The Common Loon is a diving waterbird with red eyes and a dagger-like bill. During the summer, this migratory bird can be found on pristine lakes throughout the northern United States and Canada where they breed. Climate change is among many threats to this species. Increasing temperatures and rainfall are causing declines in their breeding success, and they are projected to lose much of their breeding range in the decades to come. In New Hampshire, near the southern limit of their breeding range, the Loon Preservation Committee (LPC) has been working hard to preserve loons and their habitats for over 40 years. We met with LPC’s biologists to learn more about their monitoring, research, management, and public education initiatives. We were even lucky enough to join the biologists out on a lake for the nighttime capturing and banding of a loon family. It was quite an adventure!

Local Motives original score composed and produced by William Lindsay.