Thursday, August 5, 2010 11:01pm CDT

66 degrees   Clear   Calm

[I want to thank all of you for letting us know about the Tall Ships in Duluth!!  I think it was Tess that first mentioned them being in Cleveland....excuse me if it was someone else who first mentioned it.  That was the first that I had heard that they were there and were coming to Duluth.  So on the spur of the moment we went to Duluth to see them and spent the last several days there.

AND....we were actually able to sail on the Roseway as it led the ships out to the start line and started the next leg of the race.  It was awesome.  And the crew on the Roseway are really a great bunch of people doing great work with kids.  I saw the Roseway leave port early this morning and it was almost like watching family leaving.

So THANK YOU to all of you for letting us know about the Tall Ships!!

They are tentatively scheduled to be back in Duluth in 2013 so maybe all of you should plan on coming to Duluth for it!]

I had promised you some time ago to say a little more about the oil spill in the Gulf but have held off since there is so much that is unknown.  And probably will be unknown for some time.

I will probably make everyone mad since I am at neither extreme....I am somewhere in the middle.  There are those on either side who are trying to use this to their own advantage.  Some would have you believe that this is no big deal.  And others would have you believe that this is Armageddon and that we should never pump another drop of oil anywhere.  In my humble opinion, both are absolutely wrong.  The truth is probably somewhere in the middle.  I do have a science background but I certainly claim no expertise or great insight into this problem.

I have read some reports that 80% of our waterfowl, including loons, will die this winter and never return.  I think that is a huge overstatement.  Or at least I hope that it is.  But we will not really know until this fall and winter.  And there is absolutely nothing we can do to prevent them from migrating down there.  Someone said to me 'can't we just capture most of the loons and hold them here this winter'?

First of all, it would be impractical and impossible to capture a significant number of loons.  And secondly, even if we could capture a number of them, we would be sentencing them to a certain death because loons do not do well in captivity at all.  We have talked about that before.

They become easily stressed in captivity.  When they are under stress, they develop a condition called aspergillossis.  A fungus called aspergillus just explodes in the lungs of loons (and a few other birds) when they are under stress in captivity.  And it is almost always fatal.  So even if it were possible to do something like that, it would be totally counterproductive.

Let us just hope that the cleanup continues.  We still have 2 or 3 months before the migrating loons get down to the Gulf.  So a lot can still be done.  It is just unfortunate that so much was allowed to make it to shore where it is doing the most damage.  However, for our loons, they will not spend much time either on shore or along the shore.  So that is the good news.

However, the big unknown is how they will react to whatever oil is still in the water.

One of the little known facts is that most birds that are 'rescued' and washed with soap ultimately still die in spite of all the well-intentioned efforts.

Now, we have gone from the news reports being that it is an unmitigated disaster that can't be reversed to "we don't know where the oil went".

Once again, I think the truth is somewhere in the middle.  Neither as bad as they have been saying for the last several months nor as good as they seem to be saying now.

The reports the last few days are that 33% of the oil was recovered or disposed of but that the other 66-75% simply 'disappeared'.  I'm sorry, it did not 'simply disappear'.  Something happened to it and it is important for the future to more fully understand what that 'something' was.

I personally believe the earth and the oceans are much more capable of dealing with things that we give them credit for.  There are all kinds of microbes and little 'beasties' that actually love to eat oil.  After all, oil is simply another form of hydrocarbons like the hydrocarbons in your compost pile that microbes explode in and love to eat.  There is oil seeping from the bottom of the ocean all the time all around the world.  We just never see it and these little creatures take care of it.  Now I am not saying that the 'seepage' is the same magnitude in a concentrated area as this spill...but the earth is constantly seeping oil.  Totally apart from what man ever does.  The big unknown is how the earth deals with a large concentrated spill like this.

So the news that they are having trouble 'finding' the oil is very encouraging.  Much of it may have already been taken care of naturally.   But in my mind the jury is still way out on this yet.

