Loon Magic/Loon Magic - Wayzata Technology (8011) (1993).iso/mac/mac text/05 Making

Text File | 1993-07-20 | 4KB | 70 lines

MAKING A LIVING

    "I have laid aside business, and gone a-fishing."
            - Izaak Walton, 1653

    In 1919, Arthur Cleveland Bent, the serious scientist with the
lively prose, deftly captured the fishing prowess of the common loon:
"This loon feeds largely on fish, which it pursues beneath the surface
with wonderful power and speed. The subaqueous rush of the
formidable monster must cause consternation among the finny
tribes."

    The underwater hunting skills of loons obviously impressed Bent.
Many sport fishermen were similarly impressed and probably
wondered and worried about the  diet of the loon. In his study of
diving birds, Bent described the fisherman's worst nightmare: "Even
the lively trout, noted for its quickness of movement, cannot escape
the loon and large numbers of these desirable fish are destroyed to
satisfy its hunger." Bent quickly noted, however, that loons and trout
had co-existed for thousands of years before the arrival of modern
fishermen. He was satisfied that it is not "fair to blame this bird,
which is such an attractive feature of the wilds, for the scarcity of
trout."

    Many fishermen of Bent's era shot loons as competitors, and even
pushed for bounties on loons, but Bent answered their charges with a
comment remarkably sensitive for the time: "We are too apt to
condemn a bird for what little damage it does in this way, without
giving credit for the right to live." Bent was a man ahead of his times,
but the slaughter of loons continued.

    In today's more enlightened era, few loons are shot by selfish
fishermen, but Bent was right about trout- loons do have a taste for
them. Trout of considerable size apparently are fair game for
common loons. In New York's Adirondack region, three common
loons were found in trap nets. Analyses of the loons' stomachs by
state biologists revealed the presence of metal tags which are
routinely attached to stocked brook trout.

    Since the size of the trout when tagged and the date of release
were known, it was possible for officials to estimate the size of each
trout when it met a  loon for lunch. Some of the trout were estimated
at eighteen inches- big brook trout by anyone's standard. An
eighteen-inch brook trout would weigh nearly two pounds, not a bad
meal for an eight-pound loon. While no one actually saw these loons
consume trout, it is unlikely the loons could have picked up the tags
in any other way. A study from Michigan supports the New York
evidence. A Michigan biologist, G. R. Alexander, analyzed the
stomachs of a dozen loons. He concluded their diet consisted of eighty
percent trout, ranging in size from six to twelve inches. Loons in
Ontario's Algonquin Park also dine on trout. One common loon found
there had tags from twenty-five trout in its stomach.

    However, loons should not be characterized as aquatic gourmands,
feasting only upon the finest game fish. To the contrary, they are
highly opportunistic aquatic hunters and will eat whatever is handy.
If they live on trout lakes, they will eat trout, but most likely they
will find other prey more abundant and easier to catch. Since more
typical loon prey (such as sucker or perch) is rarely tagged, evidence
of eating fish other than prime game fish like trout is not readily
available.

    In many ways the loon/trout issue is like the wolf/deer debate.
While wolves eat deer, they do not eat enough to threaten the deer
population. In a similar fashion, loons are not serious competitors for
the sport fisherman. Since they feed on almost anything that swims,
loons take relatively few game fish. Some scientists, in fact, believe
loons might actually improve sport fishing by removing large
numbers of rough fish.