Monday, May , 2017 8:47 pm CDT

Guest User May 22, 2017

56 degrees F Partly Cloudy Wind Calm

Sunrise 5:36 am CDT Sunset 8:44 pm CDT

All of us are VERY puzzled.

The sky has turned a strange color today - BLUE!

And there is some kind of a big bright yellow light in the sky. Like a big hot torch.

I don't think we have ever seen anything like it before. Or if we have, we have long since forgotten what it is!

It is wonderful.

Today the clouds have started to break up. The sky is blue in between broken clouds. And we have had almost no rain today.

It seems like forever since we have had a day like this.

And it has also been a good respite for our loons as they have had a mostly quiet and uneventful day. Apart from one apparent eagle flyover tonight.

The male on the nest let out a frightening couple of calls. And he was on VERY high alert. But he didn't leave the nest.

Right now there are an amazing number of night hawks flying over and around the nest.

I don't think I have ever seen that many at one time before.

It is amazing to watch them as they swoop and turn and dive and glide. All of it so effortlessly.

I assume that they are after mayflies that have been hatching for the last several days.

Normally they appear just as it is getting dark and they fly all night long. But they have already been out and about for an hour or more.

Some of them were even flying this afternoon which I had never seen. I guess those must be a "different species" - "afternoon hawks"!!

I watched the loon as they swooped close to him on the nest. But it did not seem to bother him at all. But then he never lets much of anything bother him. Except eagles!

Let us hope for an uneventful and restful night for our loons with no incidents or excitement.

We are now at roughly the midway point of the development of the eggs. A very crucial time.

I would expect them to hatch in 2 weeks. Or maybe even a couple days less than 2 weeks.

And while we waited with anticipation for the first egg. And then held our breath as the loons sat on the eggs and were sometimes pulled off the nest by one threat or another.

But nothing compares to seeing the first telltale signs that one of the eggs may be hatching.

And then the sheer "AWWWHHHHH" moment when we catch our first glimpse of that active little black ball of down that is so unbelievably cute and beautiful.

There are no words to adequately describe that moment.

So join in the vigil.

And invite everyone you know to join you in this wonderful experience.

Sunday, May 21, 2017 9:41 am CDT

Guest User May 21, 2017

46 degrees F Cloudy Wind Calm

Sunrise 5:37 am CDT Sunset 8:43 pm CDT

We have had more rain overnight.

But right now it is a wonderfully calm and peaceful scene on the lake.

The lake is like a sheet of glass. The loon is on the nest and relaxed. Swallows are flitting around catching bugs.

And there are no eagles flying overhead or especially targeting our loons.

It would be nice if it would stay this way all day and give our loons a rest. But they are always alert for any changes or any danger to them or their eggs.

It is good to have some relief from what has seemed like non-stop wind and non-stop rain over the last number of days. We probably are still not done with the rain because the weather pattern all across the country is very unsettled. But today there should not be the constant rain that we have seen.

The level of the lake has risen some from all the rain. We have had over 4 inches of rain over the last few days.

But there should be no danger of the nesting raft going under water. A couple years ago I lengthened the anchor ropes when due to heavy rains the lake rose 17 inches in 24 hours! And there was danger then that the nesting platform was being pulled underwater by the anchor ropes.

But the ropes should be long enough to handle this amount of rain with no trouble.

The major impact of all the rain and wind and waves is that the waves have eaten away some of the nesting material. But so far things seem to be holding up quite well under the circumstances.

Last night we passed the two week mark on when the first egg was laid. We are already halfway to the much anticipated and hoped for hatching of the first egg. But the second halfway is a still a long road.

There has been some question about how old this male loon is and that he is very young and inexperienced.

That is not the case at all.

We banded this loon in 2012 after he had produced chicks that year. That was 5 years ago. Since loons usually do not start breeding until they are about 5 or 6 years old, that would probably make this male at least 10 years old. And I have some reason to believe that he is older than that.

Loons have surprisingly long life spans. It is commonly accepted fact that loons live to be 25 to 30 years old. But there is so much that we do not know about them. And we are learning every day. So if anything, that expected age span will probably only go up slightly as we learn more about loons.

