A few years ago, a team from Canada learned about the declines in loon populations that have been found by researchers in Ontario and Quebec and by us in Wisconsin and decided that it was time for a documentary. It took the company a few years to make the film available in the U.S., but now it is streaming on Peacock. The title is “Loons: A Cry from the Mist”.
One never knows how these pieces will turn out. The producer tells you that they want to interview you on such and such a date against this background and have you talk about this, that, and the other thing. Of course, you try to steer the interview towards topics that you deem most important. In the end, the producer and editor (I think) stitch together some of your comments and some comments of others to create the best possible story. You can only sigh to learn that your best quips ended up on the cutting room floor.
I cringed at a few aspects of the film. Like many others before them, these filmmakers could not resist the patently false idea that loons are ancient. Mercury, which has been studied for decades yet still has not been shown to have more than weak negative impacts on loons, is portrayed as a likely cause of the decline. The age at which loon chicks reach independence is stated incorrectly. And, of course, I wish I had worn a nicer shirt!
On the other hand, I was proud of how well the 2022 Wisconsin Team handled loon capture. Because of scheduling, filming could only occur on our very first night of capture. Yet Molly, Chris, Sarah, and Claudia shrugged off my nervousness and looked like seasoned professionals. The crew got some dazzling footage from Canada and our Wisconsin Study Area. Their profile of Linda Grenzer and her loon pair, Clune and Honey, is sweet and uplifting. I did not sound like a complete idiot during my bits. Most important, I was able to highlight the high rate of young adult mortality that we are seeing in Wisconsin and the need to understand that recent pattern.*
In short, Yap Films produced colorful, entertaining, and largely accurate loon documentary describing the concerns that conservation scientists have about the species. If you have 50 minutes free, it is worth a look!
*Of course, we now know that the decline results in large part because of poor feeding conditions early in life, which ruin a loon’s chances at a long, fruitful life. Too bad the film was not made a few years later!