I believe Mom Loon has begun her journey to warmer waters!
Dad typically stays longer to ensure the babies can fly and land. Dad usually leaves before the babies do, but sometimes the babies panic and leave with the father. It all happens quickly! Typically, once the father leaves, the babies get the urge to fly to winter waters shortly after his departure. They travel to the Gulf of Mexico or the East Coast. In some cases, baby loons do not know to leave the lake they were born on and, unfortunately, succumb to ice closing in on the open water. Let’s hope we do not witness this on Pickerel Lake!
Juvenile loons stay in winter waters for 3-5 years until they mature and develop the urge to mate. They typically return to the lake they were born on, but if the parents are still here, the parents will protect their territory even from their offspring. This is quite common since adult loons can live up to 30+ years! The juveniles will continue north to find their own lake or challenge other loons for their territory. On average, only one out of every two babies survives to adulthood. The dangers of migration and survival in winter waters are a great challenge.
Unlike many other birds, loons do not have hollow bones. Instead, their bones are dense and thick-walled. The extra weight of these bones is a benefit to loons when they are in the water—it helps them dive deep and stay under for long periods. However, the added weight means that loons have a high rate of wing loading—relative to the area of their wings, their mass is significant. Each square inch of the wing supports a lot of weight. This means that loons have to work hard to achieve liftoff when it comes to flight. They must run across the water’s surface, flapping their wings as they go, until they finally gain enough momentum to take off.
The amount of ‘runway’ space loons need to take off can vary depending on wind conditions. Loons will orient themselves into the wind as they prepare to take off. A strong headwind can give them an extra boost that enables them to take flight with a relatively short runway. However, on calm days, loons may need up to a quarter mile of runway space to achieve liftoff.
If you miss our loons this fall/winter, some fun pages to visit for your loon fix are Loony for Loons on Facebook or Loon Preservation Committee on Facebook. Loon.org has a ton of info posted on their website. Some neat videos on the Loon Preservation Committee’s Facebook page show how loons take flight!
Enjoy!
Spring is just around the corner! Right?
Dorothy Germain