Two loons rescued from lakes as cold snap hits N.H.

MOULTONBOROUGH — As temperatures cooled in early December, many of New Hampshire’s smaller lakes froze over, some with Common Loons still lingering on the water. The Loon Preservation Committee (LPC) responded to multiple reports of loons at risk of becoming trapped on frozen lakes, ultimately rescuing two. “We received calls from several lakes where loons were in danger of becoming iced-in,” said Harry Vogel, Senior Biologist and Executive Director of LPC. “Fortunately, most of the loons reported to us were able to make it off of the lakes on their own, at the last minute. But intervention was needed in two cases.” The rescued loons included a juvenile from Big Diamond Pond in Stewartstown and an adult from Deering Reservoir in Deering.

Loons are heavy-bodied birds that need to run across a long stretch of open water, up to a quarter of a mile on a calm day, to build up enough speed to generate lift and take flight. If loons remain on lakes as they start to freeze, they can become confined to small patches of open water. Without enough runway space to take off, iced-in loons will eventually be forced up on top of the ice, where they are vulnerable to starvation, the elements, and predators such as bald eagles.