UPDATE: We’ve got a second pair of chicks that have hatched since I posted this. Lots of pix in their own post at here.
The weather final cleared enough to let me get back out to check on our three loon families. Well, sort of. I got very wet the first evening and made it back to the car with seconds to spare the second.
With loon chicks hatching it is once again time to request that you give them space if you go to see or photograph them. You may not intend them any harm, but you may distract the parents from seeing other threats. Our new loon chicks were greeted by a circling eagle on their first or second day out. The parents need to concentrate on the real threats, keep back and let them do their job. All the images of chicks here were with a 600mm lens and heavily cropped.
Tuesday evening I got a message from a friend on the Weston’s pond that the chicks had arrived. And that the eagle was eyeing them. Wednesday morning was wet and windy. It gradually cleared a bit through the day. I set out in the evening to check on the chicks. It was sunny when I left the house. On the way into the pond, I had to wait while a doe browsed from the road – with her fawn gamboling about in the road. By the time I had everything in the boat, there were a few sprinkles. Not enough to dissuade in intrepid photographer.
By the time I found the loon family, the rain was steady. The rain got heavier, but I was already wet and wasn’t going to let it stop me. The lighting quickly changed my mind…..
When I got up at 0345 on Thursday ready to head out, it was raining heavily. Early morning is the most productive time in the office, almost no one calls before 0700 or 0800. I got a fair bit done. When the dogs finally got up, I noticed some breaks in the clouds when I let them out. Hoping it would clear a bit, I headed off to to check on the Middletons. They’re still sitting on the eggs. I missed exactly when they laid the eggs, the earliest we can expect chicks is this weekend. Our off duty parent had time to preen and gave several nice stretches. Being a sucker for the stretching shot, I took full advantage. The off duty loon approached the nest three times over a couple hours. The loons held a discussion each time, but the on duty loon stayed on duty. Interestingly, the on duty loon just sat and watched when alone. When the other loon approached, the on duty loon busied itself sorting out the brush around the nest and added material to the nest. When the other loon left, the on duty loon went back to sitting. The off duty loon seemed to be checking in to see if it was shift change yet.
As the off duty loon approaches, the on duty loon starts making nest improvements. Dredging up some vegetation when the off duty loon showed up. One more shot of the on duty loon gathering material. While I waited to catch the nest exchange, I amused myself watching several eastern kingbirds hunting dragonflies.
Kingbirds hunt from low perches along the water’s edge – frequently over lily pads. They make short, fast flights to grab dragonflies and damselflies out of the air. Eventually, it came time for the loon to switch. When doing a nest exchange, loons will often forage and preen together for a time before one returns to the nest. Not this time, The off duty loon wasted no time in climbing onto the nest. Before settling in for the shift, the now on duty loon takes time to turn the eggs. It took three tries to get everything properly arraigned. Third time is the charm! After this, the loon settle down and sat. I headed out, hopefully to get back this weekend.
Thursday evening, I went back to check on the Westons. This time with just a couple puffy clouds in the sky.
Both parents were foraging for the chicks near the nest. This young, the chicks are rarely more than a couple feet away from a parent. Although, both parents may dive at the same time leaving the chicks briefly alone.
This morning, I was up and out by 0430, with clouds above and fog below me as I headed to see the Eastons. They’re up in the White Mountain National Forest, they were on their nest by the time the Forest Service got the road to the pond open, so we don’t know when to expect the chicks. But, the last three years, they’ve hatched in the third weekend of June, so soon…..
