Monday, May 30, 2011 6:56pm CDT

 

87 degrees   Clear  Wind 6mph SW    Dewpoint 71 degrees

 

 

Let's talk a little bit more about hatching since we seem to be getting so close.

 

I certainly am no expert in hatching chickens or anything in incubators although I have done it.  But it has been many years since I last hatched some pheasants in an incubator.

 

People who hatch eggs refer to a sequence of "pipping, zipping and hatching".

 

A chick in an egg will struggle mightily to make the first hole in the egg.  This is called pipping.  It gives the chick its first chance to breathe air.

 

The chick has a little bump on the top of its beak at the tip that is called an "egg tooth".  It is specifically there as a 'tool' for the chick to work its way out of the egg.  Shortly after the chick has hatched, the egg tooth disappears.  Yet one more of the miracles that we are so unaware of as we go about our everyday lives.

 

That effort to pip the egg may so wear out and tire the chick that it may stop all activity for many hours.  Sometimes up to 24 hours while it rests.

 

That is for some of the more common eggs like chickens and ducks.  But so very little is known about loons hatching that little can be said with any certainty at all.  But I would guess ...  and I emphasize it is only a guess since so little is known ... that I would expect that loons would be somewhat similar to other birds.

 

After a chick has 'pipped' and rested, it will start to 'zip'.

 

It literally starts to cut or 'zip' its way around the egg to allow it to get out.

 

Once it has 'zipped' its way or part way around the egg,  the egg shell can be forced open and the chick then hatches out of the egg and is free of the shell.

 

So that is where  the terms "pipping, zipping and hatching" come from.

 

This whole process from the first pipping until the chick hatches can easily take 24 hours or more.  But let me repeat once again that very little is known with any surety about loon chicks hatching so you may be part of adding to our knowledge by what you observe here on the LoonCam!

 

So where are we in this process of "pipping, zipping and hatching" with our loons?  That is the big question.

 

I still do not know enough to say definitively what is happening.  There are a few clues but precious little hard data.  And here I am still struggling with what I WANT to see and what I am actually seeing that can be documented.

 

What are some of the "few clues" that I mentioned?

 

The biggest one of course is just the time.  The 'normal' incubation period for loon eggs that has been accepted for many decades is 28 days.  But until the advent of the LoonCam, very few researchers have ever been able to document either egg laying or egg hatching with any certainty whatsoever.  Many observations established the 26-31 days but a lot of it was necessarily based on guess work.

 

With the advent of the LoonCam we have been able to definitively tell when an egg was laid and also tell when it hatched within a few hours.

 

Consistently we have seen the hatching tending to be toward the shorter end of the range of 26-31 days reported over the years in research literature.

 

I have even documented at least 2 cases of chicks hatching at 25.5 days.  

 

We passed the 25.5 day mark this morning.  So that is the first 'clue' that I referred to.

 

An even more powerful clue is that in just the last half hour there have been several 'wing twitches' where she has lifted her wing slightly.  That is the one clue that was missing this morning when I wondered if there was a pip in the egg.  The loon sat very still in the heavy rain with no twitching.  But that could have been due to the rain.  Or due to that there was no pipping going on.

 

So are those wing twitches trying to tell us something.  Maybe.  Maybe not.

 

The clues start to add together but still do not give us anything definitive.

 

A third clue was that this morning there was a 'chirping'.  I did not give it a second thought and simply thought it was the birds getting ready for the first light of dawn.  After I saw what I thought was possibly a hole in the egg from a pip, I began to wonder if the 'chirp' was actually something other than the morning birds warming up.

 

Once again, I have to rein myself in and tell myself not to get in front of the data and actual facts.  But careful observations start to paint a more complete picture even though they lend themselves to the danger of surmising what is not there.  I probably should not even be talking about all these things until we know for sure what is happening.  

 

But I wanted to give you some insight into what has been going through my mind....and I am sure yours as well.

 

Let me add one more 'clue' that is even a little more tenuous but it adds to the whole picture.

 

Shortly after 5pm CDT the loon was off the nest for about 10 minutes.

