The loon and her chick were back in the bay this week. Baby has grown up -- a LOT -- since I took this picture in August. Which is good, because soon she'll be on her own. Mom will fly south, probably in October.
The juvenile loon will be left on the lake for a little longer before she, too, heads south. Maybe the youngsters just need a little extra time, maybe Mom and Dad just want some timewithout the kids after a long summer, but the young loons usually hang around until mid-November before gathering and flying south. I took this picture last November of one of the 'late loons' V-ing across the bay.
Syl was doing his best to get a photo of the loons, but they were just that bit non-co-operative, hanging about just out of camera range.
We have guests here from Germany this week, Susanne and Mihajlo, who couldn't believe that the strange yodeling laughs they heard at night were created by birds. They got to see the loons on the lake, but of course the birds remained silent, so our guests couldn't quite put it all together. I promised them I'd post on the blog so they could see the bird, and hear the bird, so this post is for them!
Our friend Gord Bell over at Beauview Cottage Resort snapped the shot of the loon pair earlier this year, floating off the end of his dock.
And we found a wonderful video of one of Algonquin Park's very own loons, for your viewing pleasure.
After all, these birds are iconic of the Canadian north. When we hear their call in the spring, we know winter is over, and all's right with the world.
There is an abundance of Native North American myths surrounding the loon, and the bird features in our historical literature as well as on our one dollar coin. The courier du bois called them "cry in a necklace" (un cri en collier) One of the most beautiful descriptions of the bird that you'll find anywhere, and still my favourite.
No comments:
Post a Comment