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Common Loon

Gavia immerOrder: GAVIIFORMES Family: Loons (Gaviidae)
Codes: Common Name: COLO Scientific Name: GAVIMM ITIS Taxonomic No.: 174469
Least Concern
 
Common Loon
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Overview

Common Loon: Large loon, white-spotted, black upperparts and white underparts. Head, neck are green-black with white-streaked neckbands. Bill is black and thick. Eyes are red-brown. Dives for small fish and crustaceans. Direct flight on strong deep wing beats, head, neck and feet extend beyond body.

Range and Habitat

Common Loon: Breeds from the Aleutian Islands, Alaska, and northern Canada south to California, Montana, and Massachusetts; also breeds in Greenland and Iceland. Spends winters along the Great Lakes, and the Gulf, Atlantic, and Pacific coasts. Preferred nesting habitat is on forested lakes and rivers; winters mainly on coastal bays and oceans.

Topo Map: Duck-like Body


Listen to Call

Voice Text

"oo-AH-ho", "kee-a-ree"

Interesting Facts

 The strange “yodel” or “loon laughter” of the Common Loon was described by the famous naturalist John Muir.

 They make underwater fishing dives of up to 200 feet below the surface. They are adapted for diving with heavy bones and eyes that can focus both in air and water.

 This bird is the state bird of Minnesota. It also appears on the “loonie” coin in Canada.

 A group of loons has many collective nouns, including an "asylum", "cry", "loomery", "raft", and "water dance" of loons.


Bird Term Glossary



Author

Gary Owen Dick

Artist

Yury Lisyak

Splitbar
Range Map for Common Loon

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Family Loon (Gaviidae)_blue
Species Gavia immer
Length28 - 36 Inches
Wingspan54 Inches

Common Loon

Common Loon: Large loon, white-spotted, black upperparts and white underparts. Head, neck are green-black with white-streaked neckbands. Bill is black and thick. Eyes are red-brown. Dives for small fish and crustaceans. Direct flight on strong deep wing beats, head, neck and feet extend beyond body.

● Song: "oo-AH-ho", "kee-a-ree"

● Foraging & Feeding: Common Loon: Eats mostly fish and occasionally crustaceans such as crayfish; forages by diving from the surface and chasing down prey underwater.

● Breeding & nesting: Common Loon: One to three olive green to dark brown eggs, with dark brown spots, are laid in a nest made of vegetation near deep water, allowing parents to swim to and from it undetected by predators; eggs remain exposed and uncovered when parents leave the nest to forage. Incubation ranges from 26 to 31 days and is carried out by both parents.

● Similar species: Common Loon: The rare Yellow-billed Loon has yellow bill that is beveled upwards at tip.

Flight Pattern

Rapid direct flight., Strong deep wing beats.
Common Loon Body Illustration
● Range & Habitat: Common Loon: Breeds from the Aleutian Islands, Alaska, and northern Canada south to California, Montana, and Massachusetts; also breeds in Greenland and Iceland. Spends winters along the Great Lakes, and the Gulf, Atlantic, and Pacific coasts. Preferred nesting habitat is on forested lakes and rivers; winters mainly on coastal bays and oceans.
BreedingMonogamous
PopulationFairly common
MigrationMigratory
Weight145.6 Ounces
Duck-like BodyX
UnderpartsX
Belly, undertail coverts, chest, flanks, and foreneck.
UpperpartsX
Back, rump, hindneck, wings, and crown.
4 and 6 letter alpha codesX

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

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ITIS CodesX

The Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) was established in the mid-1990�s as a cooperative project among several federal agencies to improve and expand upon taxonomic data (known as the NODC Taxonomic Code) maintained by the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

To find the ITIS page for a bird species go to the ITIS web site advanced search and report page at http://www.itis.gov/advanced_search.html. You can enter the TSN or the common name of the bird. It will return the ITIS page for that bird. Another way to obtain the ITIS page is to use the Google search engine. Enter the string ITIS followed by the taxonomic ID, for example "ITIS 178041" will return the page for the Allen's Hummingbird.

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Parts of a Standing birdX
Head Feathers and MarkingsX
Parts of a Flying birdX