This would also fit with something that I mentioned sometime back.  You will remember that everyone was very concerned about what would happen if a hurricane hit this area and stirred up the water and the oil.  I told you about hearing one of the chief meteorologists for The Weather Channel say that this could possibly even be a "good thing".  His feeling was that a hurricane would act like a giant mixmaster and break the oil up into smaller pieces that the microbes could digest more easily.

Let us hope that we have some VERY HAPPY microbes in the Gulf right now eating at the best buffet that they have ever had!

Also encouraging is that government inspectors have said that they are not seeing any of the oil show up in the Gulf seafood that they have examined.  Let us hope that continues since loons are almost exclusively fish and seafood eaters.

If that is true, that would be a huge plus for our loons when they come down to the Gulf this fall.  If there is no oil contamination showing up in the sea food, that is a very positive thing for our loons.

The other danger for the loons is if they get oil on their feathers.  That will destroy their insulation and waterproofing.  So those are probably the two biggest threats to loons.

The other unknown is how it has already affected the 3 years of immature loons who are still on the Gulf right now from previous hatches.  They are the ones who have faced the greatest threat so far.

But so far there is no firm data.  There is one report that I read a couple weeks ago that 17 dead loons have washed up on shore.  But there was no data that any of them were killed from the oil.  Apparently most of them were 'natural deaths'.  Once again, I am not saying that none of them have been killed by the oil.  We just need to be careful in our numbers.

One thing that you need to be cautious of is some of the reports that you will read over the next couple months.  There have been some reports that over 60,000 birds and animals have been killed from the oil spill.  At this point, I don't think that anyone knows the true number.

But the US Fish and Wildlife Service is trying to document every dead bird or animal from the Gulf Coast and every live animal that has evidence of oil.  So far that TOTAL in both categories is less than 5,000.  And of those, the majority of the dead birds and animals have not had any evidence of oil contamination.

So from the confirmed results so far, I am cautiously optimistic on several levels for our loons!

But that is one of the reasons for the research project that the USGS is doing.  From the satellite transmitters that we implanted and the data recorders, hopefully we will be able to get a more complete picture of the migration this fall and a better picture of what happens to the loons on the Gulf this winter.  The good part is that the loons in New England and eastern and western Canada should not be affected at all as they migrate to the Atlantic and Pacific coasts.

But for now, we can only wait and hope and watch and learn.

Thursday, July 22, 2010 11:46pm CDT

68 degrees   Starlit and thunder  Calm

I just came in a few minutes ago.  The loons out on the lake were calling their beautiful calls.

The moon is almost full.  The stars bright in the sky.  And flashes of lightening off to the west.  And muffled thunder.

A couple hours ago, I had gone down to the lake to wash my hands and arms and legs after doing a lot of work.

One of the loons was sitting only about a hundred feet beyond the end of the dock.  It was good to see him in so close.  He looked wonderful.

I went out to the end of the dock and sat with my feet in the water.

The loon did not move away.  He simply sat and watched me.  And I watched him.  And he watched me watching him.  

I started quietly calling to him to see if he would answer me.  Hoots and quiet wails.  Quiet so that the neighbors would not think I had completely lost my mind!

He didn't answer.  But he didn't swim away either.  We both just sat and enjoyed the moment.  Or at least I enjoyed the moment.

The whole sky above me was completely clear.  The full moon hung just above the trees.  The first stars started to twinkle as we sat there.  Off to the west was a high bank of dark clouds.  Occasionally there was a flash of lightening deep within the clouds.  The sun had set about half and hour before and darkness was quickly settling.  But this was still that magical time of twilight.

What could be more perfect than to add a loon close by on a lake of mirror.

He floated.  I sat.  Both of us content to just "be".  Both of us looking at each other.

What was he thinking?  The nesting platform floated close by.  Did he remember it?  Did he remember me?  Did he recognize me?

This went on for close to half an hour.  Finally I was having trouble making out his silhouette in the shadows of the darkness.  But he was still there.  

Another loon called from across the lake.  I wondered if he would answer.

He didn't answer.  He turned and looked that direction but made no move to swim away.

As I headed up to the house, he was still floating there.

But sometimes moments are too magical and magnificent for words!

Wednesday, July 21, 2010 10:11am CDT

 

73 degrees  Sunny   Calm

 

 

These are the days that summer dreams are made of.

 

Unlimited sunshine.  Comfortably warm.  But not hot and humid.  Blue sky from one end to the other.  And even bluer lakes.  'From the Land of Sky Blue Waters'! 

 

And of course, loons.

 

Loons are the exclamation mark at the end of a sentence!

 

Last night, the call of the loons echoed back and forth across the lake.  Wails.  So they were 'good calls' with the loons simply saying 'I am here.  Where are you?'  One wail after another.  A wail on one side of the lake.  Answered by a wail from the other side of the lake.  Over and over.  Beautiful and even more beautiful.

 

I wish you could have been here!

 

I decided to do a second update because I knew you would be wondering about botulism poisoning which I mentioned in the last post and which is part of the loon study.

 

Botulism poisoning has been a problem on the Great Lakes over the last 8 to 10 years with die offs of loons as well as thousands of other birds.

 

Let's start with the very basics and let me share a little bit from my very limited knowledge.

 

Botulism is a serious life-threatening condition caused by a toxin produced by a bacteria.

 

In the absence of air (anaerobic conditions), this bacteria produces one of the most lethal toxins known to man.  Even the smallest amount of this toxin can be fatal to people.

 

Because the bacteria grows and produces this toxin in the absence of oxygen, it is one of the greatest dangers from canned products, especially home-canned goods that are not properly handled and treated with heat for a sufficient amount of time.

 

You may not realize that you are already familiar with this toxin.  It is what is known as "BoTox"!  Botulism toxin.  BoTox is used in small amounts in cosmetic procedures to partially paralyze facial muscles which cause wrinkles.

But BoTox 'treatments for loons are NOT a good thing!

 

Botulism toxin can and has caused the death of hundreds if not thousands of loons on the Great Lakes during their migration.

 

It started about 12 years ago on Lake Huron and then Lake Erie and has spread westward through the Great Lakes over the last few years.  In 2007, there was a die-off of thousands of waterfowl on Lake Michigan, including hundreds of loons.  There is one count that says as many as 2,000 loons may have died in this one die-off!  As of yet, there has been no similar die-off on Lake Superior but the fear is that it is only a matter of time.

 

No one knows for sure why the botulism poisoning happens which produces the subsequent death of loons.  That is why this tracking of loons will hopefully add to our knowledge of what is actually going on.

 

Here is the current theory that is believed to be most likely.

 

There are a number of "invasive species" that have been introduced into the Great Lakes, probably from the bilge water of ocean going vessels from other parts of the world, specifically Europe.

 

Three of those invasive species that seem to be implicated are the round goby, Zebra mussels and especially quagga mussels.

 

Here is the theorized path of how the botulism toxin gets to our loons.

 

As I mentioned, botulism bacteria produce a toxin in the absence of oxygen.  These bacteria are all around us in our environment.  They also exist in the sediment and decaying vegetation at the bottom of lakes.  Quagga mussels are 'filtering' animals as are all clams and oysters and mussels.  That is, they suck water in, filter out 'food' and expel the water.  They also filter out and concentrate some of the 'botox' and concentrate it in their bodies.

 

I can hear you saying 'why doesn't it paralyze and kill them?'  Scientists feel that the quagga mussel's nervous system may be so primitive that it is not affected.

 

The quagga mussel (a non-native species that is new to the United States) concentrates this poison in its body.  Then along comes a small fish called the round goby.  The round goby is also a non-native species that has recently found its way into the Great Lakes.  The round goby eats quagga mussels and thus takes the poison into its body.  It will eventually die from the poison.  But loons apparently love round goby.  It is a fish and loons love fish.  It is a small fish not much bigger than a large minnow.  Loons love that size fish!

 

Before the goby dies, the loon eats the goby and thus the poison now finds its way into the loon's body!

