I immediately thought of my seventh and eighth grade writing club. I could create a similar challenge for them for one of our lunch meetings! But I knew I needed to model it myself before asking them to give it try. Me? Limited to 150 words? It’d be a challenge for sure!
I can’t wait to share it with my Whittier Writers!
Thank you Kaitlyn and Ciara! This middle grade author had fun with your word count challenge, and learning how to create a gif from my wildlife photography!
Hatching Day
A loon sits on a bowl-shaped nest by the water,
keeping watch for danger.
Eagles fly overhead.
Ravens call nearby.
Curious humans boat too close.
The loon sits firm, her partner on the water nearby.
I paddle out every day, checking on the pair and their two olive-colored eggs.
Never too close. Just close enough to see.
Today is day twenty-eight. Hatching day!
But when I round the corner of their island,
the nest sits empty.
Woou-ou-ou-ou
Oh no! The tremelo call!
I paddle faster!
And there behind the island are the parents, one chick between.
Only one?
Rustle-rustle
My eyes lift to find an eagle preening on a branch above.
Did it already snatch a newly hatched chick?
“Go away!” I cry. “Get breakfast elsewhere!”
The eagle eyes me regally before flying off.
But wait! Now there’s two chicks!
One was hiding under its mother’s wing all along!
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The latest animal to visit my yard is this groundhog! They are one of the largest members of the squirrel family, weighing in at about thirteen pounds.
Other names for them are woodchuck and whistlepig.
They build really deep burrows under the frost line that have several rooms including a bathroom.
Some cool new-to-me facts are that they can climb trees and swim, using these skills to get away from predators.
Groundhogs can totally demolish a flower or vegetable garden!
They spend all summer eating and bulking up, so they can hibernate from October-ish to March/April. This one walked right past the garden I planted, to feed on clover and wildflowers. I’m so glad I keep 2/3 of my backyard wild!
In my last post on the eagle family, I’d happily reported at least one egg hatched, as I showed off photos of the little one. The way the adults were acting though, bending low often to look in another area of the nest, I was hopeful for a second eaglet.
The third weekend of May I returned, my fingers crossed as I kept my camera steady on the nest. “Let there be two, let there be two,” I kept chanting in my head.
In my experience watching over fifteen years of eagle nesting in this one location, I knew it’d be hard to tell in the early weeks exactly how many eaglets had hatched. They can’t hold their heads up for very long in their early days and from the distance I’m snapping photos, all I see with my naked eye is flashes of lightening quick gray movement. Sometimes I’m not even sure what I’m looking at until I get home and zoom in on the photos.
Half an hour had gone by and I’d still only seen one eaglet head, but it was quite active in the nest which was a sure sign it was strong and . . .
Wait . . .
could it be?
Yes! Look! The photo’s a little fuzzy because the day was pretty windy and I had my 600mm zoom lens and an extension. But there it is! The second eaglet!
Look how well they blend in with their nest! Is it any wonder they’re born with their gray coloring?
I was so excited to see this! Not only because this nesting pair hadn’t successfully had a family the last two years, but also because I’d been monitoring this pair and reporting out to readers and students since March when I’d begun reading aloud from Cooper and Packrat’s second adventure, Mystery Of The Eagle’s Nest. Wouldn’t they be surprised!
With them in mind, I also video taped the parents feeding their precious little ones.
I returned the following weekend around May 22nd. Again, seeing only one, I held my breath, hoping both eaglets were still there. Did you know they only have a 50% chance of survival in their first year?
Here in Maine, winds with gusts up to 15 miles an hour seemed to plague us day after day after day since mid- April. I’d watch that nest sway, and hoped an eaglet wouldn’t get swept over the edge. It’s only one of the ways a nesting pair will lose an eaglet.
But again, both were safe and sound, both were raising their heads tall and keeping them up for longer periods of time.
By my calculations, these chicks are 3 or 4 week sold. Old enough for the parents to go to a nearby tree to preen and rest after eaglet sitting, or to clean their beaks after eating by rubbing them across a tree branch or rock. This is called feaking, and scientists believe eagles and other birds do this to keep their beaks clean and sharp, and to keep them from getting too long.
Those chicks don’t let the adults out of their sight though. They know where their next meal is coming from!
In my observations, I’ve noticed the adults are not gone for long, and at least one is always withing eyesight of the nest at this stage.
Check in again, I’ll be back with photos from this past week. It’s amazing how quickly they change and grow!
