FreeLists / tn-bird / [TN-Bird] Storm grounded Common Loon

[Daniel Moss <dmoss5@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Had a very interesting start yesterday morning (May 7). I got to work at Fo=
rt Campbell and was informed of an injured bird at one of the motor pools o=
n base (on the KY side - Christian county). The only description we were gi=
ven was that the bird was about 6 pounds, was grayish, and had webbed feet.=
 This didn't fit the description of any of the wood warblers I had seen lat=
ely.
A co-worker and I drove over to the parking lot in front of this hanger and=
 as we got out of the truck we were greeted by the wail of a Common Loon! N=
eedless to say I was a little shocked and sure enough there was a loon on t=
he pavement with its legs splayed out to the side. I didn't see any apparen=
t injuries, but I picked the loon up (thankfully I had gloves) and put it i=
n a box. I told the soldiers, who were very curious as to the identity of t=
his bird, what type of bird it was and thanked them for contacting us. I co=
ntacted Breathitt Veterinary Hospital in Hopkinsville to consult with them =
since they do some wildlife rehab work. They were not equipped to feed the =
bird and the bird did not have any apparent injuries so we decided it was b=
est to release the bird on one of the small lakes here on Ft Campbell. We d=
rove the loon out to the lake and released it at one of the boat ramps. It =
swam away from us, made a short dive, stretched its wings, and continued to=
 swim away. The bird appeared to be acting normal and healthy as we drove o=
ff.=20
I went back and checked the lake thoroughly today, but the bird was not see=
n. So it appears there was a happy ending for this loon. I'm assuming the r=
ecent severe weather forced the bird down on land and it could not take off=
 again. Maybe this was one of the loons hanging out down at Paris Landing!?

Daniel Moss
Clarksville, TN

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