Tuesday, May 1, 2012 5:34am CDT

Travis Frank May 1, 2012

52 degrees F Cloudy Wind Calm

Sunrise 6:00am Sunset 8:20pm

The lake is still.

A slight haze hangs in the air. Not really fog. Just a haze. A haze that softens the outline of the trees across the lake in the early pre-dawn light.

Our two loons float not far from the nest.

And just now they are headed toward the nest, apparently to give it their early morning inspection.

I have mentioned a number of times how I have trouble distinguishing one loon from another. And there was no more perfect example of that than last night.

Loons in general are almost identical in their markings. Unlike many birds there is not a distinction in the look or coloring of the male vs the female. With many birds the male is very brightly colored and the female is more subdued or even drab.

With loons the male is slightly larger than the female but even that is not a great or obvious difference. Sometimes if the loons are swimming right next to each other, I can notice the difference. If they are apart from each other, it is very difficult to tell the difference.

Add to that the fact that there can be a difference in the size of different males and you have real trouble distinguishing between the male and female loon.

About 8 pm last night, the female got up on the nest while the male swam nearby.

She went about settling into the nest bowl, digging it deeper with her feet and making it feel just right. She reached out and drew in different pieces of nesting material. The nest building became more and more intense. The male got up on the nest with her and sat and watched as she became more and more intent on building the nest.

As I watched, I wondered if this meant that she could feel the egg moving in her body and that it was urgent that she have the nest ready for the egg. This went on for over 10 minutes. Intense nest building while the male just sat next to her and watched.

She would drag material into the nest. Then turn and get more. Then settle in to make sure it felt right. Then turn once again and bring in more material from as far as she could reach. She even grabbed part of one of the pansies and dragged it into the nest.

I really was beginning to wonder if this might be the time and that we would see her lay an egg.

It reminded me of a couple years ago when one of the loons went into frantic nest building mode. It was as if the loon was suddenly possessed by an urge to build and build and build.

She was so intent on getting more material dragged into the nest that she actually had material stuck to her beak and to her face.

But then just like that she left the nest!

What?!

What happened to the urgency? What happened to the egg? What happened to the apparent need for her to quickly build the nest?

The male just stayed on the nest as she swam.

Then she suddenly came back up on the nest from the 'back side' and the male immediately moved into the bowl of the nest. She came and mounted the ..... wait a minute! Who is who? WHAT?!?!

It was the MALE who had been in such a frantic nest building mode. It was the female who came up and sat and quietly watched. It was the male who had nesting material stuck all over his face. It was the male that had gotten back in the water!

And now as he got back on the nest, it was the female, who had been sitting quietly to the side of the nest bowl, that quickly moved to the nest bowl.

And one more time they mated.

I had to laugh as I realized that I had totally misunderstood which loon was the female and which was the male. The one who exhibited the intense nest building behaviour was not the female but it was the male. It was the female who sat right next to him and calmly watched his behaviour.

But it confirmed in the most definite terms that the male also takes part in building the nest.

It also confirmed how hard it is to distinguish a male loon from a female loon.

Today there are scattered showers forecast for the state.

A few of the storms could get severe but we can only hope that there will not be anything severe here for our loons. Rain is fine. But wind and high waves can destroy loon nests. Especially natural nests that can be inundated or even washed away.

The advantage of a floating nest like this one is that it can rise and fall with the water and the waves.

But it still is vulnerable to large waves just washing all of the nest and the nesting material right off the platform. I have learned much through the years in how I build the nest and many little tricks to help keep all the material on the floating platform. But even that is no guarantee that high wind and waves will not damage it.

So we come back to the basic question.

Is today the day for eggs? I don't know.

Hopefull so. But only the loons know for sure.

All we can do is watch and wait. And hope!

Comments or Questions? LoonCam(at)yahoo(dot)com

Monday, April 30, 2012 5:35am CDT

Travis Frank April 30, 2012

45 degrees Cloudy Wind Calm

Sunrise 6:02am Sunset 8:18pm

A foggy haze covers the lake.

Two common loons sit near the floating nesting platform.

All is quiet.

The loons seem to have taken to sitting close to the nest for the last couple nights.

But overnight there have been several instances where they were not so quiet. It is not known what caused it but each time the male would start broadcasting his yodels and the female would join in with her tremolos and wails.