 

And within hours, the loons muscles start to become paralyzed.  It develops a condition called 'limberneck' syndrome.  The muscles of the neck become paralyzed, the loon can no longer hold its head up and it drowns.

 

So if this is a new situation caused or made worse by invasive species, the possible impact on our loons is very serious.  That is why understanding exactly what is going on is so important.  This USGS project and study is part of trying to understand what is going on.  I didn't want to say much about it until the USGS had issued their press release.

 

I hope that this information helps you understand more about what is going on.  And may be the first time that many of you have even heard of this problem.

 

It is yet one more example of the many challenges that our beloved loons face.

 

So, the next time you hear that beautiful call of a loon, remind yourself how truly special it is!  And how it is under constant threat from so many different directions.  Things that we never think about.  Don't let all of the threats overwhelm your view of the loons though.

 

Just sit back and enjoy the "call of the north" and realize what a privilege it is for you to hear the loons!

Wednesday, July 21, 2010 9:31am CDT

Here is the official news release about the work done with the loons last week and the implanting of the satellite transmitters.

In addition to monitoring the migration patterns of the loons and what happens to those that go to the Gulf of Mexico, they will be also hoping to learn more information about avian botulism poisoning.  There have been some huge die-offs of loons due to botulism that we can maybe talk about at some point.

- - - - - - - - - - -  -

Loons Tracked by Satellites Will Uncover Mysteries of Their Migration: Tagged Birds Will Shed Light on How Avian Botulism  is Transmitted

Ten common loons are now sporting satellite transmitters so researchers can study the migratory movements and feeding patterns of these remarkable fish-eating waterbirds as they migrate through the Great Lakes toward their winter homes farther south.

By using satellite tracking devices implanted in the loons from Wisconsin and Minnesota, USGS scientists expect to learn essential information about avian botulism needed by managers to develop important conservation strategies for the loon species.  

“This study will also help managers better understand how loons fare as they head to their wintering grounds along the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic coasts,” said USGS scientist Kevin Kenow, of the Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center (UMESC) in La Cross(sic), WI. “Right now, little is known about habitat use along their entire migratory routes.”

Common loons, a large black and white waterbird with haunting calls, are an iconic species in the Great Lakes states where they are most abundant. Unlike most birds which have hollow bones, loon bones are dense, helping them to dive to depths of some 250 feet in their search for food.

In addition to satellite transmitter-marked loons, about 70 other loons will have geolocator tags, which will record daily location, temperature, light levels and water-pressure data that will log the foraging depths of these diving birds. “This information will help shed light on how avian botulism may work in the food web on the Great Lakes,” said Kenow, the leader of the migration project.

Botulism, which has caused more than 80,000 bird deaths on the Great Lakes since 1999, causes paralysis and death of vertebrates who ingest neurotoxin produced by the botulism bacterium.  The USGS study on avian botulism on the Great Lakes, funded by the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, will examine the pathways by which fish and birds acquire botulinum toxin from Great Lakes food webs and determine how avian botulism outbreaks are related to environmental variables such as water quality and food web structure. Avian botulism outbreaks have resulted in periodic and often huge die-offs of fish-eating birds since at least the 1960s, but outbreaks have become more common and widespread since 1999, particularly in Lakes Michigan and Erie. 

“Understanding feeding patterns and exposure routes of waterbird species at high risk for botulism die-offs, such as the common loon, is central to understanding how botulism exposure happens in the

aquatic food chains in the Great Lakes and to eventually identifying what drives botulism outbreaks,” said Kenow, “Only then, can we help provide tools to prevent or lessen such outbreaks.”

Movement of loons from previous studies carrying satellite transmitters can be followed online at the USGS UMESC website.  Loon movements from the current study will be available later this summer. 

More information on avian botulism can be found at USGS National Wildlife Health Center website

In addition to the UMESC, the USGS Great Lakes Science Center, National Wildlife Health Center and Michigan Water Science Center are involved in the Great Lakes botulism study. The University of Florida’s College of Veterinary Medicine, Wisconsin and Minnesota Departments of Natural Resources, and St. John’s Abbey and University provided support to various aspects of the migration project. 

