Thursday, May 17, 2012 5:35am CDT

Travis Frank May 17, 2012

54 degrees F Cloudy Calm

Sunrise 5:40am Sunset 8:39pm

Today is Syttende Mai, Norwegian Constitution Day. With Minnesota's large Scandinavian population, there will be some Syttende Mai celebrations today. Years ago there was a couple of radio people here on one of the largest radio stations in the country that used to call the day "Sit In Da Pie"!

This morning our loon sits faithfully on the nest.

The silhouette of a loon on the nest is always reassuring.

It indicates that the eggs are still there and still ok and that for now everything is calm.

After the incident with the eagle targeting the nest yesterday, calm is very good.

It also seems to have been a very calm night for the loons with no intruders or other problems. With all the different things that have gone on this year, one sometimes yearns for normality. But when it comes down to it, anything that happens in nature is 'normal'. We don't always see things and therefore we think they are abnormal when we see something new.

But I still have the feeling that this year is an 'abnormal' year in so many ways.

From the early spring weather and early arrival of the loons from their wintering grounds. To the territorial battles. To visits to the nest by eagles and muskrats and beavers and even raccoon.

I got a note yesterday from Carol Jansky at St John's University, where we implanted satellite transmitters in two loons in 2010. She reported that there are new chicks there as of yesterday!

"I thought you might be interested in this “birth announcement.” Big John and his mate hatched two chicks within the last 24 hours. This morning, Big John, was on daddy-duty (chicks swimming nearby or riding on his back) while his mate went out for some breakfast. This hatch is about 2 weeks earlier than last year and the year before."

That is very good news. And the early hatch is what I had really expected for the LoonCam nest. But we are still aways away from a hatch here. It was just one week ago today that the second egg was laid - after the first egg had been laid one week ago last Monday night.

So the loons here have a ways to go.

Today promises to be a rainy day for the loons. Rain and possible thunderstorms are forecast throughout the day today. Even though the lake is still high from the amount of rain we have had this spring, we could use some rain. The pansies on the nest could use some rain. They have been tossed from one place to another as the loons have continued to rearrange everything.

But one of them still has its rootball attached and it will be interesting to see if a little rain and moisture revive it or if it is gone completely. The iris that was so rudely excavated and then completely torn out by its roots and pulled closer to the nest is hanging on better than I had expected. A little rain will probably refresh it also.

Today's forecast high temperature is supposed to be in the upper 70s so you may see the loon panting today, even though the rain will keep it cooler than it otherwise would be. There is also a forecast for quite a bit of wind today. The next two days are forecast to be very warm.

So many have commented on what an unusual year this has been.

It certainly has been different than most of the other years that I have done this loon nest. It simply proves once again how little we truly know. The LoonCam gives us the privilege of observing the loons up close like has never been done before. So we are allowed a very intimate look into loon behavior that people have never been able to see in this much detail.

Yesterday something happened that raised questions in my mind that I have never thought about.

And I find I have very few answers.

Yesterday forenoon one of the loons got up on the nest and sat beak to beak with its mate. Then the loon that had just gotten on the nest seemed to give the loon on the nest a couple nips. I and a number of others had seen this a few times before and they had commented on it.

I had tended to minimize any significance to it.

The loon on the nest left and the other one followed.

A short time later I heard a couple tremolo calls and looked down to the lake to see what what going on. A loon was calling as it rapidly 'rowed' with its wings to get away from the nest. There must have been another intruder loon near that I had not seen and our loons were chasing it off.

The loon called and rowed. After it had gone some distance it stopped and looked around. It peered below the surface of the water. Neither of our loons were in sight. Obviously he was watching for a loon coming at him from below. He was on high alert.

Suddenly he jumped and quickly started rowing as fast as he could and calling as he went.

Another loon, obviously one of 'our' loons, surfaced right near where the loon who was now making a hasty exit had been sitting. Had I seen an attempted 'stab' when I saw the loon jump? I have to think so. It was so sudden and such a surprise to the loon that it must have been something like that.

I watched and watched with the binoculars. Only one loon surfaced other than the 'intruder' loon. Where was our other loon? The 'intruder' swam further out into the lake while our loon quickly returned to the nest and settled down on the eggs. Still no sign of 'our' mate.