I did not hear any answering calls from other loons on the lake except once.

It was as if the loons just suddenly decided that it was time to tell the entire lake, and the world, that this was their territory and they were ready to defend it.

If you were to watch a male loon as he trumpets his territorial yodel, you would see him extend his nexk almost parallel to the surface of the water, open his beak and issue his loud and piercing yodel call as he turns his head across an arc in front of him. It is sort of like one of the rotating tornado sirens that rotate to broadcast their signal.

The male loon does the same thing to broadcast his intent to anyone within range. He turns his head from side to side as he blasts his yodel across the lake.

http://cdn.c.photoshelter.com/img-get/I0000gYeSKL7tDEQ/s/650/Common-Loon-Vyn-100421-0068.jpg

As day dawns, I would expect the loons to swim around the nest or even visit the nest before they swim back out into the lake.

Unless they decide this is the morning to lay an egg.

I looked back at the egg laying times over the last few years. It happens at almost any time of day.

2011 Egg 1 Wed 9:54pm Egg 2 Fri 7:34am

2010 Egg 1 Wed 9:24am Egg 2 Fri 9:12pm

2009 Egg 1 Thu 6:17am Egg 2 Sat 5:59pm

2008 Egg 1 Sat bef 8:30am Egg 2 Mon Afternoon

2007 Egg 1 Sun abt 6pm Egg 2 Wed abt 10am

2006 Egg 1 Fri 11:40am Egg 2 Mon bef 9:45am

That gives you an idea of when the eggs were laid over the last several years. It can happen almost any time of day.

When and what time will it be this year?

That is something that is more likely to Las Vegas giving odds than what we know how to guess.

But the fact that they are remaining near the nest during the night (it saves having to drive long distances through rush hour traffic when the time is imminent!) and that they are visiting the nest more often and for longer periods of time are all hopeful signs.

If you have never seen a loon laying an egg, and very FEW people in the world have, it is something very exciting and interesting. You have the privilege of seeing something that loon researchers for decades would have given anything they had to be able to see. When we captured video of the laying of an egg a few years ago, as far as we can tell it is the first time anyone had seen or captured that on film.

And you not only get to see that if you are vigilant, you can do it from the comfort of your own home.

So will it be today? Or are we still many days away? That I can't tell you.

But all the signs are very positive that we are getting closer. Now is the time to tweet and instant message your family and friends to tell them they now is a good time to start watching if they are not already

When ever the egg is going to be laid, it will probably happen fairly quickly.

Comments or Questions? LoonCam(at)yahoo(dot)com

Sunday, April 29, 2012 5:24am CDT

Travis Frank April 29, 2012

40 degrees F Cloudy Wind Calm

It is a quiet but chilly morning for our loons.

Or maybe it is only chilly for us humans. The loons seem to have more than adequate protection against the cold air and the cold water. Right now the water is about 10 degrees warmer than the air.

Today the forecast is for temperatures to get to 66 degrees, much closer to normal. And by the middle of the week, the temperatures should be back into the mid to upper 70s.

Both loons float calmly not too far from the nest, to the back side of the camera. That seems to be their preferred position in the early pre-dawn for the last few mornings. Close to the nest but not on it.

After midnight I heard one set of yodels and tremolos and other faithful watchers reported a couple other times during the night. From the calls I heard you could tell that they were near the nest, maybe even in the same position they are now. They seem to be staying near the nest in the dark to protect it. However, I did not hear an answering call from other loons.

So maybe they were just putting out a 'general alarm' that we are here, this is our nest, stay away from it.

Or maybe the muskrat or beaver decided to come too close.

Once daylight actually comes so that they can visually see where danger is, they have tended to swim away from the nest and out into the lake. And then they seem to come back a little bit later to once again check out the nest.

But for now, they keep guard near the nest.

One of these mornings, hopefully soon, all of that will change.

With the arrival of an egg, they will be nest bound for the next four weeks.

Then almost anytime you check the LoonCam you will see one of the loons on the nest. Right now they are making the most of their freedom and spending most of the day out in the lake fishing and relaxing. Although they never truly 'relax'. They are always watchful and always mindful of potential danger to their nest or danger from other intruding loons.

Some people have asked about putting other nesting platforms for the other loons on the lake to use.

