Yesterday I was passing over the Carrigan causeway on Morse lake as I do every day on my way to my shop in Lapel. I saw a group of waterfowl way out in the center and stopped to get a better look on the new pedestrian bridge. I was able to se the distinctive shapes of a large group of loons. I went to get a closer look at the Morse lake beach and was able to count 31 loons, all in winter plumage.
The previous march I hade seen 28 loons at the Little Chicago causeway, but they were in breeding plumage.
I aso noted about 50 horned grebes mixing in with the loons, but they were much smaller and had a much different shape. I have not seen groups of horned grebes like this anywhere.
My theory is that storms with high winds from the south during the migration to the south stops loons and other waterfowl and causes them to clump up. In the spring, high winds from the north stop northern migration.
During this time, the winds were 30-40mph from the south and had continued for several days.