 

I convinced my self that there was a pip in each of the eggs!  As I watched very carefully, I convinced myself that I could see movement on the right egg and maybe even a little on the left egg.  The contour of the egg was silhouetted against a cattail reed laying in the nest so there was good contrast between the dark egg and the light cattail reed.  And there appeared to be movement where the 'apparent hole' seemed to be located.  Like a small, and I do mean small, movement of a chick's beak.

 

I could have just as easily been a mind trick or visual trick or a trick of shadows or just the pixels of the  video

moving without a lot of fine definition.

 

Like I said, I am going way out on a limb with some of this surmising.  I emphasize at this point it is surmising.

 

I may turn out to be totally wrong.

 

Or we may be in the midst of the actual hatch.  Only time will tell.  Time.  Time.  Time.  Frustratingly slow time!

 
Someone asked me to say a word about the fights between chicks that I have talked about in previous years.

 

This will be something you can watch for when we actually have a hatch.

 

The chicks will normally leave the nest within about 24 to 48 hours of hatching.  The second chick usually hatches about a day after the first chick hatches, even though the eggs  may have been laid further apart than that.  It is something called "catch up".

 

In almost every case, I have observed the two chicks to have a knock down drag out fight with each other.  It is very hard to watch because you are sure you are going to watch one chick kill the other chick.  It seems like it is the first chick to be born that starts the fight.  He is already bigger and stronger than the chick that is born second.

 

The fight only lasts for maybe 10 minutes but it is the longest hardest 10 minutes that you will ever watch.  I just wanted to give you a heads up so that if and when you see it you will be prepared.  I have watched it happen on the nest.  And I have watched it happen in the water.

 

It is the proverbial 'pecking order' that we talk about but give hardly a second thought to what it really means.

 

In all the instances where I have witnessed it, it seems to be a unique and one-time occurrence.  Once it is over, the chicks seem to get along very well with each other.

 

But watching that fight is not the most pleasant thing to watch.

 

I don't think I have ever written publicly about this much of my behind the scenes conjecture.  I have usually waited until I had something that was a little more concrete and provable before I talked to you about it.  I am not sure why I am doing this now.  Other than to share with you my inmost thoughts about what is happening and what we are watching together.  

 

And to encourage you to watch closely and carefully.  And to gather your loved ones around you to share this special moment  and this miracle with them.

  

I may turn out to be totally wrong in what I think I am seeing and I may be mislead by my own hopes and wants and wishes.

 

Or we may be on the verge of the actual hatch!

 

The one sure thing is that if they are going to hatch, it will almost certainly be in the next couple days.

 

That alone is enough to start your heart racing.

 

 

Questions or Comments?   LoonCam@yahoo.com

Monday, May 30, 2011 1:22pm CDT

80 degrees  Cloudy   Wind 8mph SE

The thunderstorms that came through this morning brought a whole new weather system in with them.

Right now it is 80 degrees.  That isn't so bad.  But there is also 80% humidity along with it which gives a tropical 73 degree dew point.  The high temperatures and humidity will probably set up thunderstorms which are predicted for later this evening.

We have just had a nest exchange for the loons.

I watched carefully to see if I could see what looked like a hole in one of the eggs that I saw this morning.  If it is there, I could not see it.  There is still a very real chance that it was just something stuck to the egg and not actually a hole this morning.

There have not been the characteristic 'twitching' and 'flinching' of the loon if there is a chick trying to get out of the egg.

So I am still very much torn betwixt and between as to whether the hatch has started or not.

There is one part of me that wants it to be so.

There is another part that says just go by the signs and what is actually there and verifiable.  And right now the two views are fighting each other.

The nest exchange was so quick that it could still very well be that the 'hole' in the egg was hidden on the side of the egg away from the camera.  Or it could be that whatever was stuck to the egg fell off.

We can only continue to watch and wait.  And hope.

If the eggs are going to hatch, we are getting very close to the time that should begin to happen.

So one part of me continues to believe there is a hole in the side of the egg and that I heard chirping early this morning.

But realism demands that I wait.  

No matter how hard that is to do.

Questions or Comments?    LoonCam@yahoo.com

Memorial Day, May 31, 2011 5:32am CDT

 

60 degrees  Rain and Thunderstorms  Wind 7mph E

 

 

Is it possible?!