My first dragonfly sighting of the year happened this past Sunday. My husband and I were moving the kayaks, when I found this!
This dragonfly isn’t eating the insect it’s clinging to. It has just crawled OUT of it, completing its metamorphosis from a larva who lived in the water for one to two years, into this dragonfly adult.
The skin it leaves behind is called the exuvia. It takes several hours for the dragonfly’s wings to dry and harden. During this time, it’s helpless and at great risk of being eaten.
There are over 5,000 species of dragonflies and they’ve been around for 300 million years!
Dragonflies today have a wingspan of two to six inches. Dragonfly fossils though, show wingspans of up to two feet!
In their larva stage in the water, they eat almost anything; mosquitoes, tadpoles, other insect larvae, fish and even each other.
Adult dragonflies only eat prey when they’re flying, and oh boy, can they can fly! Hover like a helicopter? They can do that. Fly straight up and down? Yep! Sideways? Backwards? Yes and yes! One of the reasons they’re expert flyers, is because all four of their wings work independently!
And my favorite dragonfly fact, a single dragonfly can eat hundreds of mosquitoes per day!
If a dragonfly lands on you, it’s believed to be good luck! I enjoy letting them hitch a ride, when they land on my kayak.
For two years, we watched a local eagle’s nest sit empty. There were signs of nesting each year; the adults brought sticks to the nest and green pine boughs. They sat on it often in February and March defending it from others. I was told they were even seen mating.
But no eggs were laid in either 2019 or 2018. For over fifteen years before that, they’d mostly raised two healthy chicks until they fledged. There was one year they only had one chick, and an incredible year of eagle triplets! A very rare sight indeed!
This year, I held out hope this might be THE YEAR of our eagle’s return. So at the end of March, when I saw an adult sitting low on the nest, I cheered!
I calculated the date the eggs would hatch and decided to return once a week by either kayak or on foot to document their nesting season. I used my 600mm zoom lens with a 2x teleconverter. This meant I had to auto focus, but I wanted to be closer.
On my visit April 4th, the male eagle flew in with a green pine bough. Some believe this is a gift, others say it helps to keep the nest fresh.
After a little back and forth “talking”, the eagle on the nest flew off for a break to a nearby tree.
This left Dad to settle on the eggs for a bit.
Most of my April visits were much the same. I never saw them leave the eggs alone for more than five minutes, and they’d switch places at least once.
What worried me during this time, was two heavy snowfalls with high winds. Adult eagles will stay on the eggs, even if they are covered in snow like the eagle below in 2017. But you have to wonder, does the wet snow get under her? Does the cold reach the eggs at all? It was the first time I can ever recall having one chick instead of two.
Also worrisome this year, were the high winds that seemed to stretch on for days and days and days! Twenty-five mile and hour gusts! Watch the nest sway! (in the end, the second adult eagle comes to relieve the one on the eggs)
The first week of May arrived and I knew it was close to time for those eggs to hatch. I had everything crossed as I made my weekly visit! They’d been through so much in a month.
Right away, I could see the adult was on the edge of the nest, looking into it from time to time! A sure sign the eggs could have hatched.
As I monitored through my long lens, the second adult brought home a fish. I watched closely for a little gray head to pop up a bit . . . . I knew newly hatched eaglets couldn’t hold up their heads for very long and it might be hard to spot.
For a second, I thought I saw something, but when I went back and looked , I didn’t see it again. I snapped pic after pic that day. When I returned home and zoomed in on my photos, I found it!
Can you see why the chicks are born with gray coloring? They blend right in with the sticks!
Proof of one chick! Oh, my heart swelled to finally see this nesting pair rewarded with a little one.
At the time, I thought I saw the adult poking her head down into another part of the nest. So I was still hopeful for a second eaglet. That’s greedy of me, I know. But it could have hatched later than the one I saw, which means it might be a day or two behind in size and ability.
I’ll leave you here in my story, with a cliffhanger! Come back later in the week and I’ll continue with more pictures and tales of the behavior I witnessed . . .
Once school started, I didn’t get out on the lake as often. But when I did, the fall foliage views were amazing!
I never knew where the loon family would be. Sometimes they were right off our point, fishing around the docks. Sometimes they were down by the State Park beach. Or over in the cove.
The lake was quieter now. As was my campground and the State Park. And every time I went out to see my loons I wondered if it would be the last time.
The adult loons look a little different in September and October.
They’re losing their black and white feathers, and growing in stronger, warmer gray feathers to help them winter on the ocean water. Remember, they stay on the ocean water, until the next nesting season – through snow storms and ice storms and winter winds.