Slowly and reluctantly it began to dawn on me that there was actually the possibility that what I had witnessed was a fight between the male and female of our pair.

I didn't want to believe it. But there was no other explanation. I know loons can remain underwater for a long time. And they can swim a long distance underwater. But this time there was no sign of another loon in the water. Could it be that I had actually witnessed a fight between a nesting pair. I was having trouble getting my mind around that concept.

It certainly could not be that an 'intruder' had actually gotten up on the nest. It had to be 'our' loons.

I had never seen anything nor heard of anything like that. I have never read about it in any of the scientific literature or studies. It was hard to believe. But there seemed to be no other explanation

There have been some very different behaviors exhibited by this particular pair of loons but this was the most extreme if it was true. I will stop short of definitively saying that it was a fight between the male and female of our nesting pair. But I have to put the odds at least at 90% that it was since there seemed to be no other loon anywhere around and there seemed to be no other explanation.

It also called into question one or two other times when I thought there had been an intruder. I know there has been an intruder loon in the area because I have seen all three loons on several occasions when there has been a confrontation and/or a chase. But once or twice I did not actually see all three loons and assumed that it was an intruder.

But now this incident raised all kinds of new questions in my mind. Questions I did not want to entertain.

If this was a confrontation between the PAIR, that did not seem to be good. And I still do not want to admit that is what it was. But right now I have no other explanation for what I saw.

Does it explain some of the other behaviors we have witnessed? Does it explain why one of the loons seems to be doing most of the time incubating the eggs, maybe the male?

Loons normally share nesting duties almost equally. Research has shown that normally the female spends a little more time on the nest. Maybe 60% to 40%.

Everything I have seen in all these years of doing this and observing loons has showed that the loons tend to have a nest exchange every two to three hours. With this pair, the time between nest exchanges has been much longer.

If there is conflict between the pair, it raises all kinds of questions as well of what happens after the chicks are hatched. Will they put differences aside and protect and feed the chicks as is needed? Will there be other impacts? If it is true, it does not bode well for this 'marriage'.

There definitely seem to be differences in behavior that force me to believe that this is a different pair than the one that used the nest last year. Or used the nest in previous years.

For the first number of years that I did this nest, the pair seemed to be the same from year to year. But the last couple years seems to indicate that different loons have used the nest. Without bands on them, we can never be sure. But the behaviors this year have definitely been different. From the "sitting on the head" to the nips, to the long times on the nest by one loon. All different behaviors.

All we can do is watch carefully and learn. It is possible, maybe even probable, that all of our questions will never be answered.

So today we can only hope that the loons remain faithful to the eggs that they have on the nest. And that they have a calm day ahead of them.

And we can only sit back and be amazed at what we are able to watch and be a part of.

And be amazed once again at the wonder of nature around us and all the miracles that happen around us every day. If only we take time to stop long enough to see them.

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

Wednesday, May 16, 2012 6:33am CDT

Travis Frank May 16, 2012

There are WAY too many things that are very interested in the nest this year!

For those of you watching right now, you heard those excited calls and saw the hasty exit the loon made from the nest in one big splash.

I immediately looked to see what was bothering her.

And I saw nothing more than a crow flying over. And a pair of geese and 5 goslings on my lawn (which alarmed ME!).

But I could not see anything else that should have alarmed the loon.

But then it appeared from behind the trees.

An eagle with a crow in full pursuit!

The eagle swooped down toward the nest and the loon beat a quick exit into the water with a loud splash and a loud call.

Three separate times the eagle swooped down toward the nest!

There was no doubt that it was targeting the nest and the eggs which now lay exposed.

This is the closest that I have ever seen an eagle come to the nest. At most it was only 10 feet above the nest on each of its swoops. And each time the loon called loudly from the water and splashed as it went toward where the eagle was.

My heart was in my throat.

Would we actually watch an eagle take the eggs?

It was a distinct possibility!

But after three swoops right toward the nest, the eagle flew off.

