Is the increase of human populations around their habitats threatening loons?
A. Loons are pretty tough birds. They can tolerate people being around them, but if there are too many people using the lake they nest or raise their chicks on, they can be forced off. This is especially a problem if people are harassing the loons or their chicks. Q. Are loons threatened by fishing boats? A. Only if the fishing boats chase them or if they sit and fish in a spot near the loon’s nest. If they stay too close for too long, the loon will leave its nest, which makes the eggs vulnerable to heat, cold, or predators like crows. Photo: Dr. F.G. Irwin From: WASHINGTON Tonasket Middle School pbaumgardner@fs.fed.us Q. Loons nest in our highlands, and of course leave before the lakes freeze. We were surprised to see the common loon on the Audubon Christmas Bird count list for Lake Osoyoos, a large lake that spans the Washington Canadian border in the Okanogan Valley. Recently a bird in summer plumage was sighted with a bird in either juvenile or winter plumage on this lake. Osoyoos
