Japan | |
| 5 | L'Oceanogràfic | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 6 | Alpenzoo Innsbruck | 🇦🇹 Austria | |
| 7 | Lake Biwa Museum | 🇯🇵 Japan |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Little Grebe sighting in Johannesburg on a given day, based on 226 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 73rd most-seen of the 219 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
April to December
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Little Grebe in Johannesburg on a given day, against under 5% in January to March, the lowest months.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Little Grebe sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
136th of 196
Of the 196 cities where we can rate Little Grebe sightings, Johannesburg ranks 136th at about 10%. The best odds are in Guiyang (China, about 70%), Hangzhou (China, about 70%) and Ningbo (China, about 70%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Little Grebe is recorded against all the birds logged in Johannesburg (226 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
