loon rescue

Loon Preservation Committee Biologists John Cooley and Ashley Keenan band the Weare Reservoir loon before releasing it on the ocean. (COURTESY PHOTO)

MOULTONBOROUGH — Last Saturday and Sunday, biologists from the Loon Preservation Committee rescued two iced-in common loons from Weare Reservoir (Horace Lake) in Weare and Franklin Pierce Lake in Antrim.

Because they have a high ratio of body weight to wing size, loons need a long runway of open water, up to a quarter of a mile on a calm day, in order to take flight. Loons that have not left lakes by the time that ice forms may become trapped, unable to take off if they do not have enough open water. Without intervention, iced-in loons will eventually be forced up on top of the ice, and because they cannot walk on land, they become an easy target for predators such as eagles. If not predated, iced-in loons will starve or succumb to the elements.

(0) comments

Welcome to the discussion.

Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.