And even now, when the chick can feed itself, the parents still brought fish to it now and again.
Look! The chick is as big as its parents, too!
The adults have taught it all it needs to know, in a much shorter time than other loon families, who’s chick was born a month early. They’ll fly separately to their winter home, the adult leaving first. The chick following several days later.
One day, in early October, with the warm Fall breezes and the late afternoon sun, I watched the adult catch a large fish while the chick was off diving and preening.
It dunked the fish, turned it and dunked it again. At first, I thought the loon was trying to attract the chick to eat it.
But the chick never came. So then I wondered if it would eat it itself. Loons turn fish so they can swallow them head first.
And whole.
But it never did. I’m pretty sure it let it go.
Strange. This time, the behavior escaped me. Has your Mom or Dad ever told you to stop playing with your food? Maybe it was something like that.
As I said goodbye to these loons . . .
Little did I know that it would be the last time I’d see them.
I learned a lot from this loon family, from the first failed nesting attempt, to this last playing-with-food behavior. I learned that loon adults care for their chicks. They feed them, protect them, and teach them. Not unlike our parents do for us.
I learned that being out on the lake at 6 in the morning helps feed my soul. The quietness was like deep meditation, calming my thoughts and freeing my mind during the busiest time of my year.
This was an incredible experience, and one I’ll carry in my heart for a very long time.
Late August, the weekend before Labor Day Weekend, I found a chance to kayak out again with my friend Cindy. This time, it was so foggy, we could barely see beyond the front of our kayaks. But foggy days have their own beauty . . . in the way water droplets cling to the lake grasses, and how the sun eventually burns through the fog to find you.
We kayaked all the way to the end of the lake by Range Pond State Park. We saw eagles fly back and forth. We heard their chicks hollering loudly for breakfast. A beaver slapped his tail on the water.
But no loons were seen.
Knowing I had to head back to open the camp store, Cindy and I turned back the way we’d come. It was then we heard a loon’s flying call. Swooping over our heads, it landed not too far away.
There was an answering call.
There they were!
Wow! The chick had grown!
They passed next to us, not paying us any mind. Cindy and I snapped a few photos, when suddenly, the adult hooted and dove.
The chick immediately sunk low in the water, like a submarine.
It was silent, looking left and right.
Cindy and I turned to see why the adult had left. Wouldn’t you know, just like the other times, our adult was hanging out with the one that had flown in.
Mama was protecting her chick yet again.
Cindy and I didn’t see any aggressive behavior between the two adults. It was more like they were checking in with each other. So, we turned back to see what the chick was doing, but . . .
it was gone!
We looked everywhere! There was still fog lingering in spots, not wanting to lift just yet, which made it hard to see.
Finally though, we saw it. Along the shoreline, in the fog bank.
The brave little chick.
When the second adult flew away, back to its own lake, our adult gave another hoot.
And the chick swam out for a reunion.
It got breakfast as a reward.
For quite awhile before heading in, Cindy and I watched these two. It was a beautiful sight.
Only four days later, after the weekend, and I was back out again to check on the loon family. School was starting the next day, and I knew I wouldn’t get out as much to see them.
You would think that watching the adult loons feed their chick would get boring after awhile. But every single time, it was a little bit different.
On this day, the adult brought back several fish to feed on. Even though I knew the chick could find its own food, it kept hooting for more.
And while the adult was busily hunting down the next snack, the chick ducked its head in the water, it dove, it looked around.
This one time, the adult came back with no food.
The chick looked a little confused. It hooted and waited. When the adult stayed, it hooted again.
The chick slowly approached.
Hooting softly a couple times, it came closer still.
It poked and prodded at at its parent.
Even pulled on a feather or two.
And when the adult had enough,
It dove away.
Our little chick had gotten its way!
And here comes Mom with another snack!
And another!
I’m not even sure what that is!
But it’s a mouthful!
Too much of a mouthful! Our little chick drops it . . .
And Mom has to go looking for it.
And Dad too, I guess!
I’m afraid that snack got away . . .
And our little chick is not very happy about it!
Will our little one ever learn to fish for itself? Check back and see.
Note: Teachers, please feel free to use these blog posts in your lesson plans for Cooper and Packrat’s first adventure; Mystery on Pine Lake. From this point on, my observations could be the observations of Cooper, Packrat and Roy after the final pages of the story.
