I left you hanging last July. A young adult male in Wisconsin seemed on the brink of achieving two spectacular firsts for our long term study. He was attempting to settle at the age of two, two years younger than any male or female loon had ever settled. And he was making a play to claim his natal lake as a breeding site, which we have never observed. In the end, his effort fell short. “Gs/C,Y/S” — whom Linda calls “Junior” because he is the son of Clune, the long-time male on her lake — could not sustain his hold on Muskellunge Lake. For a time, he fell off our radar.*
But the Loon Project scout for Wisconsin this year, Hayden**, found Junior — now all of three years old — on Oneida-West earlier this week. (Oneida Lake is just over 7 miles from Muskellunge Lake, Junior’s natal lake.) Junior has not been idle. He has paired with one of our best-known females, “Silver/Blue,Orange-dot over Orange-dot”. Let’s call her “Dot”.
Dot is the second oldest adult loon in the Wisconsin Study Area and an accomplished breeder. She was banded in 1997 on the Oneida-East territory, where she reared 22 chicks to adulthood between 1997 and 2013 with two different males. Dot was evicted from Oneida-East in 2013, but that did not stop her. She moved around a bend in the lake to the Oneida-West territory. Between 2014 and 2020, she raised 3 more chicks to fledging with two different males on Oneida-West. In 2021 she again lost her breeding position to a younger female. I thought we had seen the last of Dot. But female loons are nothing if not resilient, and Dot was not ready to quit.
We are not sure what to expect from this unlikely pairing. Three-year-old Junior would shatter all records by merely building a nest and beginning to incubate eggs. And 31-year-old Dot is astounding us simply by remaining in the game. We have never seen such an inexperienced male pair with such an accomplished female. Whatever happens from this lopsided pairing will be a surprise. I guess this is why I continue to study loons.
*The featured photo is by Linda Grenzer. It shows Junior on her lake back in June of last year.
**Hayden is doing his own impression of Junior. Although he knows Oneida County well, Hayden is new to loon field work and ID’ing loons from leg bands. Not a problem! Hayden is sweeping efficiently across the study area, identifying territorial adults like a seasoned pro. If you see him out on your lake in his canoe, give him a pat on the back for his incredible efforts this spring!