 -  USGS

Sunday, July 18, 2010 11:42pm CDT

 

61 degrees  Calm

 

 

In the last installment of the story of implantation of satellite transmitters, the second loon was undergoing surgery to implant the transmitter.

 

This surgery was almost identical to the surgery on the first loon that I described to you.  So I will spare you from repeating all of that.  However, the surgery was going a little bit faster.

 

After about 30 to 45 minutes, the doctor had finished with the surgery and brought that loon out from under the anesthetic.

  

Now it was time to attach bands to the leg of the loon as well as a data tracking tags to the leg of the loon.

 

Each of the loons has a silver metal US Fish and Wildlife Service band attached to the leg.  This band has a unique number code which identifies that particular loon allows one to trace a history of when and where it banded.  In additional to the numbered tag, each loon receives two or three colored plastic bands on their legs.  The color combinations are recorded and gives a unique color combination for that particular loon which is kep on file.  For instance, it may be "on right leg red band over blue band".

 

No color combinations are repeated so if you report a particular color combination, the USFWS is able to access the records for that particular loon and no others.

 

But attaching the colored bands in addition to the numbered band, an observer can simply observe the color of the bands on the leg through binoculars and know exactly which loon they are observing.

 

Banding is what I would like to do at some point with the loons on the LoonCam.  That way we would know for sure if it is the same pair that return to the nest each year.  Or if it is the same mates.  It would have answered some of the feeling and speculation that this year we may have had a new pair take over the LoonCam nest.  But for now we can only speculate.

 

The data recorder that was also attached to their legs is an amazing piece of technology in and of itself.  It is able to track the loons position of longitude and latitude, altitude or depth and temperature.  This data is recorded within the small unit which is about a third the size of a AAA battery and should record for one to two years!  This unit does not transmit the data and must at some point be recovered and the data downloaded.  But since loons usually return to the same territory, there is a high chance of recovering the recorder.

 

The technology behind these recorders is truly amazing but I will not take the time to go into it right now.  Besides that, I am not sure I understand all of it!

 

Now we had two loons in carrying crates, recovering from the surgery.  Not a very fancy recovery room but one that was fully adequate for the purposes.  

 

But now all the work had been done on the loons from these two lakes....two males and two chicks.  And we waited for the loons to recover sufficiently so that we could return them to their lakes.  It was now about 2:30am and everyone was feeling the effects of the long day.  But each of us was excited about the success of the night so far.

 

When both loons seemed to be reasonably recovered from the surgery, the decision was made that it was time to return them to the water.  So we loaded them into the vans and off we went for the short drive to the first lake.

 

The first loon was taken out of its crate and set gently in the water.

 

But surprising, it just sat there.

 

None of us mouthed the thoughts, but I think it caused a minor concern in all of us.

 

Normally when you release a loon, they will quickly row with their wings to get away from you and fast as they can and will only settle down when they are 50 feet or more away from you.

 

But this male just sat there.  No hurry to get away from us.  Even when gently prodded he only swam a little ways away.  Then he swam under the dock and sat under there.  He seemed to be doing fine but he obviously was still feeling some of the effects of the anesthesia.  He had no problem holding his head up or we had discussed recapturing him if there seemed to be any real problem.

 

For someone used to watching loons, he was an unusual sight with an antenna sticking up above his body, much like a radio controlled car!

 

But after some time of watching him to make sure he was ok, it was decided that he would be fine and it was time to release the second loon.

 

So back in the cars and off to the second lake which was very close by.

 

When we released that loon, we had the same results.  

 

Rather than the loon quickly trying to get away from us, it just sat there.  Looking fine.  Looking content.  But in no hurry to rush off into the darkness of the lake.

 

Once again I think all of us thought it but did not verbalize it.  We all wondered if they were ok.  We all hoped they were ok.  We all thought they were ok.  But they did not try to move away quickly like we would have expected.

 

So we stood and watched for some time.

 

The loon looked fine....other than for the strange antenna protruding above its back!  There was nothing that indicated any distress or anything to be concerned about.  But you could not help being slightly concerned when they did not do "what they should do".

 

So we waited.  And watched.  And wondered. And hoped.

 

But after sometime, there seemed to be no reason to be overly concerned.  The second loon sat and floated.  Fully in a 'normal' posture.  Just not trying to get away.

 

So we left with a nagging question in the back of our minds.

 

We had another lake to do.  More loons to capture.  And we were running out of darkness.

 

Most of the group left us after we released the second loon.

 

And the rest of us headed to the third and final lake.

 

It was less than an hour away but it was a drive to this lake.  We got there about 4:30am.

 

There was just the slightest hint of light in the northeastern sky as the capture crew pushed off from the shore.  I pointed them to an area of the lake where I thought I saw ripples on the water in the faint light that was available.  The lake was almost perfectly still.  Was it the loons swimming in that area of the lake?

 

The capture crew headed toward that area of the lake.

 

Back and forth they went in search of the loon family.  Then there were recorded alarm calls coming across the lake.  And answers from some loons.  It was hard to tell which was real and which was Memorex!  Then there were the spot lights and you could see the white breasts of the loons as they came into the calls.

 

After a number of lights and tries, the canoe headed back across the lake toward the landing.

 

Did they have loons on board?

 

There now was definitely light on the eastern horizon.

 

When they reached shore they reported that they had almost had the loons in the net several times.  But it was just light enough for the loons to be able to see them and to get away from them.f

 

There would be no more loons captured this morning.  There would be no more chicks.  I would have to wait until another time to be able to hold a live loon chick.  I have to admit I was disappointed.  I wished more and more that I had left the first surgery for even a few minutes to go out and see the two chick that had been captured on the first lake.  But it was what it was.   It would have to wait until another time.

 

So our evening/morning was over!

 

We had successfully accomplished most of what we had set out to do.  It had been a success.

 

Now it only remained to find out if the transmitter worked properly and was able to communicate with the satellite and transmit data.  AND to find out if the two loons recovered from the surgery.

 

But for now it was time to go home and go to bed after a long day.  The USGS crew and the doctor headed out to find a motel to try to get some rest.  They had several MORE nights of this in Wisconsin where they were hoping to implant another seven transmitters in loons.  It would be a long week for them.

 

There is good news in a post script.

 

Later in the day, Carol was able to observe and report that all loons, and especially the two that had undergone the surgery, seemed to be doing very well.  That was very good news and I think relieved all of the concern that we had when they did not swim away from us quickly when they were released.  It indeed seemed that it was just taking a little while for the anesthesia to work its way out of their system.  And now that it had, they seemed to be doing fine.

 

Also, later in the day Kevin reported that he had been able to check the satellite transmission and the units in the loons were transmitting data successfully!

 

All of that was VERY good news.

 

I have asked Carol if she will report periodically what she sees with these loons so that you can keep up to date with them.  Also, Kevin had said that he would be willing to send me a link to the satellite data so that YOU can keep track of where the loons are, especially when they start migrating this fall!  How exciting will that be?!  You will be able to track their migration to see if they go to the Gulf of Mexico or to the Atlantic Coast.

 

And we will be able to track their migration back north next spring!

 

Or hopefully we will be!

 

Sometime soon I will try to do a post about the oil spill and what to watch for.  I think it is one big question mark for ALL of us at this point.  No one knows for sure what is happening to the chicks that are down there right now.  I have gotten one report that some loons have been found dead but I want to get some more verification of that before I say much more.  And then we do not know what will happen when these loons get down to the Gulf, if that is where they ultimately go.

 

Plus, even without the concern of the oil spill, there is just SO much that is not known about loons when they are on the ocean.

 

But these satellite transmitters and data recorders and bands should help fill in some of the blanks in our knowledge about loons!