This has been discussed at length with Department of Natural Resources (DNR) experts and others. The general agreement has been not to do it unless you are on a lake that has bays or places where the loons can nest out of site of each other. If they can see each other, they will probably fight.

We are all too familiar with that.

So we wait for the arrival of the first egg.

There is no telling what time of day. I have seen eggs laid in the early morning. I have seen late at night. And just about everything in between. Maybe if I get a chance I will go back through some of the records and data from the last several years and see if there is a pattern or preference that is obvious. But rest assured, it is not as if they always lay the egg early in the morning. Or always lay the egg late at night. They seem to be equal opportunity egg layers!

So today, let's hope for a quiet and uneventful day for our loons.

And let's hope that they are able to settle into their egg-laying routine without disruptions. When will it be?

All we can say for certain is that we are one day closer to the blessed event.

Comments or Questions? LoonCam(at)yahoo(dot)com

Saturday, April 28, 2012 5:31am CDT

Travis Frank April 28, 2012

46 degrees Cloudy Wind 6mph NNE Sunrise 6:05am Sunset 8:16am

In the early morning twilight, two loons sit vigil near the nest.

Both of them have their beaks tucked under their wings, sleeping.

But for a loon it is never a very deep sleep. Danger does not allow that. At any moment they need to be wide awake and ready for anything that comes.

But for now, they are able to relax and get some sleep as they float on the small waves.

The temperature did not get as low as was forecast and so there has been no snow overnight so far. "But wait 5 minutes!"

The forecast for today is for a chilly spring day with rain and a high of 48 degrees, just about where it is now. So maybe there is hope that the temperature will be higher than forecast today also.

For now we have to be satisfied with the occasional time that they actually visit the nest to be able to see them. Those times will gradually increase until the day that the first egg is laid. From that time forward, almost anytime you look at the nest you will see one of the loons. For the next four weeks they will be nest bound until the most exciting day of all. The day we get our first glimpse of a little chick peeking out from under mama or papa loon.

I know that there are some who wish that we had a wider view of the lake and surroundings. But this is as far back as this camera can be pulled. It is what it is. The important part is to not miss anything on the nest. For what it is worth, at least 75% of the time when you do not see a loon around the nest, they are actually no where to be seen. Most of the other 25%, they are either out of range of the camera or on the 'back side' of the camera. I know that may be small consolation but hopefully it is some consolation. It is not as if they are 'just up off the edge of the camera if only we could see more'.

But I sure understand your desire to see more.

I would invite you over but I am sorry that I do not have room for everybody!

I want to thank so many of you who are so wonderfully concerned about the security of the loon nest.

It is not that it is some big secret. But since the LoonCam has become so well known world wide and watched by so many thousands upon thousands of people, we have chosen not to openly publicize its location. All it takes is one goofball to decide they want to do something. Fortunately goofballs usually are pretty lazy and if information is not put right in front of their face they will not take the effort to find information.

So thank you for your concern. It is very much appreciated. The loons have enough to worry about with one more thing.

Let me say a quick word about the different calls that a loon makes since we have not explained them yet. We have talked about different calls but have not explained what they mean.

As the audience grows when the eggs are laid, I will try to remember to repeat this information for everyone. But now you can become the expert before your friends know about it.

Loons make 4 basic calls:

1. The WAIL. This is a long undulating call that simply says to another loon, "I am here. Where are you?"

2. The TREMOLO. This is a call of concern. Something has caught the loon's attention and it either does not like it or it is concerned about it.

3. The YODEL. This call is the highest stress call that a loon makes. It is made only by the male loon. Much of the time when it is used, it is a territorial call and warning to other loons to stay away.

4. The HOOT. This call is a very quiet call and is used when loons are sitting close to each other or when adults are with their chicks.

LInks to recordings of all 4 calls can be found on the MNBound.com homepage in the "Loon Cam FAQS" page. There you can hear actual recordings of all 4 calls so that you know what they sound like.

There is a lot more to be said about calls but let that basic information cover it for now.

One of the biggest questions everyone has is 'Have the eggs been laid yet.' The answer to that is no.

The next biggest question is 'When will the eggs be laid?' The answer to that is I don't know.

All we can say for certainty is that we are one day closer than we were yesterday.

We are well within the 'normal range' of dates for egg laying. So there is no need for concern yet. I have gotten some reports of some loons that are already nesting. But then loons further north may not nest for another month yet.

So all we can do is be patient.

