Little Green Pond Loon Rescue
Longtime ACLC lake monitor Don Andrews helps keep the rescued loon securely in the rescue bin.
On Wednesday, May 28, several Adirondack Center for Loon Conservation (ACLC) staff members were kayaking on Little Green Pond with about 15 field monitoring volunteers in training. The group had spent a few hours following the resident pair of loons around the open bay of the small pond, practicing spotting the colorful bands on their legs that allow ACLC researchers and monitors to identify individual loons.
Griffin Archambault, ACLC’s research biologist, directed the group towards the other half of the pond - a cove where the resident pair had historically nested. Since both pair members were out on the water, staff and volunteers had the all-clear to closely search the cove shoreline to practice identifying loon nests.
After only a few minutes of surveying the shore, several boats called out a surprising discovery: “There’s a loon back there!”
Don Andrews was one of these keen-eyed monitors. At first Griffin didn’t believe the discovery — this was a small pond with a well-known resident pair that we had just spent the past hour watching. Don quickly helped point out what was indeed a large loon tucked far back in a nook of the cove, hidden in the shadows behind a downed log. While it initially seemed to be sitting on a nest, we could soon see that the loon was half in the water and bearing some signs of injury. It stayed in place and moved its head back and forth as if to take us all in — a large group of paddlers was likely an intimidating sight.
ACLC Research Biologist Griffin Archambault and lake monitor Don Andrews secure the loon after it had been chased farther into the woods.
Griffin ushered the group out of the cove and back to shore to complete field training for the day, which would also give the loon a chance to sneak out of the cove and take off if it felt recovered enough to do so. While finishing the training, Don and Matt Luppino kept an eye on the area. They witnessed the resident pair enter the cove, resulting in some calling and splashing before they left once more. On the monitors’ return to check on the loner, it had retreated 15 feet up the shore into the woods. Griffin made the decision that this loon was now firmly beached and we would indeed assist.
Personally, I was thrilled. As a seasonal wildlife technician who joined the ACLC team for the summer of 2025, this was my first chance to participate in a loon rescue.
Griffin and I gathered the emergency rescue materials we had on hand and joined Don and Matt in the cove. We quickly developed a plan for Griffin and Don to climb ashore and flank the loon from each side, while Matt and I blocked the path out through the water with our boats. I filmed the rescue, and Matt became a play-by-play announcer for Don and Griffin to coordinate their approach. After a careful advance, Don distracted the bird while Griffin caught it in a net, and it was quickly covered with Don’s shirt and lifted into the bin. The binned loon was put in Don’s kayak and held fast as Griffin towed the precious cargo back to shore.
Upon arrival, we kept the loon cool with shade and water, and ACLC founder Dr. Nina Schoch soon arrived to administer fluids and antibiotics. I got to hold my first loon as Dr. Schoch and I moved the loon to a larger bin, this one with webbing across the lower half so that the loon wasn’t laying on its fragile keel.
The loon appeared alert and active when allowed to swim after a night of rest.
It was determined that the loon seemed to have been in a territorial dispute with the resident pair, but there weren’t any serious injuries that we could find. After an eventful hour, the loon was given the night to rest and recuperate from its ordeal.
Loons often prefer to beach themselves rather than become seriously injured or die in a fight with another loon. While it wasn't the shoreline nest search we had envisioned, we were happy to have the chance to help this loon out.
After a night spent in a cool, dark bin to calm down and rest, the loon was ready for a visual examination. I helped Dr. Schoch set up a large plastic pool filled with water and we put the loon in for a quick swim. Loons don’t do well in captivity. They get stressed and their immune systems can weaken quickly, so the goal is always to provide treatment quickly and get the loon ready to release as soon as is safely possible.
While the loon did not appear to be in perfect health - which made sense given the altercation it had with the territorial pair - it was nonetheless alert and active so we decided to release it at Lake Clear. We met Griffin and volunteer Ian Trudell in the parking lot to do a quick work up of the loon. Dr. Schoch and Griffin banded the loon, measured its bill, and took blood and feather samples.
Down on the beach, we released the loon into the water, watching it closely. Dr. Schoch had chosen this spot to release the bird because while Lake Clear has several territorial pairs, it’s large enough that there are unclaimed spaces that should allow the bird to either hang around for a while or take off for another spot. Unfortunately, that was not the case for this release, as a territorial pair immediately spotted our loner and made a beeline for it. They chased our released loon towards the shore, and it quickly beached itself once more in order to avoid further attacks. We followed and re-binned the bird, admitting defeat on this release attempt.
Volunteer Ian Trudell holds the loon while ACLC Research Biologist Griffin Archambault takes measurements.
Research Biologist Griffin Archambault inspects the loon’s wings and takes a feather sample before the failed release attempt on Lake Clear.
Given that the loon had not displayed complete health during our swim that morning, Dr. Schoch decided that it would be better to take the bird to a rehab center rather than attempt a second release. Dr. Schoch drove the loon to the Vermont Institute for Natural Sciences (VINS) that evening for a full workup. It turns out the loon was in worse shape than we could initially observe, and, unfortunately, this loon did indeed develop labored breathing and passed away the next day.
Postmortem x-rays showed a fractured keel due to puncture wounds, which occur during territorial fights when one loon strikes another from underwater. The severity of the injury means the loon was unlikely to survive no matter the circumstances, but we are glad that we were able to decrease its suffering. While unfortunate, territorial battles are natural events. The loon will be necropsied by DEC in the near future to determine if it was suffering from any weakness due to illness or lead poisoning.
Words by Leah Boget, ACLC Wildlife Tech