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HEATHER FONE ©2008
A common loon recuperates with expert wildlife rehabilitation at the Cape Wildlife Center. |
A common loon, found hurt and stranded on a bike path by a woman and her dog, was brought to the Cape Wildlife Center to travel a different road—one that led to recovery.
The loon is a treasured water bird on Cape Cod’s ocean coasts and is used in the center’s logo. Most closely related to primitive birds, their cries sound eerily prehistoric. In summer the loons haunt the lakes with strange laughter-like calls, falsetto wails and strange yodeling. At night, this repertoire of sounds is absolutely mesmerizing.
But this unfortunate bird was in crisis. Land-locked, injured, and unable to return to the water, he was alone and ill-equipped to survive on terra firma.
Rescue
It was fortunate for the loon that this dog walker found him when she did. A loon caught on land is almost certainly in danger.
In a classic case of nature’s tradeoffs, loons are superb swimmers and divers—and less physically designed for flight. Their flipper-like, webbed feet are located far back on their muscular bodies, making life easy in the water but difficult on land, where they have trouble walking and flight is impossible.
Built for diving, loons are heavy birds with nearly solid bones (most birds’ bones are hollow). Because they are so big, these water birds have to “run” across the water for up to a quarter of a mile, beating their wings, in order to get enough lift to take off.
By the time our loon was found, he was in a debilitated condition and vulnerable to predators. His wrist joints and breast had abrasions, possibly from trying to walk on the pavement. The previous day’s weather included heavy rains and wind gusts up to 45 miles per hour. While we will never know for sure why the bird was on land, he may have been blown down or landed in a large puddle, mistaking it for a pond.
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HEATHER FONE @2008
The once-mistreated Bundle now lives in peace in his permanent home at the Rabbit Sanctuary. |
Recovery
Loons are highly stressed in captivity, which can impair their recovery and rehabilitation, so it is important to resolve their veterinary condition and return them to the water as soon as possible. Staff gave the bird antibiotics and vitamins and placed him in a holding area equipped with a waterfowl hammock. This special, netting-covered, wooden structure suspends birds’ bodies, keeping them off hard surfaces and allowing them to rest without putting pressure on their breast muscles and lungs.
After a few days of on a liquid diet (a slurry of sea duck chow) to build up his weight, the loon spent time in an indoor tub to swim and clean his feathers, which were covered with grit. Loons can lose the water-repellant oil in their feathers if they’re out of the water for too long, so the staff was eager to see how this bird would do in the tub.
After just two hours, though, he was soaked, meaning he in fact had very little oil in his feathers. After drying out under a heat lamp, he began to preen—something the staff hoped would restore the waterproofing. But after a second day in the tub, he was soaked again. The bird would require special treatment before he’d be ready for a life in the water again.
Over the next few days staff worked to wash the contaminants out so that the bird’s natural oil would secrete again, protecting the feathers and keeping them dry. They bathed the bird in diluted liquid detergent in 104°F water and rinsed and towel-dried him. Then they placed him under a heat lamp to preen his feathers. Preening is part of protecting feathers—helping to “zip” the small barbs together (like Velcro), preventing water from reaching the skin.
Professional TLC
The loon continued to gain weight and started on a twice daily feeding of herring. The waterproofing was the main issue impeding his recovery.
Therefore, in order to provide more room to swim and dive, the loon was transferred to the Wildlife Clinic at Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University in North Grafton, Massachusetts. Tufts University—along with the Cape Wildlife Center—is a partner in the Northeast Loon Study Working Group (NELSWG), a coalition of various biologists, academic institutions, state and federal agency personnel, and other interested parties.
At Tufts the loon completed the bathing regimen and regained his waterproofing, graduating from eating dead fish to catching live fish, and increasing his strength and stamina by swimming and diving in the large indoor pool. After only one week of this special care, the center got the call that the loon was on his way back to Cape Cod.
Happy Release
The loon was released back into the wild just 18 days after first being admitted to the Cape Wildlife Center. And just in time! He would have just enough time to migrate back to his breeding grounds on the northern forests’ secluded, clear, freshwater lakes. We were delighted to know that this loon would have a chance to join his wild brethren again.
Related Links
- Read about Frankenduck, an injured mallard treated by the Cape Wildlife Center, who was able to be released to the wild after rehabilitation.
Posted: May 20, 2008
