I located the Eared Grebe at Black Hill Regional Park from the short path that leads down the hill to the water from the parking lot next to the bridge. He was in with a mixed flock of Buffleheads and Hooded Mergansers pretty far out in the lake in the direction of the visitors center. The sun came out for a bit, so I had nice clear looks with the scope, but he was too distant for decent photos. This was the first time I'd seen this species and the first thing that struck me about the bird was how high it sits out of the water. When he wasn't diving, he was easy to pick out because of the high-arching, rounded back. I had tried finding him from the visitors center and the boat ramp without success before heading to the bridge. I counted fourteen male Redhead and there were roughly the same number of females, viewable from the boat ramp, along with many Ring-necked, Ruddy, Coot, Bufflehead, Hooded Merganser, a few Widgeon, Canvasback, Gadwall and Common Merganser. Lots of Canada Geese and several mixed-up looking domestic geese...and a single Bald Eagle flyover. Lots to see.

Mark Johnson
Aberdeen, MD