New Zealand Grebe (Poliocephalus rufopectus (G.R. Gray, 1843))
Scientific name: Poliocephalus rufopectus (G.R. Gray, 1843)
Common name: New Zealand Grebe
Other names: New Zealand Dabchick, Maori name: Weweia.
French name: Grèbe de Nouvelle Zélande
Order: Podicipediformes
Family: Podicipedidae
Size: Body size: 28 to 30 cm; Weight: 230 to 270 g.
Habitat: Freshwater lakes and ponds with a preference for banks covered with dense vegetation.
Food: Aquatic insects and larvae, small fishes and crustaceans caught while diving.
Nesting: The nest is a floating mass of aquatic plants. There are 2 to 3 eggs per clutch. The young are carried on the backs of adults during their first days.
Migration: Sedentary. There may be some movements in night flight from one body of water to another.
Geographic area: Endemic to New Zealand, present on the North Island but disappeared from the South Island.
The New Zealand Grebe has a plumage that is brownish black above and greyish white below. The front of the neck and the chest are chestnut.
The eyes are light yellow. The sides of the head appear streaked by the presence of long, fine white feathers.
The bill is short, black and pointed.

New Zealand Grebe (Poliocephalus rufopectus) - Taupo, North Island, New Zealand - January 7th 2019
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New Zealand Grebe (Poliocephalus rufopectus)
I observed this Grebe in Taupo Harbour. Unfortunately I had some problems with my photos which are almost all blurry.

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