Illustration © David Allen Sibley.
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Text © Kenn Kaufman, adapted from
Lives of North American Birds
Breeding adult and downy young. Photo: Pchoui/iStock
Red-throated Loon
Gavia stellata
| Conservation status | Populations probably stable, but vulnerable to development in high arctic and to pollution in coastal wintering areas. |
|---|---|
| Family | Loons |
| Habitat | Coastal waters, bays, estuaries; in summer, tundra lakes. Breeding habitat includes small ponds as well as larger lakes, mostly on tundra but sometimes within edge of northern forest. Mainly on ocean in winter (a few on large lakes); often in shallower water than other loons, as in protected bays, large estuaries. |
Photo Gallery
Feeding Behavior
Loons do their foraging by diving from the surface and swimming underwater. They often swim along the surface with their heads partly submerged, peering about underwater, watching for prey before they dive. They are propelled mainly by their feet, but may sometimes use their wings also when turning or in bursts of speed. Loons find their food by sight.
Eggs
Usually 2, sometimes 1, rarely 3. Olive with blackish-brown spots. Incubation by both sexes (though female may do more), 24-29 days. Young: Leave nest and take to water about 1 day after hatching. Both parents feed young, rarely carry young on their backs. Young can fly at about 7 weeks. 1 brood per year.
Young
Leave nest and take to water about 1 day after hatching. Both parents feed young, rarely carry young on their backs. Young can fly at about 7 weeks. 1 brood per year.
Diet
Mostly fish. Includes cod and herring on salt water, and trout, salmon, and char on fresh water. Also shrimps, crabs, snails, mussels, aquatic insects, leeches, and frogs. In early spring in high arctic, may feed on plant material also. Young are fed mainly insects and crustaceans for first few days.
Nesting
May mate for life. Courtship displays include both birds rapidly dipping bills in water, diving and swimming past each other, making fast rushes underwater. Both members of pair defend nesting territory against intruding loons. Nest: Site, often re-used from year to year, is on shore or in shallow water. Apparently both sexes help build nest. Nest is a heap of vegetation, or sometimes simple scrape on top of hummock; nest material may be added after incubation begins.
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- All Seasons - Common
- All Seasons - Uncommon
- Breeding - Common
- Breeding - Uncommon
- Winter - Common
- Winter - Uncommon
- Migration - Common
- Migration - Uncommon
Songs and Calls
Call, rarely sounded away from breeding grounds, is a series of high-pitched wails and shrieks.How Climate Change Will Reshape the Range of the Red-throated Loon
Audubon’s scientists have used 140 million bird observations and sophisticated climate models to project how climate change will affect this bird’s range in the future.
Zoom in to see how this species’s current range will shift, expand, and contract under increased global temperatures.
Climate Threats Near You
Climate threats facing the Red-throated Loon
Choose a temperature scenario below to see which threats will affect this species as warming increases. The same climate change-driven threats that put birds at risk will affect other wildlife and people, too.
Red-throated Loon In the News More News
Conservation
A Stunning New Exhibit Transported Me to the Arctic Refuge—and Made Me Realize What's Truly at Risk
By bringing the magic and splendor of the refuge to people who are unlikely to ever visit, a traveling immersive installation aims to inspire immediate action against oil development.
Behind The Shot
How One Photographer Got Up Close and Personal With a Curious Loon
After a friendly tip, a canceled flight, and a rented bike, Liron Gertsman snapped this intimate shot of the inquisitive bird
Press Room
Spoiler Alert: Drilling and Wildlife Cannot Coexist in the Arctic Refuge
In an area as ecologically sensitive as the coastal plain of the Arctic Refuge, there is no such thing as a “small” footprint.
