How to Attract a Loon

Abstract

Prospecting is a behavior observed in many species when breeding territories are limited. This behavior has been observed in Common Loons. Yet, in Montana there are an abundance of unoccupied territories and competition for occupied territories is still fierce. We used Common Loon decoys and calls to find out if we could attract non-breeding loons to unoccupied territories. We found that there is a pattern between a loon landing on a territory and the presence of loon decoys (p = 0.11, n = 42). We also discovered a more expedient way (p = 0.05) to collect loon band observations using the decoys (n = 14). The data collected will be helpful in understanding loon behavior and will help guide future management actions.