 

Could this be THE day?

 

Is there a hole in one of the eggs?!!

 

There have been a couple of heavy thunderstorm cells that have moved through during the night.  But there has been no high winds or hail for our loons.  Just heavy rain.

 

Amazingly, the loon on the nest sat through both storms with her bill tucked under her wing, seemingly unconcerned.

 

But a few minutes ago, the loon got off the nest and joined the mate who was swimming closeby.

 

It may be hopeful thinking on my part, but it sure looks like there is a hole in one of the eggs!

 

Could this be the first chick trying to break out into a whole new world?

 

Hope rises and it springs eternal.

 

I try to not get hopes up too much or over nothing.  But it sure looks like a hole.  Or could it just be 'nest debris'?

 

For almost the last hour there has been 'chirping' which I had just attributed to the chorus of morning bird songs.  But now I am beginning to wonder.  Although I thought is sounded different than most bird songs  .... it was more a a chirping than the normal bird 'songs' .... I really did not give second thought to it at the time.

 

Now that I think I see a hole in the egg, I begin to wonder if it is chirping of a chick and not the normal morning birds.  It stops for a little bit.  And then it starts again.  Same volume.  Sort of indicating the same location.

 

It is hard not to worry seeing something that is not there and about getting up false hopes.

 

But could it be?!

 

Watch for some of the tell tale movements of the loon over the next few hours when it gets back on the eggs.  The flinches, the wing movements and all the other signs.

 

The rain starts again and the loon immediately gets up on the nest and rolls the eggs.  The 'hole' rolls with the egg and does not fall off.  It could still be something just stuck to the egg, but it makes me wonder even more if it is a hole.

 

Only time will tell!

 

But time passes so frustratingly slow when you are waiting for answers to earth shaking questions like this!

  

 

 

 Questions or Comments?   LoonCam@yahoo.com

Saturday, May 28, 2011 10:39pm CDT

 

59 degrees  Clear  Calm

 

 

The loons had a relatively quiet day even with the increased boat traffic.

 

There were several boats and pontoons that came by who were obviously aware of the nest and the LoonCam and had come to check it out.  All of them were very respectful including one that the neighbor asked to move away as they were fishing.  I did not see it as I was gone.  But the neighbor said they apologized and said they didn't know what it was.  Sometimes you have to  give the benefit of the doubt.

 

Tonight I heard yodels and went to see what was going on.

 

The loon was off the nest [obviously it had been the male on the nest] and he was nearby broadcasting his yodel from side to side.  There was no other loon in sight nor any boats nor anything else that was of concern.

 

I have seen this a few times before where the male loon will simply stretch out his neck almost parallel to the water and broadcast his yodel over an arc covering a section of the lake.  Then he turns and does it again to another section of the lake.

 

In these instances, I have not been able to see anything that should cause alarm and it is just as if the male wants to trumpeet to all parts of the lake that he is there and that this is his territory.

 

Some reasearchers tell us that each male has a yodel that is unique to him.  In fact, there are some researchers who believe that the male may actually broadcast how old he is, how strong he is and other information.  It is hard to believe that there is all that information in a yodel and it will be interesting to see what further research reveals.

 

After a few minutes off the nest, the male returned to the nest, turns the eggs and settle down on them.

 

No sooner had he settled back on the nest than 3 loons flew over all the while giving their flying tremolo calls.

 

The male on the nest answered with several yodels of his own but never left the nest.

 

We were talking as we were watching and I said I could only imagine what that loud wail did to your speakers.

 

I have heard it before and it is so loud that the sound system cannot even handle the volume of the call so it sounds distorted.  That is not how it sounded in person.  In person it was  a perfect and beautiful yodel.  I remember when it happened last year someone said they jumped out of their chair and someone else replied that they had to scrape their cat off the ceiling!

  

It is a very loud call in person.  When you realize that it can be heard over a distance of a couple miles, you realize how loud it is.  And then for the loon to make the call right next to the microphone....well, what else can be said.

 

Also, there has been a big spider tonight that decided he wants to be in the limelight right in front of the camera lense and blocking the view.