My Summer With The Loons: Little Loon Is Two Weeks Old
In my last blog post, I’d visited the loon family on July 16th when the chick was only 5 days old. There wasn’t a morning after that, I didn’t think about kayaking out to see them again. But campground duties keep me pretty busy, especially the weekends! Lucky for me, my campers kept me up to date. Kids fishing from the shoreline and docks, reported seeing the eagle fly overhead, and the adult loons crying out. Kayakers, returning their rental keys, told stories of watching the loons feeding their chick.
I knew the loon family was doing well.
The next time I was able to sneak out, was July 20th. I spent over an hour documenting the chick and felt really good about the photos I’d taken. When I got home however, and tried to look at the images, the thing all photographers fear had happened.
My memory card was corrupted. All the photos were lost.
I whined and fussed and whined some more, before giving myself a kick in the pants. My author-friend, Cynthia Lord had made a sunrise kayaking date with me for the morning of July 23rd. I could get more photos then. It was only three days later, how much could the chick have changed?
As Cindy and I paddled out, we found the loon family in their usual early morning breakfast nook.
They were a beautiful sight!
And yes, the chick had grown, and even changed color a tiny bit in those three days!
It was more active too,
crawling up and over the adult like it was playground equipment . . .
It’s no wonder the adult had to stretch its wings every now and again.
It must be hard, giving piggy-backs all the time.
The chick began pulling at the adult’s feathers, one at a time. In this chick’s short life, I’d seen this behavior a bunch of times. And every time, the adult would look under the surface of the water for minnows.
So when the adult dove under water and didn’t pop right back up, I didn’t worry too much. “It’s hunting for breakfast,” I told Cindy.
The chick moved a little closer to the shoreline, and there it stayed. One minute turned into five. Five turned into eight.
Where were the adults?
Two more minutes went by and Cindy and I became concerned. We paddled in circles, looking all over the lake. Where did the parents go? How could they leave the chick alone with the eaglets only a short flight away and snapping turtles lurking under the surface of the water?
I raised my long lens and used it like binoculars. Cindy joked about being left to babysit without instructions.
And then I spied them . . .
The adult pair were meeting and greeting another couple of loons . . . quite a distance away! They dove and bobbed heads. They circled. And from what we could see, there was no drama, like the last time I’d witnessed an adult loon in their territory. (Previous post) There was no yelling or fighting. This looked like . .. socializing! Early rafting!
I wonder if this is normal for loon parents who have a late nesting?
By now the loon chick was hanging out by a neighboring dock, and it seemed to be keeping its parents in sight. What struck me though, was how the chick stayed put. It didn’t wander more than a few feet. Didn’t dive. Didn’t try to join the adults. How did it know?
The adult loons traveled together for a bit, and still the chick stayed. Cindy and I got a teeny bit closer to it. Just in case. We weren’t quite sure how we could save it, should danger approach. But it made us feel better just the same.
Eventually, the other pair of loons took flight, and the adults headed our way. When they were close, they hooted softly to their little one. Then, only then, did it leave its protected spot.
As they swam away, one of the adults called out several times. Cindy and I thought it meant, We got it from here! Thanks!
Exactly a week later, I was able to paddle out again. In 26 years of living on Lower Range Pond, I don’t think I’ve ever gone out at 6:30am as often as I did that summer! I have a new appreciation for that time of day . . . listening and watching the lake wake up. All the colors are softer. Birds sing a chorus that starts quietly, and the higher the sun rises, the louder their song becomes. I’d hear a rooster crow across the lake. Then a screen door would slam on the other side. Birds bathed at the lake’s edges, from eagles to the littlest sparrow. Beavers slowly swam for their dens, as Kingfishers snatched breakfast from the lake’s surface.
It quickly became my favorite time of day.
And finding the loons each time, made it even more wonderful.
And now, only a week later, the chick seemed to have grown larger yet again.
One of my favorite parts of watching the chick grow, was seeing it follow in its parents footsteps . . . so to speak.
Even its stretches were adult-like
I was amused to see the chick still pulled at its mother’s feathers when it was hungry . . .
When she dove this time though, she came back with something a little bigger than a minnow!
The adult dunked it, and dunked it, so the chick would get interested.
It didn’t take long . . .
Just like the adults, the chick swallowed the fish whole, and head first.
Where on earth does it “put” that much fish?
Yum!
Well, if you’re a loon, that is!
I almost felt like the chick’s parent, so proud and comforted to know it had grown and was eating well. At this size and 19 days old, I hoped it was too large to be a snack for a snapping turtle.
