On Thu, 15 Dec 94 09:11:18 -0800, Serge Le Huitouze wrote:

> Last weekend (Dec 10th), I saw a weird Pacific Loon in Britannia

> Beach, Howe Sound, 40 km north of Vancouver, just ahead of the car

> park in front of the Mining Museum.

> The first weird thing about it is that it seems to be still

> moulting.

[ stuff deleted ]

> So I have two questions:
> - is it normal to see a Pacific Loon with a breeding plumage on Dec

> 10th ?

I have seen Common Loons in northern Scotland comming into breeding
plumage in early January (56 degrees N), with the occaisonal late
bird moulting in October. So I guess that breeding plumage birds at
this time of year - given the large numbers around are not too
unusual ?

If I assume correctly that Pacific Loon is Gavia arctica (I think) -
the UK name is Black-throated Diver, then I have never seen one in
breeding plumage "out of season". The numbers involved in Scotland
are pretty small - we have a peak of about 80 birds in Sinclair's
Bay, Caithness, which is (as far as I am aware) far the largest
concentration of wintering birds in the UK and possibly Western
Europe. They seem pretty "well-behaved" plumage wise !

As far as the bleaching, could the bird possibly be a partial

albino ?


Stuart

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