Thursday, April 30, 2009 8:59am

55degrees     Cloudy and Misting     Wind S 9mph

It has been quite a morning already!

On a cool, cloudy Minnesota spring morning, the loons have once again honored us with their presence and have presented us with the FIRST EGG at about 6:20am!!

So now comes the vigil.

The loons will seldom leave the nest for more than a couple minutes at a time. And even when they leave the nest, they will usually be swimming nearby.

The normal, accepted incubation period for a loon egg is 28 days. So that would put the anticipated hatching of the egg somewhere around May 28th.

However, in past years, we have changed some of the commonly accepted wisdom about loons through observation of this nest. We have documented egg hatching (especially of the second egg) in as little as 25 days. So the hatching may actually be a day or two earlier than May 28th. But that gives you a date to shoot for and anticipate.

Here are some of the things that you can look for over the next month.

Unlike many birds, loons share nesting duties almost equally between the male and female. Each one will stay on the nest for 2 to 3 hours. Then the mate will come in and they will exchange nesting duties and the one that has been on the nest will swim out into the lake to swim and fish and relax while the one on the nest settles in for the next few hours.

When they get on the nest, they go through a whole procedure of turning the egg with their beak and then settling down on it. They may do this a couple times until they get it "just right". They will wiggle back and forth until they are satisfied that they have the egg exactly where they want it. Then they will tuck their wing tips under and the egg is warm and secure.

Once in a while during their "shift" on the nest, they will stand up on their legs and using their beak they will turn the egg and then settling back down on the nest in a new position. It is believed that turning eggs helps the chick develop properly and prevents them from becoming stuck to one side of the eggshell.

I would expect to see them lay the second egg in a couple days.

Now the real drama starts!

Will the eggs be safe? From storms. From eagles. From cold water and waves. From unknown predators, including human. From any other disaster. And then once the eggs hatch, will the chicks survive all the challenges that they are faced with?

So stay tuned for this year's episode of the soap opera "As The Egg Turns"!

If you want to see some wonderful pictures of the actual egg laying taken by Pam in the UK, check them out at http://www.flickr.com/photos/66339356@N00/sets/72157617425259836/detail/    Thank you so much, Pam, for the beautiful pictures of this special event!

Enjoy these next few days.  They will be special.  And exciting.  And rewarding.  And nail-biting.

Questions, Comments, Observations?  Leave them here or in the Chat Room or send them to LoonCam@yahoo.com

Wednesday, April 29, 2009 8:40pm CDT

Darkness falls across a moody northern lake in between rain showers.  And the loons are well.

Many of you have noticed the increased activity of the loons around the nest.  Swimming around the nest more often.  Up on the nest.  Getting more serious about rearranging materials on the nest and forming it just right.  Sitting there for a few minutes.  Getting off the nest.   Getting on the nest.  Mating. Getting off the nest.  Only to return once again shortly after.

I think all of the activity is very hopeful sign that we are getting nearer and nearer to actual laying of the eggs.

Once we have eggs, then everything changes!  Things are much more serious.  The stakes are higher.  Everything that the loons have is poured into those eggs.  And the loons will then be nestbound for the next month!  After eggs are laid, you can be almost bevassured that everytime you check on the nest, one of the loons will be there.

Tonight, in between rain showers and loon visits, I was trying to put in some sections of my dock.  I try to get as much done before they nest because once the loons are on the nest, everything stops.  No one goes out on the dock.  No boats or canoes or pontoons are used.  On Memorial Day, the traditional start of summer in Minnesota, if the loons are there the kids know they can't go swimming.  Everything belongs to and revolves around the loons.

So tonight, the loons had disappeared somewhere out on the lake.  And in between rain showers, I tried to get more of the dock put in.  Then, out of no where, one of the loons was there watching me from just beyond the nest.  Since the loon (I think it was the female) did not seem to be distressed or upset at all, I wanted to finish installing that section before I went back up to the house.  Plus it was starting to rain again.  So I hurried.

Then the second loon was there.  Neither one of them seemed to be concerned at all.  They simply floated.  And watched.  They came to within about 15 to 20 feet of me!  I talked to them as I hurried to finish.  But they just sat and watched.  Without getting too over the top, let me say that it is a humbling feeling to have them that close.  At THEIR choice.  If they showed ANY signs of being disturbed, I was out of there.  But they simply sat and watched.

Trust me.  If a loon is upset, you will know it.  By their alarm calls.  By their displays.  By their frantic diving.  But they were totally at ease.  I would never suggest to anybody to try to get that close to a loon.  But, like I said, it is humbling when THEY make the choice.

So I finished the work in a few minutes and left.  After a little while, they swam out into the lake.  Content that all was well with their world.

So, once again I say to you, enjoy this wonderful opportunity for a close look into the life of the loons and the miracle that will unfold before your eyes.

Wednesday, April 29, 2009 7:45am CDT

Both loons are up on the nest and they mate once again.

Several of you have asked about the mating.  It is normal for them to mate several times.  I have observed as many as 5 times in previous years.  However, already this year, I have observed 6 times and with the observations of some of the rest of you, it is up to 8 times at least.

This is one of the wonders and advantages of the cam.