Nothing we do or say can speed things up for the loons.

We are simply spectators in this great drama of nature. This watching the Miracle of Life.

The loons are the ones who are in control.

So get another cup of coffee. Or tea. Or hot chocolate. Or popcorn. Or whatever you like.

And sit back and enjoy one of nature's most beautiful and enigmatic birds.

And enjoy the drama.

Questions or Comments? LoonCam(at)yahoo(dot)com

Friday, April 27, 2012 6:24am CDT

Travis Frank April 27, 2012

32 degrees F Partly Cloudy Calm

Sunrise 6:06am CDT Sunset 8:15pm

There are scattered areas of frost on a cool, crisp Minnesota morning.

A couple loons have flown over this morning and then landed.

Our loons? "Intruder" loons?

Who knows? I have totally lost track of who is who.

A couple people in the chat room who have been closely and faithfully observing have said they think that two or maybe three different females have tried to use the nest. I don't know what to tell you. If that is true, it is the first time I have ever seen it on this nest although I am sure it has happened and does happen in the wild at times.

There was also an observation a couple nights ago by one of the viewers of a loon being attacked by another loon as it was halfway on the nest. If that was accurate, and I have no reason to believe it wasn't, that must have been an "intruder" loon trying to get on the nest.

I have said it several times before - most of the time I cannot distinguish one loon from another.

About all I can say for sure is that we DO have more than two loons on the lake. I have seen at least one other pair and maybe even an additional single loon. But the single loon is a 'maybe'.

A pair of loons swam around the nest a little while ago but did not get up on the nest that I saw.

Obviously the big question on everyone's mind is when there will be eggs and when the first egg will be laid and is it too late and a thousand and one other questions.

Only God and the loons know for sure and neither one has told me the answer yet.

But let me put your minds at ease as much as I can. I looked back over the last few years to see when the eggs were laid. I didn't look at all the years that we have done this particular nest but here are the last four years:

2008 Egg #1 May 10 Egg #2 May 12

2009 Egg #1 April 30 Egg #2 May 2

2010 Egg #1 May 5 Egg #2 May 7

2011 Egg #1 May 4 Egg #2 May 6

So we are well within the "normal" time frame and limits for this nest, whatever they are.

This particular nest has usually been about a month earlier than loons nesting up along the Canadian border or in Canada or even most loons in New England. I have no explanation of why. Yet one more of the mysteries.

So as of yet, there is no need for concern about the timing of them laying the eggs or that it is too late. It definitely is not too late.

The most important part is that they settle the territorial boundaries so that all of the loons can settle down and get on with their nesting activity.

Having said that, let me give you a few hints of what to watch for when it actually is time for the loon to lay its first egg.

Typically they will start to spend more and more time around and on the nest. There will be more intense nest building activity while they are on the nest.

Then one of the times she is on the nest you will see small twitches and an "uncomfortable" look. Gradually she will crawl up on the side of the nest bowl. She may spread her wings and even her feet a little, as if to brace herself.

You will see "pulsations" of the body. It must be as the egg is being moved down through the egg canal.

The actual laying of the egg will usually happen very quickly - it will almost just pop out. If you turn your head for a second, you may miss it. It happens that fast most of the time.

If you are fortunate enough to see it, you will have the privilege of seeing something that researchers of the past could only dream about seeing. A number of years ago we were actual to catch the laying of the egg on tape and as far as any of us know, that was the first time that an actual laying of a wild loon egg had ever been captured on tape.

In the past, researchers could only guess the approximate time or date that eggs were laid. Now with the Loon Cam and with such faithful observers, we usually know the exact minute it was laid.

Loons usually lay two eggs. Sometimes they lay only one and rarely they will lay three eggs.

Then a new clock starts ticking.

It takes about four weeks for the eggs to hatch.

So the vigil continues in the maternity room.

Today the forecast is for the wind to pick up and then maybe some rain later this evening.

But more than the rain. Overnight it is supposed to be cold enough tonight that there will be SNOW mixed in with the rain tonight and tomorrow morning. They are not forecasting any accumulation of snow but most of the forecasts are talking about snow. Then tomorrow is forecast to be very chilly and get only into the 40s!

The watch and the wait continue.

Comments or Questions? LoonCam(at)yahoo(dot)com

Minnesota Bound

Sharing Stories of the Great Outdoors