As the northern lakes of Ontario start to melt, the Common loon returns from their winter migration and a mated pair will take up residence in their lake of choice. Unlike some birds, the courtship and mating of loons is a quiet affair with the pair swimming and diving together before they finally mate somewhere on land. In late May or June the female will lay one or two eggs and after about 28 days the chicks will hatch.
Loon chicks are covered in brown-black down and are able to swim right away but often spend time on their parents’ backs when they need to rest, to keep warm or to avoid predators.
For about the first eight weeks the chicks are with them all the time until they learn to dive and start catching their own meals, usually by about 12 weeks.
During our stay at Marten River Provincial Park we got the opportunity to watch a loon chick learn how to dive from its parents. The day was very overcast, which affected the video quality, but the experience of the parents diving one at a time while the chick watched and learned and then finally dove itself was remarkable. This was probably not the first time the chick had dove though because they are capable to swim and dive soon after birth but it still seemed like a training session to me.
Loons calling:
