PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Things are looking up for Maine’s loons, with more of the state’s lakes and ponds filled with their haunting calls, although conservation groups say the birds aren’t out of the woods yet.
Maine is home to thousands of the unique black-and-white shorebirds, the largest loon population on the East Coast, and conservationists say efforts to protect them from threats have helped boost the population. Maine Audubon said this week that its annual count of common loons found more adults and chicks this year than last year.
The organization said the estimated population of loons in the southern half of Maine is 3,174 adults and 568 juveniles. Audubon bases its counts in southern Maine because there are enough bird counters there to get reliable numbers. That number is more than double the number when counting began in 1983, and the number of adult loons is 13 percent higher than it was 10 years ago.
“Seeing chick numbers increase two years in a row makes us cautiously optimistic,” said Tracy Hart, a wildlife ecologist at Maine Audubon. “But it’s going to be a few years before we know whether this is a true upward trend or just two really good years.”
Maine lawmakers are trying to boost the loon population by banning the use of lead fishing gear that loons sometimes accidentally swallow. Conservation groups say laws limiting boat speeds also play a role, as they prevent boat wakes from destroying nests.
Hart said it’s too early to tell whether Maine’s loons are on a sustainable path to recovery and that the state’s breeding success is critical to the entire population. Maine has thousands more loons than any other New England state, with the other five states combined having about 1,000 adult loons. The state has one of the largest loon populations in the United States, with approximately 27,000 breeding adults.
Minnesota has the largest loon population of the lower 48 states, with a fairly stable adult loon population of about 12,000, but numbers are declining in some areas of their range.
Although loons are not listed under the U.S. Endangered Species Act, they are considered threatened by some states, including New Hampshire and Michigan. The U.S. Forest Service also considers the common loon a sensitive species.
The birds migrate to the ocean in late fall and require long runways to take off, which means winter can be a dangerous time for the birds as they become trapped in the ice of lakes and ponds where they breed, said Barb Haney, executive director of the Liberty Wildlife Rehabilitation Center Bird Refuge in Maine.
“We get a lot of calls about frozen loons,” Haney said, adding that the center is caring for one such patient this week.