Every day that the chick lived, meant it had a better chance of survival.
And at this point, I had a feeling it was going to do well.
Note: Teachers, please feel free to use these blog posts in your lesson plans for Cooper and Packrat’s first adventure; Mystery on Pine Lake. From this point on, my observations could be the observations of Cooper, Packrat and Roy after the final pages of the story.
Warning! There are tons of chick photos within, it might prove to be too cute . . .
July is a very, very busy month for a campground owner, and I wasn’t able to get out on the lake like I had been. Over the next couple of days, I peppered my returning rental boaters with questions on whether they’d seen the family. Were there still two? Where did you see them? It wasn’t until the fifth day, that I was finally able to make time to get out on the lake again. I woke with the rising sun, grabbed my camera bag and walked to the lake, feeling my stresses roll off my shoulders the closer I got.
Unlocking my kayak, I dragged it into the water. Climbing inside, I dipped my paddle in the water first on the left, then on the right.
I couldn’t wait to see the chicks again!
As I scanned the lake for the loon family, I heard the unmistakable call of a flying loon.
It went down the left side of the lake, then circled back around to fly over my head again and continue down the right side.
The strange thing was, in the distance, I saw two adult loons with the chicks.
Uh-oh. Loons usually don’t put up with visitors in their territory while they’re raising their chicks. But I didn’t hear the adults hollering, so I shrugged it off.
I slowly approached the loon family who were only a couple hundred yards off our point. I was still at least three times the recommended distance away, my long camera lens at the ready.
Right away I noticed something was different.
Only one chick.
My heart sank. Where was the second one? But then I remembered how the second chick had been hiding under its parent’s wing the last time I’d seen them. Perhaps it was resting there again! I stretched my camera lens out as far as it would go . . .
Swallowing it whole! Where did he put it?
. . . through many feedings and wing stretches I watched . . .
. . . but after half an hour or more, I had to give up hope. The second chick was lost.
I admit, I was sad and teary.
As I watched this little chick though, my heart became lighter. I began to celebrate his life. He’s adorable! Look how he pulls at his parent’s feathers as he rides!
He stretches his wings, and you can almost see the adult loon he will be . . .
At only five days old, the little one learned so fast! He could already dive for a few seconds at a time. Every time he went under the surface, I held my breath!
Both parents took care of feedings and cared for him. I watched as they brought tiny minnows over and over again . . .
And this thing that looked like a bug . . .
There were so many moments where I found myself saying “Awwwww!”
I swear I watched the loons for an hour and a half that day. So many times I thought I’d paddle home . . . I really should go back to the camp office to work . . . I had paperwork to do . . . customers to greet.
But I couldn’t tear myself away. I took a little over 1000 photos in that one sitting.
Suddenly, the adult with the chick struck a different pose . . .
This adult was on alert. I looked wildly around. The other parent was yards away to my right. I didn’t see any herons or eagles or . . .
Whoa! Without warning, the adult loon ran across the water! I knew that behavior. She was upset, territorial, and she was coming at me!
Was she worried about me? After weeks and weeks of watching them carefully from a distance, what did I do? I picked up my paddle with my free hand and pushed backward a few yards. But she kept coming!
I got lower in the kayak to appear smaller. She went into a penquin-type dance across the water. Notice how her beak is down. This is not a happy-to-be-on-the-lake stretch of the wings.
She’s mad!
She ducked in the water, then reared up again.
I paddled backward again. What did I do?
Suddenly, she shot right past my kayak . . .
It wasn’t me at all.
I pivoted in my seat and there, right behind me, was a third adult come to visit.
And these two parents were not happy about it.
They swam and head bobbed, and circled each other for a time.
They battled, too.
Finally, the third adult got the message it wasn’t welcome. It ran across the water and took flight . . .
Our loon took one last look at the departing visitor . . .
and returned to the chick who’d been waiting all alone by our dock.
The poor little thing was so worn out from all the excitement, it laid right down and closed its eyes.
Just when I thought the wild ruckus was over, the visiting loon circled over the adult and the chick again!
It called out as it buzzed them before taking off for the lake next door.
Whew! That was close. I’ve read about how loons will attack the chicks of other loons. I didn’t want to lose this little one.
I paddled home with the image below in my heart. I said a little prayer I would find it safe and sound and a little bigger, when came to visit again.
Note: Teachers, please feel free to use these blog posts in your lesson plans for Cooper and Packrat’s first adventure; Mystery on Pine Lake. From this point on, my observations could be the observations of Cooper, Packrat and Roy after the final pages of the story.
