Red-necked Grebe

Red-necked Grebe (Podiceps grisegena) is a medium grebe with a black cap, pale grey cheeks and chestnut neck in breeding plumage. The combination of body shape, bill structure, plumage pattern and voice provides the most useful field characters. Age, sex and season can alter its appearance, so identification should use several features rather than colour alone. This supports comparison with similar species in the field (Wikipedia, general species account).

It dives for fish and aquatic invertebrates on vegetated lakes, moving to sheltered coasts outside breeding. Its movements and social behaviour vary through the year, with breeding birds generally more dispersed and non-breeding birds more likely to gather where food is concentrated. The Korean vertebrate catalogue used for this guide records the species in South Korea (Wikipedia, general species account; Wildlife of Korea occurrence records).