Behaviour that scientists would never be able to see or document in the wild without phenomenal time and effort, can now be observed by you and them in the comfort of your home.  Over the last few years, there have been things which have been documented on this cam that are starting to change the "conventional wisdom" of what we know about loons.

As she is sitting on the nest right now, there are body movements and 'twitches' that make me wonder if she is getting near the time to lay the first egg.  One can only wonder what is going on inside her body.  The miracle of that alone is something that is hard to comprehend.  I would guess by now the first egg is almost fully formed and a shell is being formed around it.

What you can watch for when she is close to laying an egg is that kind of body movement and very subtle twitches.

Then as the time to lay the egg approaches, she may sort of "climb" up on the edge of the nest.  She will spread her wings slightly to steady herself.  And then all of a sudden, the egg will be laid.  The whole process takes only a couple minutes.  And when the egg is finally laid, it happens very quickly.

For now she has just left the nest and the pair has gone out into the lake to swim and to fish.

So once again, we can only watch and wait.  It is out of our hands.  We are only spectators in this fascinating look into the life of a loon.

Wednesday, April 29, 2009 6:53am

44 degrees Partly Cloudy Wind E 4mph

The loons are swimming together all the way on the other side of the lake in the early morning dappled sun. The lake is relatively calm with just a few ripples. There are no boats on the lake yet.

But just when you think you have the loons figured out, they do something different!

This morning, they are swimming with a third loon!

There is no excited calling. There are no big fights. They seem to be getting along quite well.

Normally, at this time of year during the nesting/mating season, the loons are VERY territorial and will drive off any intruding loon. And this is usually accompanied by a lot of alarm calling and displays and actual fighting.

But that is not the case this morning. One can only wonder why?

Shortly before dark last night the same thing occurred. The neighbors let me know that there was a third loon with them. They said the pair had been near the nest when they started swimming out into the lake. Then they spotted a third loon. They expected to see a fight break out, but it did not.

As we observed them, there was some excited swimming and diving. But no fighting. No alarm calls. No calls of any kind. The pair definitely stayed together and you could tell which one was the lone loon. But the surprising thing was that there was no fighting, which we have observed time and time again when a third loon comes into the territory.

We even discussed whether this could be a chick from 3 years ago. But there is no way to tell and it is only speculation.

So as I said, just when you think you have them figured out, they do something different.

I know many of you have enjoyed having the cam back live again. Thank you for your kind comments.

As you have seen, the loons are gradually visiting the nest more and more. And they have continued to rearrange materials and build the nest. You can now start to see a "bowl" developingand they seem to be more and more satisfied with it.

I still feel that we are within days/to a week of them laying the first egg. Even when they are off the nest, they tend to spend more time in the general area. All of that is a very positive sign.

So continue to watch as this marvel, this miracle of nature unfolds before your eyes. And share the wonder of it with your family and friends. Especially share it with the kids in your life!

Comments, Questions or Observations? Leave them here or in the chat room or send them to LoonCam@yahoo.com

Sunday, April 26, 2009 12:42pm

44 degrees  Rainy  Wind ENE 15mph

Let me first of all give you an update on the loons and the cam.  I know that it can be frustrating when you can't see the cam live right now.  But be assured that people literally across the country are working on getting it live again.  We take so many things for granted and do not always know what the technical wizards behind the scenes are doing to bring us this miracle of watching a pair of nesting loons LIVE from our living rooms!  Things like servers and uploads and downloads and DNS and 'time to life' and ips addresses (static and dynamic) and handshakes and bit streaming and more things than you would ever want to know of what goes into making it possible to see our beautiful loons.  So the technical wizards deserve our thanks and I know they are working hard to get the cam live again.

Now having said all that, let me assure you that you are NOT missing any critical events so far.  The loons have not nested and they have not laid any eggs yet.

But I know how special it is for all of us to even catch a brief glimpse of the loons as they visit the nest.  As they just rearrange material on the platform.  Each glimpse is special.  This is something that we have not brought you in past years.  By the time the camera was up and running on the internet, they had already nested and laid their first egg.

So this year, you have been able to watch the procedure as the loons come to the nest for a few minutes and then leave again.  As they check things out.  As they decide whether this is where they want to build their nest this year.

And so far the signs are very hopeful that they will once again nest on the platform.  But as I have said several times, this is something that is out of our control.  It is totally up to the loons as to whether or not they nest here.

I just got home a little bit ago and, almost as if on cue, the loons swam in and swam around the nest.  One of them, I assume it was the female, got up on the nest and spent about 5 to 7 minutes there.  They just left and now once again they are swimming back out into the lake.  I had not seen them earlier this morning when I looked for them.

So, as I said before, other than missing seeing the loons, you have not missed anything critical.  They have not nested and they have not laid eggs.

But we are getting closer and closer to that happening.  I would guess we are within a few days to a week that they will lay eggs.

So as soon as the cam is live again, keep watching.  Keep hoping.  Keep praying.  And tell your friends and family and neighbors to join you in this wonderful adventure.  In this unique peek into the world of nature and of loons.  This unique look at the wonder of the formation of new life!

Comments or Questions or Observations?  Post them here or in the chat room or send them to LoonCam@yahoo.com   While I may not be able to respond to all of them because of the volume, I will try to address some of the issues and questions in this blog.