Loon Magic/Loon Magic - Wayzata Technology (8011) (1993).iso/mac/mac text/11 South - Birds of a Feather

Text File | 1993-07-20 | 5KB | 85 lines

   LOOKING SOUTH

   "The woodland lakes would be solitudes, indeed, did they lack the
finishing touch to make the picture complete, the tinge of wilderness
which adds color to the scene, the weird and mournful cry of the
loon, as he calls to his mate or greets some new arrival. Who has ever
paddled a canoe, or cast a fly, or pitched a tent in the north woods
and has not stopped to listen to this wail of wilderness? And what
would the wilderness be without it?"  -Arthur Cleveland Bent, 1919

   The fall migration of loons is not a "here one day and gone the
next" phenomenon. It's quite difficult to pin down a departure
schedule because the migration process may begin as early as late
July or early August when loons, at least to human eyes, begin to get
restless. As summer wears on, the birds start a gradual movement
from smaller to larger lakes, perhaps to find better fishing or to join
other loons in pre-migratory flocks.

   Birds of a Feather

   On large northern lakes, it's tough to separate the early summer
social flocking, often evident as early as mid-July, from the later pre-
migratory flocking. In some areas, the two behaviors blend into each
other. The early-season flocking usually occurs on large lakes where
groups of a dozen or more loons assemble for afternoon sessions of
cruising, preening and loafing. The early summer concentration sites
often are used year after year. Of course, you have to be in high-
density loon areas to find this behavior.

In July of 1976, Joe Anderlik found himself in very high-density loon
country. He was fishing on 265-square-mile Molson Lake in northern
Manitoba. He recalls that the weather had been lousy for several
days but finally cleared, and days of ninety-degree heat followed. On
the fourth day of the heat wave, the Cree guide motored the fishing
party a considerable distance from their base camp. The lake was
perfectly calm. Dozing off occasionally in the bow, Joe sat up quickly
when he noticed a large congregation of birds. Instructing the guide
to head toward the group of about 600 birds, Anderlik quickly
realized he was watching his favorite bird, the common loon. Loons
in the huge flock quietly preened as the boat passed. In over forty
years of watching loons Anderlik had never seen anything like that
assemblage. Few people have ever witnessed such a loon gathering,
even once.

   Ontario biologist Peter Croskery has observed summer flocking of
loons in northwestern Ontario for many years. He has noted flocks of
fifteen to seventy loons that stay together throughout the summer.
Flocking seems to be more common on larger lakes with open water
basins.

   In the northwoods of Maine, Paul Strong sees flocks of loons nearly
all season long. Groups of fifteen to twenty are evident in his
wilderness study area north of Baxter State Park as early as June. On
small lakes the same flocking phenomenon occurs but with smaller
numbers, usually four or five individuals. These groups are probably
non-breeders or unsuccessful breeding pairs. They often stay
together well into September when the early migrants decide to test
their wings.

   In his northern Minnesota wilderness study area, Sigurd Olson kept
track of the total number of adult loons throughout the season and
found a surprisingly steady decline. In June, he was seeing 109 to
114 adult loons. In late July, he counted 128 to 143 adultsmthe
increase likely due to single loons and unsuccessful pairs moving in
from other areas. In early September, however, he observed only
eighty birds. By late September, he saw forty birds in the area and
by early October he could find only twenty loons. Just a few hardy
loons stayed around until the late November ice closed the lakes. The
juveniles followed a fairly similar pattern with twenty-one young on
the scene in early September, fourteen in late September and ten in
early October. Olson recalls the canoe country becoming strangely
quiet as the hardwoods dropped their color. While coastal arrivals of
loons have been observed in August on the Atlantic and late
September off Florida's Gulf coast, most loons wait until late October
or early November to head south.

   For loon watchers, fall can be a time of mixed emotions. Are "your"
loons just heading out for a feeding visit to another lake? Or are they
leaving for the year and consequently leaving a big hole in your
lake? It's hard to say good-bye to friends, even if you know they're
going to warm, coastal waters. Unlike geese, which fly in large flocks,
loons migrate singly or in small groups. Few people notice migrating
loons. Given the typical early morning flights and the lack of calling,
it is not surprising.