Podilymbus podiceps
Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~40% in a week ~70%
The pied-billed grebe (Podilymbus podiceps) is a species of the grebe family of water birds primarily found in ponds throughout the Americas. The pied-billed grebe was described by Carl Linnaeus in the 10th edition of his Systema Naturae in 1758 as Colymbus podiceps. The binomial name is derived from Latin Podilymbus, a contraction of podicipes ("feet at the buttocks", from podici-, "rump-" + pes, "foot")—the origin of the name of the grebe order—and Ancient Greek kolymbos, "diver", and podiceps, "rump-headed", from podici- + Neo-Latin ceps.
Other names of this grebe include American dabchick, rail, dabchick, Carolina grebe, devil-diver, dive-dapper, dipper, hell-diver, pied-billed dabchick, pied-bill, thick-billed grebe, and water witch. Since the extinction of the Atitlán grebe (Podilymbus gigas), the pied-billed grebe has become the sole extant member of the genus Podilymbus. Outside its own genus, the closest relatives of the pied-billed grebe are the small grebes of the genus Tachybaptus. Wikipedia →
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tijuana | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 2 | Mesa | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | León | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 4 | Seattle | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Mexico City | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 6 | San Francisco | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Los Angeles | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Bogota | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 9 | Austin | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Las Vegas | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Diego Zoo Safari Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Aquarium of the Pacific | 🇺🇸 United States |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Pied-billed Grebe sighting in El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve on a given day, based on 191 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 73rd most-seen of the 237 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 40%, and over a week to about 70%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February–April and October–December
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Pied-billed Grebe in El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve on a given day, against under 5% in July, the lowest month.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Pied-billed 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.
5th of 53
Of the 53 parks where we can rate Pied-billed Grebe sightings, El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve ranks 5th at about 20%. The best odds are in Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge (United States, about 50%), Channel Islands National Park (United States, about 40%) and Lago de Yojoa (Honduras, about 40%). All parks ranked.
Same family: Podicipedidae
The closest relatives of the Pied-billed Grebe that you can see in El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve (family Podicipedidae, Grebes) are Eared Grebe (about 30%), Western Grebe (about 20%) and Clark's Grebe (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Pied-billed Grebe is recorded against all the birds logged in El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve (191 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
