| Colombian grebe | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Podicipediformes |
| Family: | Podicipedidae |
| Genus: | Podiceps |
| Species: | †P. andinus |
| Binomial name | |
| †Podiceps andinus (Meyer de Schauensee, 1959) | |
 | |
TheColombian grebe (Podiceps andinus), was agrebe found in theBogotá wetlands on theBogotá savanna in theEastern Ranges of theAndes ofColombia. The species was still abundant inLake Tota in 1945. The species has often been considered a subspecies ofblack-necked grebe (P. nigricollis),[2] and is genetically nested within it;[3] it differed from black-necked grebe most notably in having a reddish-brown (not black) foreneck, and more orangey-toned (rather than yellow) ear tufts.[2] It wasflightless.[4]
The decline of the Colombian grebe is attributed to wetland drainage,siltation,pesticide pollution, disruption by reed harvesting, hunting, competition, and predation of chicks by invasive introducedrainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss).[2] The primary reason wasloss of habitat: drainage of wetlands and siltation resulted in higher concentrations of pollutants, causingeutrophication acrossLake Tota. This destroyed the open, submergentpondweed (Potamogeton) vegetation and resulted in the formation of a densemonoculture of water weed (Elodea).[5]
By 1968, the species had declined to approximately 300 birds. Only two records of this bird were made in the 1970s; one seen 1972, and the last confirmed record from 1977 when three birds were seen. Intensive studies in 1981 and 1982 failed to find the species and it is now considered extinct.[6]
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