I think the willow branches more than did their duty this morning. If they had not been there and if the eagle had been able to land on the nest unobstructed without tangling it huge wings in the willow branches, we may not have had two loon eggs on the nest right now.

So much for what I said earlier this morning about this promising to be a more peaceful day for our loons!

This is the perfect example of why loons are so concerned anytime an eagle is in the area. They will react immediately to an eagle whereas they will not react to other birds of similar size like osprey and great blue herons. There is a long history between loons and eagle that goes back into the mists of time.

And the loons have learned well that when they see an eagle, it means danger. Danger to them. To their nest. And too their eggs.

But for now, peace has returned to the lake.

The loon is safely ensconced on the nest.

Looking like it doesn't have a care in the world.

But that is deceptive. The loon is EVER alert for danger that can strike at any moment!

Let's hope that there are not any more incidents like this today. Or any other day.

Wednesday, May 16, 2012 5:45am CDT

Travis Frank May 16, 2012

40 degrees F Clear Calm

It apparently has been a quiet night for our loons. Thank you to those who have kept watch all night.

Today also promises to be a quieter day for them with much less wind than they faced yesterday.

Shortly after 11 o'clock last night, repeated wails and tremolos from the nest signaled that something was upsetting the loon. It was the muskrat.

He decided to make a return visit to the nest but sat well out of reach of the loon. He sat only partially in the picture on the lower right hand side for about 3 minutes. With only part of his body showing, I could not see what he was doing. But the only thing there that might interest him is what little is left of the willow branches on that corner of the nesting platform that the beaver left after he gnawed them off a week or more ago.

As long as the muskrat was there, the loon was not a happy camper. Repeated wails and yodels reminded the muskrat, as if he needed reminding, that he was not welcome there.

But at least it was not the beaver or the raccoon.

The beaver concerns me much less than the raccoon. Raccoon are notorious egg predators and are responsible for the destruction of more shore-based loon nests than almost any other predator.

Someone asked me if we have mink on 'loon lake'.

The answer is yes. Although you rarely see them.

Amazingly I saw the first one that I have seen in years only a few weeks ago. The good folks from Broadband were here and we were working on installing new cable for you to see and hear the LoonCam. One of them said "What is that down by the lake?"

I turned to look and there was one of the biggest mink I have ever seen casually loping along the shore of the lake! Like I said, I know they are here but I had not seen one for many years and never one that large. Mink are also known as vicious predators and are also known to take loon eggs. They are also strong swimmers but as far as I know, one has never been seen around this nest.

We can only hope that all of them stay away!

This might be as good a time as any to review the different calls that loons make and the meaning is of each of those calls since there are so many new people now coming on to view the LoonCam, many for the first time. We welcome you!

Loons make four basic calls.

1. Wail 2. Tremolo 3. Yodel 4. Hoot

The Wail

This call is probably the most common call that people hear and is the call that many people think of when they think of loons. It is a long, undulating, mournful call. It stirs something deep within us and is so representative of being by a lake in the great wilderness areas of the north.

There is something so primeval about it and so haunting. Once you first hear that call echoing out over a northern lake, you never forget it.

Most of the time it is one loon simply trying to locate its partner. "I am here. Where are you?" Often you will hear the other loon answer from across the lake, "I am here. Where are you?"

The Tremolo

This call is an alarm call. Made by both the male and female loon, it is used when a loon is concerned about something. It is a call that signifies danger or distress. It may be an intruder loon in the area that is causing distress. It may be a boat or a canoe getting too close to the nest. It may be a predator. It may be an eagle overhead.

But something is causing the loon to be concerned.

Many times both loons will tremolo at the same time in response to some perceived danger.

Sometimes it has been referred to the 'crazy laughing call'. You can see why when you hear it.

The Yodel

This is the most extreme of the distress calls made by loons.

The yodel is ONLY made by the male loon.

So if you see a loon making a yodel call, you know you are looking at the male. It is one of the few ways that you can definitively tell which loon is the male.

This call is used many times by the male to establish their territory.

They will lower their head with their neck stretched out almost parallel to the surface of the lake as they rotate almost like an air-raid siren or a tornado warning siren and broadcast their yodel to anyone within hearing. It is a very loud call. And the yodel travels well over water, sometimes being heard miles away.