 

Hopefully he will move on by himself or the weather will move him off the lense.  My fear is that it looked like he was building a web across the lense.  If that is the case, it may trap insects that will additionally block our view.

 

Let's see what happens on its own.

 

As you know, I do not even approach the nest except in the most extraordinary circumstances.  And my position on that has not changed.

 

However, if he totally blocks the lense, I would have to consider when and how I could clear the lense with the least disruption and still give you a better view.  What is it that we have said about the LoonCam?  That is it natural.  And that is what I have tried to maintain at every step and give you a glimpse into the life of loons behaving naturally.  It sometimes seems as if I have gained a measure of their trust.  And there is nothing I want to do to break or harm that trust.

 

So let's take the spider one step at a time.

 

Hopefully we will see two little chicks hatch and leave the nest.  And then no one will care what that "vain camera hog" of a spider will do!

  

Only a few more days to go!

  

 

Questions or Comments?   LoonCam@yahoo.com

Saturday, May 28, 2011 12:25pm CDT

 

 

68 degrees  Sunny  Wind  2mph S

 

 

What a gorgeous spring day.

 

Sunshine.  A light breeze.  Loons on a nest.

 

This makes the long, dark, cold, snowy days of winter all worth it.

 

Right now the loon is in somewhat of a cautious hangover position.  Head lowered but not all the way down.

 

She has been this way for sometime.  

 

The reason is that there is a pontoon boat with a family with several kids fishing not too far away.   They are well away from the nest so they are doing nothing wrong.  I am not even sure they are aware of the nest.

 

But I think it is the large size of the pontoon plus young high-pitched excited voices that makes the loon wary.  But she is ok and shows no signs of leaving the nest.

 

On a beautiful holiday weekend day like this, there are many more boats out on the lake than there have been during the cold, windy days.

 

Earlier this morning there was a big fishing boat straight out from the nest.  Once again, well away from the nest.  But they seemed to be aware of the nest and stayed well away from it.  There was one man and two women in the boat.  What was interesting was how the loon mate appeared from somewhere out on the lake and positioned himself exactly half way between the boat and the nest.

 

He was not upset.  He just sat there and preened.  And watched the boat.  As the boat drifted to the side, he also drifted with it.  Always keeping himself between the boat and the nest.  The loon on the nest never once lowered her head.

 

When the boat was far enough away, the loon silently swam back out into the lake.

 

Yesterday, there was a boat with several fishermen in it that was drifting and fishing.  I watched as they came closer and closer to the swimming raft that is out there to try to keep fisherment away.  They cast their lures near the raft to try to coax any fish that were hiding under it.

 

I was worried that they would come close to the nest thinking they could cast there also. But I don't think they even knew the nest was there.  Until they got to a certain point where the nest appeared from behind the raft which had been blocking its view.

 

The loon was in full hangover position.

 

When the woman spotted the loon, she pointed at it and said something.

 

Immediately the man started the electric motor and quietly moved out farther away from the nest where they resumed their fishing.

 

This is what I have obseved in the overwhelming number of instances.  When someone sees the nest and reallizes what it is, they try to move away from it quietly.  It is gratifying to realize that more and more people are becoming aware of loons and joining in the effort to protect them.

 

This Memorial Day weekend, there will be more and more activity on the lake.  We pay tribute to all of you who have done so much to protect the freedoms that all of us have and enjoy.  And we especially honor the brave heroes who paid the ultimate sacrifice for us.

 

May you enjoy this weekend with your family and loved ones no matter where you are.  Hold them close and tell them that you love them.  If you can watch loons in person, you are blessed.  If the only place you can watch them is here on the LoonCam, you are blessed as well.

 

The weather is forecast to be generally good with scattered rain showers and some thunderstorms.  Memorial Day itself on Monday is the day that is forecast for the greatest chance of rain and thunderstorms.

 

While Wednesday is the 'official' day that the first egg should hatch, I would guess that it might be on Tuesday or even Monday.  But who knows what wonder is going on inside the egg and when the chick will hopefully appear.

 

So close and yet so frustratingly far away.

 

But it is definitely an event that you do not want to miss!

 

 

Questions or Comments?     LoonCam@yahoo.com