Pacific Loon at San Elijo Lagoon

It's really hard to remember when you walk along the trail of the San Elijo Lagoon that this is November and most places are dealing with cool fall weather and snow in some places. The temperature at the beach is close to 90 degrees due to the hot dry winds coming from the desert. It's a lovely day to go for a walk at the lagoon.

Scanning the surface of the tide channels, I notice the tide is quite high and the shorebirds were scarce. It is always a pleasure to see other birders and photographers when visiting this nature reserve. As I walked up to greet the birders, a very tame Ridgway's Rail walked in front of us and posed to our delight. 

Asking the gentlemen if they had seen anything interesting, I was informed that a Loon was seen swimming by. Disappointed that I had missed this migrating bird, I decided to take a walk around the loop and look for warblers. Finding no good subjects to photograph, I decided to go check the tide channel on the west side again. I couldn't believe my luck, there was the Loon swimming towards me. 

 

I walk swiftly towards the Loon and hope he won't spook as I get past for better light and angle. 

I am not positive on the ID of this Loon but I believe it to be a Pacific Loon.

This is probably a juvenile.

 

Pacific Loon, Gavia pacifica measures 25 inches long with a wingspan of 36 inches.

Sharp contrast and straight border on neck. All Info from Sibley Guide to Birds, 2nd edition.

Round head. 

 

Right profile.

Front.

Straight front. 

Left side.

 

The surf is really big today and I wonder if this loon flew into the tide channel to rest for a few hours before going back into the ocean.

A good look at the back of the neck. Notice that the nape is paler than back.

A nice look at the neck and head.

Side view. 

Eyes look amber in color.

A look at the nape and back.

A look at the pattern on the back. 

The loon diving for breakfast. 

A Ridgway's Rail calls out an alarm and spooks the loon into flight. The loon's powerful webbed feet let him run on water. He needs to pick up speed to get the lift to get airborne. 

The legs on Loons are set far back on his body which makes it a fantastic swimmer underwater to hunt fish but it is almost useless on land. 

He take long strides to pick up speed.

All the while, he is flapping his wings to get more speed. 

His wings working hard to get airborne.

This photo shows the long strides he is taking. 

The tips of his wings touch the water as he pumps them for lift.

Huge long strides. 

His body is gliding but he keeps his legs working like a paddle. 

Few more strides. We get a good look at his side view.

He is traveling so fast now that just the webbing on his feet is touching the water as he pushes himself forward. 

A beautiful side view of his pre-flight style.

A look at his underwings.

Working his wings faster.

 

He finally gets air but keeps his legs going. 

He now is getting more daylight between him and the surface of the water.

He has traveled so fast that the water splash is still unsettled as he flies off. 

He takes off north but makes a wide left turn to show us his flight outline. Here are a few shots showing his flight pattern. 

Soon he disappears flying towards the ocean. It's time for me to get going too. 

I would like to add a few photos I took of a Common Loon that was visiting our lagoon this Sunday.  It's always a treat to see these migration birds. We can now compare the differences between these two loons. The first difference appears in the shape of the beak.

Common Loon, Gavia immer measures  32 inches with a wingspan of 46 inches.

Notice the jagged neck markings. * Info from The Sibley Guide to Birds, second edition.

White around the eye. One strange marking that I noticed that was not mentioned in the Sibley's Book on the description of a Common Loon  was the dark "chinstrap". Only the Pacific Loon was described as having a dark "chinstrap".

 Have a wonderful week everyone!