Common Loon
A species of Loons, Also known as Great Northern Loon Scientific name : Gavia immer Genus : Loons
Common Loon, A species of Loons
Also known as:
Great Northern Loon
Botanical name: Gavia immer
Genus: Loons
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Description People often ask General Info
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Description
The adult common loon can range from 66 to 91 cm (26 to 36 in) in length with a 127 to 147 cm (4 ft 2 in to 4 ft 10 in) wingspan, slightly smaller than the similar yellow-billed loon. On average, it is about 81 cm (32 in) long and has a wingspan of 136 cm (54 in). Its weight can vary anywhere from 2.2 to 7.6 kg (4.9 to 16.8 lb). Sizes vary regionally, especially by body mass, with the smallest bodied loons on average from lower-central Canada and the Great Lakes, while westerly birds are similar or mildly larger, and loons breeding further east can appear to be significantly larger. Furthermore, males average up to nearly 27% more massive than females in some populations. Breeding loons in Maine averaged 4.65 kg (10.3 lb) in females and 5.97 kg (13.2 lb) in males, essentially the same weight as the yellow-billed loon although the yellow-billed is still larger than in linear dimensions (especially bill length) than the Maine loons. In Ontario, 20 females averaged 4.5 kg (9.9 lb) and 20 males averaged 5.46 kg (12.0 lb). In contrast, in the Gulf of Alaska, adults of both sexes reportedly averaged 4.13 kg (9.1 lb). Adult breeding plumage consists of a broad black head and neck with greenish, purplish, or bluish sheen. It has a black bill sometimes with a pale tip, and red eyes. The neck is encircled with a characteristic black ring and has two white necklaces of eight to ten short streaks on the upper foreneck, and a noticeable collar of white, parallel lines forming a large oval on the neck-side. The central lower foreneck is pure white, and the lower neck-sides has longitudinal white lines becoming rows of small spots and black lines becoming very narrow. The upperparts are blackish or blackish grey, and each feather has small white spots on it. The upperwing is blackish and with small white spots on the non-primary coverts, whereas the underwing is paler with white coverts except the long black shaft-streaks on the axillaries. The underparts are pure white, but have some black on the undertail coverts and vent. It has a checkered black-and-white mantle and a blackish tail. The legs are pale grey on the inner half and blackish on the outer half, and the webs between the toes are flesh coloured. Adult non-breeding plumage is brownish with a dark neck and head marked with dark grey-brown. The eyes are surrounded with white, and the eyelids are pale. The bill is mostly pale grey, with a dark culmen and tip, but in early spring the tip may turn whitish. The underparts, lower face, chin, and throat are also whitish. The foreneck is whitish, usually forming wedge-shaped notch in dark neck-sides, and may sometimes reveal a shadowy trace of the neck ring or a pale collar. It has dark brownish grey upperparts with an unclear pattern of squares on the shoulders and some wing coverts spotted with white, which are usually concealed while swimming. The male and the female have similar appearances, although they exhibit sexual dimorphism in their physical dimensions with the male larger and significantly heavier than the female. The heavy dagger-like bill is evenly tapered and greyish, sometimes having a black tip. The bill colour and angle distinguish this species from the yellow-billed loon. The neck is short and thick. It swims very low in the water, with sometimes only its head held above and horizontal to water. It must run across the water surface to get in flight. During flight, its head is slightly lower than its body, with its feet trailing behind. It has a skeletal structure made up of a number of solid bones (this is usual for the Gaviiformes and penguins but unlike most flying birds which have bones with extensive pneumatization, hollow and filled with air to make the lighter), which adds weight but helps in diving. A juvenile often has a dark, brownish-grey nape that may look darker than the pale-edged black feathers. It has a dark grey to black head, neck, and upperparts, with white throat, cheeks, and underparts. During the first winter, the bill shape of the young may not be as fully developed as that of the adult, and during the second winter, it much resembles the breeding adult, but with wing coverts lacking white spots. The common loon is distinguished from the black-throated loon (G. arctica) and the red-throated loon (G. stellata) mainly by its larger size. It usually has a steeper forehead and a bulging forecrown, somewhat similar to the black-throated loon. Its bill is heavier and the back is paler than its hindneck. It is more difficult to separate from the yellow-billed loon, but its breeding plumage has more white markings on the neck and the squares on its shoulders are usually smaller; the non-breeding plumage has darker neck-sides contrasting more sharply with pale areas and bill colour. 
Size
71 - 91 cm
Colors
Black
Gray
White
Life Expectancy
8 years
Nest Placement
Ground
Clutch Size
1 - 2 eggs
Incubation Period
1 brood
Number of Broods
26 - 29 days
Nestling Period
2 days
Feeding Habits
Common Loon predominantly consume fish, including perch, sunfish, and Atlantic croaker. They adapt their diet to include crustaceans, snails, leeches, insect larvae, and more when fish are scarce. Powered by strong hind legs, they display remarkable underwater agility, chasing prey with swift turns and often swallowing it headfirst. Their hunting efficiency depends on clear waters, with dives averaging 42 seconds but can plunge up to 70m.
Habitat
Common Loon's primary breeding habitat encompasses large, clear freshwater lakes in northern regions, with protective features like coves and islands. They are adapted to a range of pH levels within those bodies of water. In winter, common Loon transition to coastal marine environments such as bays and estuaries, and are sometimes found in significant inland waterways.
Nest Behavior
Both common Loon parents build the nest collaboratively in May or early June. Nest construction takes a week, followed by egg-laying. Common Loon shape the nest's interior to their body contours, ensuring proximity to water for protection and mobility, as their terrestrial movement is awkward.
Nest Characteristics
Common Loon constructs nests on sheltered lakeshores or islands, often reusing and refurbishing the previous year's site. The nest, a mound made of local plant materials like sedges, is close to water with a drop-off for easy access, and measures about 22 inches in width, resembling a clump of dead grasses.
Dite type
Piscivorous
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General Info
Feeding Habits
Bird food type
Behavior
Common Loon exhibit a range of distinctive behaviors in their natural habitat, prominently including their methodical fishing technique. They swim tranquilly, surveying under the waterline before diving in with minimal disturbance. Their diurnal feeding aligns with their prey visibility. Curiously, common Loon may cool themselves by waggling a foot airwards on warmer days. Their territorial claim is demonstrated through an upright, wing-flapping display, often coupled with a tremolo call when disturbed or in flight, where they are notably vocal. These vocalizations crescendo into eerie, nocturnal choruses. Monogamous in nature, common Loon reselect mates promptly if one fails to return, with courtship entailing synchronized swimming and dives. Offspring, once hatched, are known to hitch rides atop their parent's backs. Their behaviors, echoing through their habitats, make their presence unmistakable.
Distribution Area
Common loons are mainly Nearctic, and breed from 48° N to the Arctic Circle, locally south to 40° N and north to 78° N. During their breeding season in spring and summer, most common loons live on lakes and other waterways in the northern United States and Canada, as well as in southern parts of Greenland, in Iceland, in Svalbard, in Jan Mayen, and in Bear Island in Norway; and in Alaska, to the west, and very rarely in Scotland, to the east. Their summer habitat ranges from wooded lakes to tundra ponds. The lakes must be large enough for flight take-off, and provide a large population of small fish. Deep lakes with warm surface waters, relatively low biological productivity and low turbidity where their fish prey are easy to see are habitats where breeding loons are more successful in raising young. For protection from predators, common loons favour lakes with islands and coves. They are rare visitors to the Arctic coast. They are known to exhibit high breeding site fidelity. Some common loons remain in Iceland year-round, although most migrate. In North America, they winter mainly along north Atlantic and north-east Pacific coasts, many stopping off on the Great Lakes during their migration. They migrate in the day, starting about two hours after sunrise and flying at altitudes of 1500 to 2700 m above sea level, above the convective and turbulent layer of air. In winter they can be seen on North America coasts as far south as Baja California, Sonora, northern Sinaloa, southern Texas, and rarely northern Tamaulipas. In the east, several thousand winter along western European coasts, probably originating from Iceland, Greenland, and Canada. Their range extends into northwestern Europe from Finland to Portugal and southern and northwestern Spain (Galicia and Asturias), as well as the western Mediterranean off Catalonia, and off Morocco in Africa, although only a few hundred travel as far south as Iberia. Although wintering site fidelity is not well known, annually, adults are observed to return to the same wintering locations in the Pacific Ocean (Morro Bay), the Gulf of Mexico (Barataria Bay), the Atlantic Ocean (Maryland and Massachusetts), and the reservoir Lake Pateros. They usually winter along coasts and on inland lakes, bays, inlets, and streams, with birds migrating to the nearest body of water that will not freeze over in the winter: western Canadian loons go to the Pacific, Great Lakes loons to the Gulf of Mexico region, eastern Canadian loons to the Atlantic, and some loons to large inland lakes and reservoirs. They appear in most of the inland waters of the United States. The South Carolina coast, the Gulf coast adjacent to the Florida panhandle, and the Atlantic seaboard from Massachusetts to Maine have some of the highest concentrations of common loons. Occasional vagrants are recorded inland in Mexico, in San Luis Potosí and Coahuila, as well as in Chiapas and Oaxaca in the south. They are accidental in northern Japan and the Commander Islands in northwestern Pacific, and Cuba in the West Indies.
Species Status
Since 1998, the common loon has been rated as a species of least concern on the IUCN Red List of Endangered Species. This is because it has a large range – more than 20,000 km (7,700 sq mi) – and because it has a stable population trend that does not warrant a vulnerable rating. It also has a large population size of 612,000 to 640,000 individuals. The estimated breeding population ranges from 1,400 to 2,600 mature individuals in Europe.
Scientific Classification
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