Scientific name:
Podiceps cristatus L.

Natural spread:
Europe, Aesir

is the bonnet-diver the biggest of our native diver-types and has the size of a mallard approximately, however the neck is longer and a tail practically not existing. In the brood-dress, it cannot be confused with any other type. Males and females then have a split black bonnet and a bay feather-collar black at the edge. Is throat, head-sides and the underside knows, the upper side gloomily dun. A black rein-stripe is conspicuous. With the female, bonnet and feather-collars are somewhat smaller. The silence-dress resembles the brood-dress, however the bonnet is essentially smaller and indicated the collars only through some dark little feather. The Dunenjungen are black with white vertical stripes at the head and necks. They have light-brownish vertical stripes at the remaining body. The youth-dress resembles the silence-dress, the dark head and neck-strips of the Dunenkleides can still be recognizable in December, however.

Voice: During the incubation, one hears often different reedy and high reputations, heron-nicely "aorr", with which clattering "boldly boldly easily perform courtship display, boldly...". Squabs beg "vie-vie-vie wheezy in until into the autumn...".

Spread: The bonnet-diver occurs all over Europe as brood-bird, however not in the northern part of Scandinavia. The largest part of the total-population broods in the countries of the former Soviet union, parts of the population are enough as far as after Eastern Asia.

Habitat: Preferred habitats are standing waters, therefore seas and ponds, with a more or less wide plant-belt and bigger free water-surfaces. Occasionally also on Altwässern and in bays of slowly flowing waters. Continuously flat waters are avoided. Minimum-size of the brood-waters 3-4 ah, in forest-areas 8-11 ah. Durchzügler and Ãœberwinterer prefer free water-surfaces of bigger seas and the more inferior Vereisung also because of river-runs.

Food: The bonnet-diver lives mainly from small fishings, amphibians (tadpoles, small frogs), water-insects and their larvae. Feathers picked up with the food support the formation of Gewöllen, in which fish bone are cast.

Hikes: Is decided by the existence of ice-free waters predominantly. The bonnet-diver therefore is only partial stand-bird, usually however line and migratory bird. The train takes place in predominantly southeast direction as far as into the Mediterranean-area, to the black sea and Near east, only at night. Beginning of the move from middle August until October / November. Climax of the draft in October. Return in the brood-area, after the waters became ice-free, (February / March) regularly until April / May.

Reproduction: Incubation in Central Europe of middle May until July. Only one brood takes place normally. Second-broods and after-nests above all in July. In the spring of standing out perform courtship display: Pairs swim breast at breast with set up neck-frills, head-spins execute, stretch itself from the water (penguin-dance, sees graphics on the title page) and show Scheinputzen. The nest is at a freer place in the vegetation-belt or at its edge. It is built (45 cm of diameter) by both partners from perished and occasionally also fresh water-plants of all the type. The nest-hollow has 16 cm of diameter. The nest usually consists of 4-6, from time to time also 3 eggs. Deposit of the eggs in the distance of approximately 2 days. Brood-beginning after storage space of the first egg, from time to time also only after storage space of the last. Both partners brood, however, the share of the females prevails. Brood-duration 25-28 days. The boys are led by both parents and are fed and are independent with 9 to 10 weeks.

Continuance-situation / continuance-change: In Central Europe, the bonnet-diver is a regular and not rare brood-bird at seas and bigger ponds. Regional differences in the frequency are given through the unequal distribution of suitable brood-waters. The brood-continuance, that is subject to annual fluctuations, reaches 370.000 to 1,3 million pairs world-wide; in Central Europe 60.000 until 90.000, from it in Germany about. 22.000 to 32.000 brood-pairs. For middle of the 90er years, the continuance is estimated at 4000 to 5000 brood-pairs (BP) in the country Brandenburg. Presently, however, it should lie with only 2500-3500 BP. Continuance-decreases in the 90er years are with high likelihood on the (ecologically desired) reduced nutrient-entry into the waters to be led back on reed-disappearance as well as reinforced tourism-utilization (boat-traffic, fishing rod-sport). In the Peitzer pond-area, the general continuance-decline is probably primarily based on fishery-economic changeovers, Zufütterungen u.ä reduced.), this also a reduction of the nutrient-entry to the consequence has. The brood-density fluctuates in the different habitats considerably.

Bonnet-divers, hunt and fish-breeding: The bonnet-diver's continuance was in the 19. Century strongly endangered. it became gejagd intensively in order to process breast and stomach-plumage (diver-fur) white and very dense as muff for elegant ladies its beaming. Through hunt-exemption since beginning of the 20. The continuance recovered century and since the 1970er years, a continuance-increase is to be recorded. In many areas of Germany, this development or the brood-pair-numbers stagnate goes back again. The bonnet-diver still is subject to the hunt-right. Although above all the economically uninteresting whitings like river-perch and roach are carried off, the danger of the reintroduction of a hunt-time exists, about which to reduce "fish-robbers!"