Subject: Fw: Red-throated Loons in Deception Pass
Date: Apr 4 13:17:34 2002
From: Wayne C. Weber - contopus at shaw.ca


Tweeters,

The attached comments from Terry Wahl may help in putting the
concentrations of Red-throated Loons at Deception Pass into
perspective.

Wayne C. Weber
Kamloops and Delta, BC
contopus at shaw.ca


----- Original Message -----
From: <TRWahl at aol.com>
To: <contopus at shaw.ca>
Sent: Thursday, April 04, 2002 9:11 AM
Subject: RTLOs


> Hi Wayne,
>
> The relatively consistent concentration of Red-throated Loons at
Deception
> Pass is fairly unique, in my experience. Though we had larger
numbers in
> 78-79 surveys at estuaries - Drayton Harbor, Samish Bay, Dungeness
Bay, etc.
> - no other deep passage with strong currents had numbers like
Deception Pass.
> My suggested explanation, like yours, has been that so much good
stuff from
> shallow habitats inside DP comes draining out through the Pass that
RTLOs
> find it a great opportunity to feed on the local concentrations of
otherwise
> more thinly distributed prey. Though Pacific Loons occur there,
maybe the
> (possibly) different prey bases are reflected by the predators
present.
>
> Our high count, incidentally, in 1978-79 was 651 Red-throats in
Drayton
> Harbor.
>
> Best,
>
> Terry