As of 2:30 this afternoon the loon was still in the lead of water. Five
bald eagles, 3 juvies and 2 adults, were on the ice, in the air, or gorging
on venison. The loon called, but not often, abbreviated wails that bounced
around the Morey valley. I timed its dives, anywhere between 53 seconds and
8 seconds, which were more frequent and repeated at very short intervals
when an eagle flew over. Three times in a two hours the loon attempted to
get airborn, which was an impossibility without 100+ yards of open water.

My best guess is that the bird will exhaust itself and drown before dawn.
Earlier in the day, Jeannie Kornfeld, who had called me about the plight of
loon, reported that a second fatally desperate loon, attracted to the same
open patch of water, dove and never surfaced.


---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Kathy Thompson <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Sat, Jan 9, 2016 at 1:49 PM
Subject: Mary Daly responded to me off list earlier this AM
To: [log in to unmask]



This was her message to me:

-------- Forwarded Message -------- Subject: loon Date: Sat, 9 Jan 2016
07:24:10 -0500 From: Mary Daly <[log in to unmask]>
<[log in to unmask]> To: [log in to unmask]

Thanks for the posting.  I have forwarded your note to Eric Hanson, the
Loon biologist for the VT Center for Ecostudies.  I know one year some
young fellows from the Hulbert Center went out in a canoe and with axes,
broke a path for a young loon.


Don't know if Eric responded.  Thanks for checking on the bird....
Kathy



Mary Daly


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