But suffice it to say that this male has a fair amount of experience and has successfully raised chicks before.

I cannot give you the same information on the female, since I do not know for sure who she is or what her age or history are. If they have chicks this year, we may be able to catch her and band her later this summer. And then we can learn more about her as well.

But continue to watch the fascinating story and saga of what happens with our loons and their eggs this year.

And let's all learn together.

Friday, May 19, 2017 11:56 pm CDT

Guest User May 20, 2017

46 degrees F Cloudy Wind 9 mph NE

Sunrise 5:38 am CDT Sunset 8:42 pm CDT

The unusually cold, rainy, windy weather continues.

This feels more like early April than late May. It was only 39 degrees here this morning!

But the loons are fine with the cold rainy weather. EXCEPT when they are pulled off the nest by threats. Threats of bald eagles, intruder loons or even geese.

Geese are usually no big deal to our loons. But eagles and other loons intruding on their territory are great threats that they will go all out to fight

And today they they have faced both eagles and another loon.

There seems to be another loon that has appeared within the last week. And every time he appears, both of our loons go out to confront him.

That is stressful enough for them. But the danger is when it pulls them off the nest and exposes the eggs to the rain and cold weather.

And today the loons have been pulled off the nest at least three times (maybe more) by eagles.

The first one I did not actually see happen but my neighbor told me about it. He said that two eagles were actually dive bombing the loon and drove him half way across the lake.

Then shortly afterwards there was a single eagle that kept soaring right over the nest and the loon left in a panic. The loon returned to the nest but then left once again as the eagle came back.

I think we have had more problem with eagles this year than any other year that I can remember. I am thankful that eagles are on the rebound. But when they harass and attack loons, not so much.

I am also ready to be done with the rain and the wind!

The wind and waves have washed away a fair amount of the nesting material along the front of the nest. I don't think the nest is in any danger yet. I think the perspective of the picture makes it look worse than it is. But I would much rather that all the material that I had placed there was still there.

I will continue to watch it and if it seems like the nest is in danger, I may look for an opportunity, if the loons are off the nest and well away from the area, to bring more nesting material out there to replace what has been washed away.

But I think the chances of that are pretty slim. Plus I do not want the loons to be off the nest nor far from the nest.

I took a look at dates that the eggs might hatch. This is dangerous territory to make a guess and wander into!

I would say the eggs should hatch sometime between June 1st and June 8th. My best guess would be June 3rd, 4th or 5th.

Loon eggs, and eggs in general I think, do any amazing thing called "catch up". That is where the second egg hatches faster than the first egg - hence the name catch up.

Two eggs may be laid 3 days apart (or in the case of our eggs this year, 2.5 days apart) but yet they hatch LESS than 3 days apart. The second egg 'catches up' with the first egg.

Let's see what happens with our eggs this year.

Thursday, May 18, 2017 1:10 pm CDT

Guest User May 18, 2017

49 degrees F Clouds and Rain Wind 10 mph NE

Sunrise 5:40 am CDT Sunset 8:40 pm CDT

A cold north wind blows across the lake forming waves that buffet and bounce the loon's nesting platform.

But they have been faithfully trying to protect their precious eggs from the elements.

In many ways, those eggs are everything. They are the reason for everything the loons do for an entire year. They occupy the loons every effort and energy.

But they are worth it.

Because if they are successful in laying and protecting incubating those eggs, the species continues.

But that effort is not without its challenges. Including challenges from storms.

Last night we 'lost the cam' due to lightning. Many of you are aware of that.

I was actually online talking to some of the people in the chat room when it happened.

There was a bright flash and then almost immediately a clap of thunder. I remember thinking to myself "That was close." But I was not too concerned because it was not that loud a clap of thunder. Not like some of them are when the lightning is very close. You know the kind. When it actually shakes the house and rattles everything in it. When you feel it in the very core of your body.

This one was not anything like that.

It was just a 'run of the mill' lightning flash and clap of thunder.

But within a few seconds the sound started this very loud 'CLICKING' sound and the picture froze.

When I checked the signal coming from the camera and checked the server, the server was working but the picture from the cam was frozen.

