December 03, 1961 - The Common LoonIN
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Common Loon in winter (left) and sssssinivs• plit"inq es
Exclusive Sunday Review Sketch by Dennis Puleston of Brookhaven
ocus on
Two weeks ago we presented
a very fine arteile entitled,
"Girding F r o m a Tractor."
Through an oversight the auth-
or's name was left out. For
those of you who follow this
column, I want to acknowledge
Harold Evans, Jr, a long time
friend of mine, as the author.
Harold's a Cornell graduate
and has been farming and
bird- watching most of his life.
Any of you who might have
missed this article, I strongly
recommend than you read it.
—ps.
(EDITOR'S NOTE: Since the
"oversight" was editorial, in
apology to Mr Evans we have
set aside a limited number of
copies of the Nov 19 Sunday
Review, in which his fine arti-
cle appeared, and would be hap-
py to send thew without charge
to those of you who may have
missed reading it. Simply ad-
dress Editor, Sunday Review,
Box 720. Riverhead; or call PA
7 -3o0o and ask for Mr Blais).
THE COMMON LOON
Whenever I start to write this
article I find myself looking back
at the many experiences 1 had
as a boy here on Long Island.
It's frightening for I begin to
wonder if my boys will ever have
the wild and exciting times I had
in the fields and bays that have
taught me' so much.
• I recall a time of yesteryear,
when only a school boy on a quiet
calm day, I rowed across t he
bay to the accompaniment of the
call of the loon. Closing my eyes
sand looking back I can see a
dilapidated old rowboat with a
small boy crouched down in the
bow and only his eyes peering
over the. edge as he answered
those unforgettable calls.
Not even the story book tales
of safaris in wildest Africa could
have been more exciting to me
as I called six or seven of those
curious big birds within 50 feet
of my boat. I remember seeing
their eyes blink as they Mopped
up around me from their sub-
merged dive. This was unusual,
for most of the time the loon is
a solitary bird, caring little for
gro.ips and society in general.
The common loon that we see
now along the ocean, sound and
bays will probably not be with
us throughout the winter; for like
most birds it also migrates to the
south. Yet there will file some that
will linger on throughout the win-
ter, showing their strength a n d
ruggedness against the wild and
t e r r i b l y cold winds from the
North. In our area here on Long
Island we see the loons, starting
their awkward, southern flight in
S e p t e m b e r and continuing it
through October and November.
ature
by Paul Stoutenburgh.
Once in flight you might think
these birds would continue flying
for if you have ever seen them
struggle to f I i g h t: with flapping
w i n g s and paddling feet, you
would know what I mean.
On calm days it is all but im-
possible for these large and awk-
ward birds (8 to 20 lbs) to become
airborne. As a matter of fact, 'if
they are caught on the ground,
dr probably more common dur-
ing the winter on the ice when
all is frozen over, they cannot
take off at all. It is during this
time, that they are most vulner-
able' to their enemies. This lack
of ability to fly from land, prob-
ably accounts for the reason the
loon places its nest so close to
the water. One good push and he's
away under water out of reach
from all.
Their nesting grounds extend
from the northern edge of the
United States to Labrador and
Newfoundland. For those of you
who have traveled in this great
area during the nesting season,
you are probably well familiar
with the call of the loon from the
many inland lakes that he uses
for nesting. Unless it is an ex-
ceedingly large lake, only one
pair will be found, for the nesting
areas are fiercely protected a-
gainst all intruders.
The nest is nothing ,snore than
a low depression in the ground
or a bog, lined sparsely w it h
roots and grass. When the young
are hatched, they are transported
about on the parent's back until
old enough to strike out for them-
selves. This is usually only a
matter of days.
Years ago the loon was ruth-
lessly killed by the hunter. When
stalked, this bird harldy e v e r
flies but seeks escape by diving
and swimming as far as poss-
ible. So adept at diving is h e
that he has been caught in fish
nets that were over 200 ft below
the surface. With this ability to
swim under water, we see these
birds living almost exclusively on
fish and occasional mollusks.
The Migratory Bird T r e a t y
Act has practically eliminated the
useless slaughter of the loan, but
today we still 'find the poor fool
who thinks it is some kind of
sp s -t ,`o shmnt at anything. Nature
has helped in many ways to pro-
tect the loon from these people.
First, the fantastic ability to swim
with feet and wings usually put.;
the loon well out of range of the
gunner. Secondly, the loon has
the uncanny ability to defy grav-
ity in that 'it can submerge itself
excent for its neck and head.
Roy Latham reports:
November 23—Orient
Snowv Owl (2) �4
This is a remarkable thing to
watch when this large bird liter-
ally sinks almost out of sight be-
fore your very eyes. Naturally the
head and neck make a very small
target. Thirdly, I have been told
that the loon has the ability to
perdeive the flash of a gun and
therefore by a quick dive he es-
capes the shot.
Nature is looking after Mr Loon
in true fashion. Perhaps if we
had the old time duck hunter who
really knew his birds and the
modern game laws of today, the
shooting problem might be some-
what alleviated. But as it is now,
most hunters of today do not
know the difference between a
loon and a goose. The loon is
larger than most dicks and there -
is some size similarity to t he
goose but that's about as far as
it goes.
The neck of a loon is much
shorter and he has the character-
istic trailing feet that are s o
common to the species. T h e
straight deliberate flight of this
bird sets him off in a class all
by himself and usually we see
him flying singly except in mi-
gration when the* w' -oceasiAli-
ally flock.
The only other similar species,
although smaller in size, would
be the red- throated loon. I find
the best check mark of t h e s e
to be the slightly up- turned bill.
Both the red- throated and t h e
common are winter residents, al-
though the common is more a-
bundant.
Should you get a chance, on a
quiet day, go down to the water,
and 1'isten for the call of the loon
from across the bay. It is a call
n e v e r forgotten and when you
read Longfellow's Birds of Pass-
age: "The loon that laughs and
flies Down to those reflected
skies.." will carry a deeper
meaning for you.
FIELD OBSERVATIONS
Dennis Puleston reports:
November 19— Brookhaven
Short - billed marsh wren
Short -eared owls (2) Nov 19 -27
November 26— Brookhaven
Rough - legged hawks (2)
Savannah sparrows (15)
November 25— Jamaica Bay
Shovelers (3)
Curlew Sandpiper
November 25— Belmont Lak-
Gadwalls (5)
o o
L. R. Ernest reports:
m
3;
November 22 —Mecox
OD :r
>
Ruddy ducks
November 22— Bridgehamptoii
Killdeer (3)
o
November 26 —North Sea
N
Ruby- crowned kinglet
November 27— Southampton