13 APR 2010
Madison Park Beach
Broken Clouds, Breezy
Clarke O'Reilly

I saw a large loon shaped bird swimming approx. a couple dozen metres out in the lake, very low in the water. (Its dive was very "loon like".)
Its head & upper neck were dark with (maybe) a bit of green iridescence . The lower neck and body were completely white. There was a little black/grey on the back.
The bill was yellow with the distinctive "upturn" on the bottom at the end.
I am basing the id on the distinctive & yellow bill and the obvious loon shape. I'm wondering if the plumage is an intermediate between the winter & breeding plumage (or a fluke result of genetics?)

I'm posting the above, since, if it was a yellow-billed loon it is "out-of-place". It was so obviously a loon, yet can't think of/haven't found any similar species -

Thanks -

Clarke O'Reilly. MAT
CFOReilly at mac.com, cfor at uw.edu
Seattle