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by Hope Rogers, BRI Science Communications Intern 2020
The Common Loon is one of many North American species that has risen to prominence as a symbol of regional identity and connection to wilderness. By contributing data to citizen science organizations like Journey North, a program that tracks migration patterns and seasonal changes, local volunteers provide key information that can help protect species like the Common Loon for years to come.
Download a copy of our new brochure, Sharing the Lakes with Loons. This brochure succinctly describes how to interpret loon behavior, how to safely recreate on lakes with loons, and how to protect loons from lead poisoning, the most significant cause of mortality to adult loons.
If you would like a custom copy of this brochure created with your logo for your state or lake organization, please contact Deb McKew at deborah.mckew@briloon.org
Submit your observation through our Have You Seen a Banded Loon Form
Researchers from several different organizations, including BRI, have marked Common Loons throughout North America with colored leg bands. Color-marking and resighting of loons allows us to monitor breeding individuals, calculate annual return rates to territories, and determine stability of breeding populations. Marking and resighting efforts are thus an essential tool for loon conservation.
If you have encountered a color-banded loon — either found a dead one, or seen a live one — then you can contribute to the loon conservation effort by reporting your observation through our Have You Seen a Banded Loon? google form.
To help you out, we've created a Loon Leg Band Color Chart. Click here to download.
Thank you for your careful responses, and for your help in monitoring this iconic species!
Submit your observation though our Bald Eagle and Common Loon Conflict/Interaction Form
As part of a collaborative effort among wildlife researchers to better understand the effect of increasing Bald Eagle populations on Common Loon populations, BRI is seeking information on observed interactions between the two species. If you have observed an interaction between Bald Eagles and Common Loons, please click to fill out our Bald Eagle and Common Loon Conflict/Interaction Form.
Loon Landscapes is a stunning photographic exploration of the world's five loon species. Travel with conservation biologists Dr. David Evers and Kate Taylor for a glimpse into the natural history of the five loon species that reside across the Northern Hemisphere. This collection of dramatic images depicts the grace and beauty of these iconic waterbirds. In his Foreword, author and field biologist Jeff Fair remarks, “Not only are loons linked to their habitats but loon biologists are as well; good field biologists carry a passion for the landscapes they work upon.”
Read a book review by Hope Rogers, science writer intern.
All proceeds from the sales of this book will contribute towards ongoing loon research at BRI. To purchase your copy, click here.