My heart sank.

We lost a camera a couple years ago from a lightning strike. I could not believe that it might have happened once again.

IF the lightning had taken out the camera, that would be it for the year because I would not be able to go out to the nest to work on replacing the camera as long as the loons were already on the nest.

The Broadband 'miracle workers' have been working this morning on trying to find out what happened and to resolve it. And they have done it.

A few minutes ago we once again had A LIVE LOONCAM!

I have not heard yet what was needed or what had happened. But as of now the camera seems to be working and we can once again see our beloved loons!

Enjoy the view.

We have once again been reminded of how fragile and special it is.

Wednesday, May 17, 2017 5:41 am CDT

Guest User May 17, 2017

59 degrees F Cloudy Light Rain Wind Calm

Sunrise 5:41 am CDT Sunset 8:39 pm CDT

It is a quiet, misty, moody morning on Loon Lake this morning.

Officially the sun has just come up but we cannot see it because of the clouds and light rain.

There had been prediction for more severe thunderstorms and heavy rain overnight. But fortunately those storms did not hit here and all we have had are some occasional light rain showers that come and go.

Our loon has even been getting some much needed sleep as it tucked its beak under its wing. But even then it was ever vigilant with its eyes opening regularly to be aware of what was going on around it.

But now all the other birds and nature are beginning to wake up to a new day as well.

It is hard to believe that we are already over a week into the incubation of the eggs since they were laid last week. So much has happened in that time.

I always stand back in awe when I stop to think what might be happening inside that egg. The miracle of LIFE from 'nothingness'. Most of the time it is something so far beyond my comprehension and ability to understand. A wonder to behold.

To think that in just 4 short weeks we can go from the egg yolk and egg white that we make our morning omelets with to a beautiful downy black loon chick! How do you even begin to comprehend that? Much less explain it.

Or even more impossible DO it? But someone does it. Someone so far beyond our abilities and skills.

And so we wait for the climax of that wonderful miracle.

The commonly accepted time frame for hatching of loon eggs has always been 28 days. But the LoonCam has so greatly added to our knowledge and our ability to actually observe the loons close up. Researchers always had to sort of guess at when the egg was actually laid and when the chick hatched.

But a number of years ago we were the first to ever capture the actual laying of a loon egg on video. Now because of the LoonCam, watching loons lay their eggs has become almost 'old hat' to you. It is still exciting but most of you have seen several times.

For many years, this LoonCam was the ONLY way that any of us had a chance to watch loons 'up close and personal'. But in just the last couple years several other people, with varying degrees of success have also been trying to do loon cams.

And because of our ability to closely monitor the loons, we have known exactly when the egg was laid and we know within hours of when the loon chick hatches. With that new knowledge we have been changing the commonly accepted wisdom of what is known about loons and we have consistently seen hatching take place in less than the 'traditional' 28 days!

In the next few days I will give you my best guess of when we might see the hatching of the eggs. But that is a ways off yet so it can wait for now.

Let me point out one of the little 'wonders' that you can watch for over the next few days.

Yesterday we were up near 90 degrees here on Loon Lake. But in the next few days, high temperatures are only going to be in the 50s. It will be more comfortable for our loons and you will not see them panting as much while they are on the nest.

But watch for something else.

A loon normally has its wingtips cross and make an "X" over the top of its tail - on top of its body.

But during cool weather on the nest, watch to see what they do when they settle down on the eggs.

They will lower their wings along their sides. They will cross the wing tips. But they will cross them and then lower their tail on TOP of the wingtips!

By doing this, they create a 'sealed' warm space underneath their bodies where drafts and cold air cannot infiltrate. A little 'hermetically' sealed incubation space if you will with just the perfect temperature and humidity for our developing eggs.

And then in spite of cold winds and rain, there is a perfect space with all the right conditions no matter what the weather. Sealed against all the dangers and onslaughts around it.

Such a small detail but such a profound part of making sure that everything is just right for our chicks to develop.

It is so easy to miss those small details. But when we stop and look and think about it, we begin to realize how much wonder there is in even the small details of this marvelous creation that we are blessed to be a part of!

Minnesota Bound

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