The hoary-headed grebe looks like it has been dusted with powdered sugar. It is a small bird with a white head and dark streaks that give it a frosted appearance. The neck is dark. The body is grey-brown. In breeding plumage, the white streaks become more pronounced. The bird looks older than it is. The name "hoary" means grey or white with age. The bird is not old. It just looks that way. This visual trick serves it well in the reeds. The eye is pale yellow, staring out from the white face. The bill is dark. The legs are set far back on the body. This design is excellent for swimming but terrible for walking. On land, the bird shuffles. It is awkward. In water, it dives. Feeding involves small fish, aquatic insects, and crustaceans. It dives frequently, staying under for twenty to thirty seconds. It surfaces somewhere else. A grebe that sees you will dive. It will surface further away. It will watch you from a distance. Suspicion has served it well. Breeding takes place in freshwater wetlands. The nest is a floating platform of vegetation, anchored to reeds or rushes. Four to six eggs are laid. The parents take turns incubating. The chicks are striped and fluffy. They ride on the parents' backs during their first weeks. This behaviour provides warmth and protection. It is a common strategy among grebes. The call is a high-pitched trill, often given in display. On a still morning on an Australian lake, the sound carries across the water. In New Zealand, it is rarely heard. The birds are too few and too quiet. Hoary-headed grebes are not native to New Zealand. They are native to Australia, where they are common. The birds that turn up here are vagrants, blown across the Tasman by storms. They do not stay. A few weeks of feeding, then they head back across the water or further south. In New Zealand, these birds are rare. A few appear each year, scattered around the North Island. They prefer the Waikato wetlands, the lakes of the Bay of Plenty, and the estuaries of Northland. Occasionally they reach the northern South Island. The hoary-headed grebe is closely related to the New Zealand dabchick. They look similar. The grebe has more white on the head. The dabchick has darker plumage. The birds know the difference. Identification requires attention to detail. No significant threats exist in New Zealand due to the rarity of visitation. In Australia, wetland drainage poses a risk. Water pollution and introduced fish species also affect populations. The global population is common and widespread in the south and east of Australia. Here, it remains a transient guest. It carries on.