Great photos. Very interesting. How much does the adult weigh? How old were the adults? Where do they winter? What organization are you with? How does one capture a loon? Really interested. Thanks for posting these shots.
guest
[Sep 04, 2005 at 06:40 PM]
Hi Ken,
These photos were from a week spent volunteering (or, more accurately, they let me come along for a week) with the Wisconsin DNR. I'm not sure I should outline the process of loon capture on a public website, aside from the more obvious: in a boat, in the middle of the night, and with a big net. I am not sure exactly where loons winter--somewhere with water, for sure, and I think I remember from my field guide that they can be as far south as Florida. I want to say that an adult loon ways close to 13 or 14 pounds, but don't quote me on that. I presume that the adults were at least 4 years old, but then again I can only be so sure. A good source for learning about any bird is the "Birds of North America" series, put out by Cornell University. There are over 700 peer-reviewed species accounts covering all of North America's birds. You should be able to find it at most college and university libraries, if they have a Biology program.
guest
[Sep 20, 2005 at 01:03 AM]
PS, e-mail me if you would like to be updated on the results of these studies when I am updated.
These photos were from a week spent volunteering (or, more accurately, they let me come along for a week) with the Wisconsin DNR. I'm not sure I should outline the process of loon capture on a public website, aside from the more obvious: in a boat, in the middle of the night, and with a big net. I am not sure exactly where loons winter--somewhere with water, for sure, and I think I remember from my field guide that they can be as far south as Florida. I want to say that an adult loon ways close to 13 or 14 pounds, but don't quote me on that. I presume that the adults were at least 4 years old, but then again I can only be so sure. A good source for learning about any bird is the "Birds of North America" series, put out by Cornell University. There are over 700 peer-reviewed species accounts covering all of North America's birds. You should be able to find it at most college and university libraries, if they have a Biology program.