Argentina is the birthplace of tango, an iconic dance style dating back to the 1880s. Long before the first tango steps were taken, however, another dance was already in full swing across parts of Patagonia: the hypnotic grooves of the hooded grebe (Podiceps gallardoi). That dance is still going on today, as you can see in "Tango in the Wind," a new documentary about hooded grebes. Yet despite their impressive moves, the hooded grebes' dance is increasingly in danger of disappearing. That's because hooded grebes themselves have become a critically endangered species, with only about 1,000 individuals remaining in the wild.
About 20 different species make up the grebe family, including the great crested grebes (Podiceps cristatus) of Eurasia as well as North America's western grebes (Aechmophorus occidentalis) and Clark's grebes (Aechmophorus clarkii). Many of these are well-known for their elaborate courtship dances, some of which even involve the birds running on top of water by taking up to 20 steps per second.
Source: Mother Nature Network, 8 August 2017
https://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/animals/blogs/hooded-grebe-critically…
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