On a rainy July 10th, 2016, exactly 27 days after laying two olive colored eggs, the adult loon on the nest reared back to turn them. I very clearly saw pips (tiny cracks) in the eggs, and I knew those chicks were trying to make their way out into the world.
As the sun rose on July 11th, I watched the adult loon on the nest raise her wing over and over and over again.
I didn’t *see* the chick . . . but I was pretty sure at least one had hatched! I waited as long as I could, but eventually I had to go. The campground needed me, and honestly, I didn’t want to stress the loon family by overstaying my welcome.
All day long, all I could think about were those loons and their chicks. Their first nest had failed in the final days. Would their second attempt in a different location be successful?
I worried and hoped and wondered . ..
On July 12th, I paddled out at 6am, still hoping and praying and wondering. As I rounded the corner and came upon my usual vantage point, I saw this . . .
an empty nest.
Nothing left.
Suddenly, the loons cried out – long and loud – the tremelo call! Danger was in the area! My eyes searched the lake and there . . . I saw them!! Through my long, long camera lens that works like binoculars, I could see . ..
One. One chick. My heart skipped a beat with joy, but at the same time I was disappointed. Only one. The loons cried out again. Could it be me? I looked around to see I was the only boater on the lake at this early hour. Then I looked up. There! That was the trouble! An eagle hanging out high in a pine tree above, its eyes focused on the loons . . . especially on the new chick. No wonder the adults were upset!
The eagle looked down at me. “Go find your eaglets breakfast somewhere else,” I told it. The eagle stayed only a couple minutes more, before flying down the edge of the lake toward the State Park.
I looked back to find the adults feeding their chick. Can you see the teeny, tiny, minnow?
The adult was working hard to get the chick to take it.
He kept dunking it and offering it, dunking it and offering it, dunking it . . .
Oh! Wait!
There IS two!! Two chicks!!!
And look how precious they are!!
I put my paddle down, and just floated. For as far as the eye could see, it was just the loons and I. The sun shone brightly over the tree tops, reflecting green leaves and pine needles onto the calm water below. No breeze blew. It was so still, even from the distance I was at, I could hear the soft hoots of the parents. This was my first time watching a loon family with two chicks! Two! I still couldn’t believe it.
I’m not afraid to admit, I got a little teary at the wonder of it all.
I watched the adults stretch . . .
and the chicks try to copy it.
I was able to see for the first time, a loon chick hiding under its parent’s wing.
This protects them from the eagles above and the snapping turtles below. I also helps keep them warm.
The chicks floated, and ate . . .
and napped.
And just when I thought perhaps it was time to go in to shore and leave them sleep, they’d wake up and do something adorable again!
I can’t tell you how many times I giggled out loud at their antics.
Feeding the chicks seemed to be the adults only mission. First they’d dive or duck their heads in the water.
How they caught the little minnows so quickly, I’ll never know!
Then they’d bring it over to the chick. Sometimes the chick was floating in the water and would meet their parent halfway.
Sometimes, they were fed “in bed”, so to speak.
This time though, the chick really didn’t seem to want their meal.
The adult tried hard to get this little one to eat something! He even laid the minnow right on top of him!
For a second, it looked as if the little one was going to give it a try . . .
But he turned away!
Picky eater!!
But the adults weren’t giving up. (And right about this time, I was wondering where the second chick had gotten to!)
Well, there’s a little interest . . .
Or maybe not . . .
Finally!!
And after all of that, it was time to sleep again!
Where is that second chick, anyway??
I looked up at the sky, there were no eagles in sight. I hadn’t seen any snapping turtles . . that second chick was here just a second ago . . . Oh!
There he is!!! He’d been under the wing the whole time!
I came to discover the chicks are completely hidden under a loons wings. So as our lakes open up this year, please keep this in mind when you come across an adult. If it doesn’t dive and move away, it might just have a chick under its wing, hidden from you!
As I paddled in that day, I thought about how healthy both chicks looked, and what great parents both loon adults were. Working as a team, they seemed to be getting the chicks everything they needed. Food and warmth, were their main concerns right now.
That and keeping their loon chicks out of harm’s way.
Note: Teachers, please feel free to use these blog posts in your lesson plans for Cooper and Packrat’s first adventure; Mystery on Pine Lake. From this point on, my observations could be the observations of Cooper, Packrat and Roy after the final pages of the story.