Here is a great picture by Gerrit Vyn showing a loon making the yodel call. http://cdn.c.photoshelter.com/img-get/I00009Rb6F2TplN4/s/650/Common-Loon-Vyn-100421-0062.jpg

The Hoot

This call is a very quiet call and one which few people ever hear. But you have heard it here on the LoonCam.

It is a call that is used when two adults are close to each other or when the parents are near the chicks.

I usually classify the calls as two "good" calls and two "bad" calls.

The tremolo and the yodel are calls that are made when the loon is upset or under stress. That is why I call them "bad" calls - although there really is no such thing as a bad call. It is simply part of their language. The wail and the hoot usually are used when a loon is usually not under stess and therefore are "good" calls.

You can hear good examples of all four calls here http://blog.syracuse.com/indepth/2008/07/audio_hear_the_calls_of_the_co.html

There are some variations of the calls that we can maybe talk about sometime but now you know the four basic loon calls.

And now you know what the loons are saying when you hear each of the calls.

I have to admit that I enjoyed all of the calls much more before I learned that the tremolo and the yodel were telling me that the loon was upset about something and was under stress.

But even knowing that, they are still beautiful.

And each time I hear them, I am sitting around a campfire at night at a campsite along a lakeshore in the wilderness of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. Or I am at a cabin on some northern lake.

They immediately bring back such wonderful memories of beauty and wilderness and all that is good in the world!

May they bring back wonderful memories for you as well.

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

Tuesday, May 15, 2012 5:20am CDT

Travis Frank May 15, 2012

59 degrees F Partly Cloudy Wind 3mph NW

Sunrise 5:42am Sunset 8:37pm

It is a reassuring sight to see the silhouette of the loon sitting on the nest.

The mate floats peacefully nearby.

Or is it the mate?

The last couple mornings I saw a loon nearby and thought it was the mate, only to have the loon on the nest leave and engage in excited diving with the other loon. And eventually the other loon left in a frantic flying/rowing motion as it tried to get away quickly from "our" loon.

Obviously it had been an intruder.

Two mornings ago the intruder loon had been sitting out beyond the buoys which mark off the area of the nest. All of a sudden he jumped straight up, very surprised. Immediately he began 'rowing' away as fast as he could sounding tremolo calls as he went.

Then another loon, 'our' loon, surfaced right where the other loon had been.

With the jump from the loon and his quick and excited exit from the area and our loon surfacing right at that spot, I think I had actually witnessed an attempted stabbing from below the water. There is no other explanation of why the loon jumped so much and then hurriedly and noisily left the area.

Loons will stab with their long and sharp beak. It is one of the few offensive weapons they have. And they can do serious damage with that beak.

One can only hope that if the raccoon from night before last returns, he will experience first-hand the tip of that beak and will decide that it is not worth his time or effort to swim all the way out to the nesting platform in the search of eggs. There were no reports last night from observers about a repeat visit by the raccoon.

The appearance of the raccoon on the nest is one of the more serious threats that I have seen. On land-based nests, raccoons are one of the largest dangers to loons and one of the greatest predators of loon eggs. If they are able to scare the loon off the nest, they will probably have an early morning breakfast of eggs.

Raccoons be vicious fighters.

For all their cuteness with that 'bandit mask' on their face, if they are cornered or threatened they can become very vicious. There are reports that a raccoon cornered by a dog is more than an even match for the dog.

Now that the raccoon has found the nesting platform, let us just hope that the loon does not spook and leave the nest and that if the raccoon returns, the loon is able to convince him to quickly leave with a little touch of that sharp beak applied to sensitive parts of the raccoons anatomy.

Today promises to be another "Minnesota Day". Partly cloudy blue skies, low humidity and temperatures in the mid 70s with gentle breezes.

Yesterday you may have seen the loon panting a lot on the nest.

This is very normal. The temperature here got up to 90 degrees yesterday! Panting for a loon is a way to control body temperature, just like a dog pants for the very same reason.

Loons are used to swimming in cool water. On a day when the sun beats down on them as they sit on the nest, they will pant to lower their body temperature. Having black plumage does not help in the hot sun. They will often leave the nest for a few minutes at a time to get in the water and cool off.

