Red-throated Loons are the loon species that like shallow water much more than
the other loon species. I started noticing this a few years ago when I started
doing the Santa Barbara CBC. The ocean there is protected from the islands and
the south-facing angle of the shoreline, often resulting in only small wave
action. Red-throateds are often just a few feet from shore. I have also seen
it at our house on Willapa Bay. Occasionally a Red-throated Loon will swim by
right along the shore, where at some stages of the tide the water is perhaps a
foot deep and continues at about that depth for many yard. The Red-throateds
will just swim along the shoreline occasionally diving in the shallow water for
small fish.
Jeff Gilligan
On Jan 26, 2017, at 1:32 PM, Andy Frank <andydfrank@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
A RED-THROATED LOON was in the Columbia Slough opposite the wastewater
treatment plant. This seems a very unlikely place for a loon to stay as I
don't believe the water is very deep there, and it's the first time I've seen
one in Multnomah County that wasn't in the Columbia River.
Photos are at http://andyfrank.blogspot.com/ Left-clicking enlarges them.
I saw it from the bike path a short distance east of North Portland Rd. The
bird was where the mark is on this map
https://goo.gl/maps/pQPhUFfzHb72
Andy Frank