When I arrived, one loon was on nest duty. I had a bit of excitement as I looked through the lens. It looked like a chick peeking out from under the wing. No such luck, enlarging the image showed it to be a stray feather. This is the pair where the male is banded. If I can see a leg, I can tell mom from dad. I missed any nest exchange this morning, so I can’t say for sure. But, I’d bet it was dad on the overnight, he’s taken the last few overnights the past three years. There as a surprising moose to loon ratio on the pond this morning at 1.5:1. This bull looks like the one I saw on June 2. He’s shaking his head after submerging it to get the tasty water plants. Sometimes I’m convinced the critters know how to frustrate my photography. With the fog and the back light, I suspect this fellow knew he was frustrating me and enjoyed it as he had breakfast. Our off duty loon was lazily cruising around the pond, occasionally diving to forage. I went looking for other photo opportunities. There seemed to be more herons on the pond this morning. There’s been a resident pair every year since I started visiting in 2012. Later in the season chicks from the nest join the parents. Most of the time, herons are content to stand or slowly stalk along the water’s edge. Occasionally, they’ll make short flight to a new hunting spot or to roost in a tree. This morning I saw about a dozen heron flights and the herons were more vocal than normal. Not sure if the resident pair was restless or if more have moved in. This heron posed nicely. He kept me occupied by occasionally crouching as if about to strike – which kept me glued to the camera. Before I could get a pic, I was distract by two new visitors to the pond. Mrs. moose was out and about. Seeing two moose in a day is a treat. But we weren’t done. A second bull was foraging with the cow. I can remember just a couple days in my life that I’ve been lucky enough to see three moose in a day.
I’ll be out looking for the rest of our chicks as soon as we get a break in the weather.
Love, love, love this! This is delightful commentary with amazing photos. I enjoy hearing about the Weston’s, the Easton’s, the Middleton’s and Mrs. Moose. Wonderful!
Ian….terrific photos and interesting narrative. I’ll look forward to what comes next. Also, thanks for the link to the story of Vermont’s oldest loon. It’s always sad to loose one but that one had a good run.
Thanks. It is sad about the Newark Pond Male, but amazing a bird can live 31 years. I liked that Eric says he has to do grief counseling when his volunteers lose a loon.
I thoroughly enjoy all the images you post and the stories you post along with them. Do you know why loons sit so low in the water? They look like they are sinking! other ducks sit so much higher in the water and that makes me wonder why that is so.
Thanks! Most birds have hollow bones, making them lighter and flight easier. Loons are designed for diving and have solid bones making them heavier and decreasing buoyancy making diving easier. And, loons can regulate how high they sit by fluffing their feathers to rise or squeezing the air out of them to lower them in the water.
Your loon pictures are absolutely exquisite. And you have enough knowledge of loons to explain to the viewer the loon behavior as they tend to their eggs and then their chicks.
Thank you for sharing these spectacular photos that give us the chance to see these amazing animals. And thank you for reminding people to give them their space. We don’t want to live them to death.
Love, love, love this! This is delightful commentary with amazing photos. I enjoy hearing about the Weston’s, the Easton’s, the Middleton’s and Mrs. Moose. Wonderful!
Ian….terrific photos and interesting narrative. I’ll look forward to what comes next. Also, thanks for the link to the story of Vermont’s oldest loon. It’s always sad to loose one but that one had a good run.
Thanks. It is sad about the Newark Pond Male, but amazing a bird can live 31 years. I liked that Eric says he has to do grief counseling when his volunteers lose a loon.
I thoroughly enjoy all the images you post and the stories you post along with them. Do you know why loons sit so low in the water? They look like they are sinking! other ducks sit so much higher in the water and that makes me wonder why that is so.
Thanks! Most birds have hollow bones, making them lighter and flight easier. Loons are designed for diving and have solid bones making them heavier and decreasing buoyancy making diving easier. And, loons can regulate how high they sit by fluffing their feathers to rise or squeezing the air out of them to lower them in the water.
Your loon pictures are absolutely exquisite. And you have enough knowledge of loons to explain to the viewer the loon behavior as they tend to their eggs and then their chicks.
Thank you thank you for sharing such wonderful shots!
informative & beautiful post 🙂
Thank you so much for sharing, Ian! these phots are brilliant. I love seeing the moose in velvet.
Randall
Thank you for sharing these spectacular photos that give us the chance to see these amazing animals. And thank you for reminding people to give them their space. We don’t want to live them to death.
Wow! Worth staying up to read. I will sleep well now.