But today should not be quit as warm as it was yesterday so that should give the loons some relief as they sit on the nest. But even in relatively cool temperatures a loon will pant. It is very normal behavior.

Some people have been wondering about a 'tuft of feathers' on the loon that shows up on its side. They have wondered if it because of being in a fight with another loon or something else.

I do not think there is any cause for concern.

I remember seeing the same thing several years ago and being very concerned about it.

I had watched an eagle dive bomb one of our loons as if it was trying to take it.

In the next few days I became aware of a tuft of feathers just like this. For the longest time I was convinced that it was due to the close call with the eagle.

However, I have seen the very same thing many times since. It seems to be a normal part of loons. Without being able to closely examine a live loon, I cannot say for certain exactly what it is. But it does seem to be a normal tuft of feathers that are usually covered by the wing. But when the loon sits on the nest with its wings lowered around its body to protect the eggs, this tuft of feathers is exposed and blows around in the breeze.

So I do not think it is any cause for concern.

But someday, somehow, I would like to be able to examine a live loon to see exactly what that tuft of feathers is. And is it there all the time or just during certain times.

Once again, way more questions than there are answers.

Encourage your friends and family to join you in watching. The few days that we have this privilege every year are ever so fleeting. We have already passed the one week mark since the first egg was laid.

But just by being able to observe close up like we can on the LoonCam, we learn more and more every day about these beautiful birds.

These symbols of the great wilds of the north.

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

Monday, May 14, 2012 5:14am CDT

Travis Frank May 14, 2012

55 degrees F Clear Calm

Sunrise 5:43am Sunset 8:35pm

Birds sing their early morning song.

The first glimpses of light appear from the eastern horizon and silhouette a loon sitting on a nest on a quiet northern lake.

Faithfully keeping its charge of protecting eggs.

About 2am this morning, two faithful LoonCam watchers reported something that I have never seen before. And it is something that causes me great concern.

So far this year we have seen a beaver on the nest. The ever present muskrat. A Canada goose. A sandpiper.

But last night they reported seeing a raccoon on the nest!

Yes, you read that right. A RACCOON!

Two people said they saw the same thing. I am not sure if the loon left the nest but it did not sound like it.

The reason that is of such great concern is that raccoons are one of the greatest predators of loon eggs. With nests on shore, a raccoon will scare the loon off the nest and then devour the eggs.

That is one of the great advantages of a floating nesting platform like this - it discourages land based predators. It is also the reason that it is as far from shore as it is (150 feet), to discourage any land based predators from swimming out to it.

Raccoons are able swimmers but this is the first time that I know of that one has discovered this nest.

We can only hope that it is also the last time and that if he comes back, the loon is on the nest and gives him a sharp reminder of why he should not be there.

But it is something that causes me great concern, just the fact that he has found his way out to the nest.

Raccoons tend to be nocturnal so there is not much chance that we would see them out there during the day. But the night is their abode. Fortunately the loons are on the nest most of the night.

This one definitely demands close watching.

There also seem to be some continuing territorial issues with a single intruder loon. Over the past several days there have been a few confrontations and even a couple chases.

There is also one other 'creature' that you have seen on the night cam. In past years some have referred to them as 'fairies' flying around the nest.

It is an insect called a caddis fly. Fly fisherman know it well and may even time their trout fishing trips to coincide with the caddis fly hatch.

We have already talked about the mayfly hatch. We are still in the middle of the mayfly hatch even though it is starting to taper off I think. But we are also in the middle of the caddis fly hatch. They are a long winged insect that is lighter colored. There are over a thousand species of caddis flies.

Both mayflies and caddis flies provide a lot of food for fish and insect gathering birds.

Neither one of them bite humans and are only a nuisance because of their sheer numbers.

So today we wait to see what new adventures the day brings for our loons.

We definitely do not need another visit from Mr Raccoon.

Today promises to be another one of those patented Minnesota days. Temperatures in the low 80s. No humidity. Blue skies and 'sky tinted waters'. Fish jumping. Birds singing. And loons.

And all is well with the world.

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

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