Loons have long been considered by many North Americans as beautiful and special, symbolizing wilderness and solitude. Many cottage-goers, campers, and vacationers would feel their trip was incomplete without viewing a loon or listening to its haunting call.

Loons are water birds like ducks, geese, and grebes, but they are classified separately by scientists. The five species are Red-throated Loon Gavia stellata, Pacific Loon Gavia pacifica, Arctic Loon Gavia arctica, Yellow-billed Loon Gavia adamsii, and Common Loon Gavia immer. The Common Loon is the species best known to most of us, as its breeding range lies across most of Canada. All five species of loons migrate to warmer areas around the Gulf of Mexico and on the east and west coasts of North America to winter, and return to northern lakes to breed when the ice melts in spring. Learn More...