Hello All,
I photographed a Loon flying across the reservoir from the Fern Ridge Dam on
Friday, Dec. 31. My impression at the time was Common Loon. The white notch in
the neck, and blocky head shape were the field marks that led me to that
conclusion. Now, looking at my photos, I am not confident with my ID, wondering
if it could be a Pacific Loon. Is the pattern on the neck ok for Common? It was
quite distant and not the best light. Once the bird landed it immediately dove
and continued to dive, making it hard to follow. I did not get any photos of
the bird on the water.
Is it possible to ID this bird from these heavily cropped photos?
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S33321263
Thanks for any help.
Good Birding,
John Sullivan
Springfield, OR
