chinh nguyen, Courtship dance at Herdsman Lake (ANIMAL & NATURE 2025)

Each year in early spring, great crested grebes return to Herdsman Lake to breed. Nesting begins in late winter, with pairs constructing floating nests among the reeds. As part of their courtship, the birds perform the “weed dance”—a ritual in which both individuals rise upright from the water while holding aquatic vegetation in their beaks. This behavior signals pair bonding and readiness to breed. The dance involves synchronized movements, flared crests, and mutual presentation of nesting material. This photo series documents this rarely observed behavior, highlighting the species’ unique breeding display and its ecological connection to urban wetlands.

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.