Signs of Spring Update: March 15, 2002 Today's Report Includes: Migration News: Taking It Easy This Winter! Link to Lesson: Who Needs Wetsuits With Feathers Like These? Bare Spots: Challenge Question #10 Getting in Fine Fettle: Challenge Question #11 Recognizing Home: Discussion of Challenge Question #7 Starter Home: Discussion of Challenge Question #8 Name That Tune! Discussion of Challenge Question #9 Please Report "Signs of Spring" From Your Part of the World! Migration News: Taking It Easy This Winter! Loons usually time their return to breeding lakes with ice-out. Does this week's map give us any clues about the ice conditions of northern lakes this winter? Loon Migration Data There's something loony about this year's migration! Or is it the weather that's loony? Loons are getting a head start on migration this year, partly because some of them never actually reached their wintering grounds in the first place! Some of them didn't bother migrating all the way to the ocean. For example, Mark Lynch, from Worchester, MA, writes: Common Loons are very regular along Massachusetts coasts all winter in varying numbers depending on location. They are even more common as a fall migrant along the coast and large inland bodies. What was very different this year is that large bodies of inland water, like Wachuset Reservoir in the center of the state, never completely froze, so (as you can see from the data) there are several inland records this winter. Photo by Woody Hagge Loons in fairly northern fresh water lakes were reported in January in Pennsylvania, and in February in Vermont, New Hampshire, Washington DC, Oklahoma, Michigan, and Kansas. And imagine how surprised JN observer E. Cummings's, in Litchfield, IL, must have been on February 2, 2002, to find a more genuine sign of spring than a mere groundhog--a group of loons! (Of course, whenever we see a group of loons we have to be careful that they aren't really loon-shaped ducks called mergansers! See How to Identify Loons.) By March, loons were showing up in more and more places, and one may even have returned to its breeding lake. On March 9, about two weeks earlier than usual, Belina Abendschein even observed a solitary loon on Tichigan Lake in Waterford, Wisconsin! Snow and cold temperatures hit Wisconsin the following week. If ice started closing in on Tichigan Lake, the loon could fly to another lake. But what if the lake was barely over freezing and the loon stayed? How would it stay warm? Fortunately, it is wearing one of the finest natural wetsuits in the world! To learn more, see our lesson: Who Needs Wetsuits With Feathers Like These? After reading the lesson, see if you can answer Challenge Question #10: "Although the loon's skin is protected by down and contour feathers, its beak, eyes, legs, and feet are bare. So how does a loon keep those body parts warm in frigid waters?" (To respond to this question, please follow the instructions below.) Getting in Fine Fettle Photo by Woody Hagge Loon feathers get a lot of wear and tear. They're exposed to salt water and fresh water and the harsh glare of sunlight; there are no trees to shade loons in the middle of a lake or the ocean! All that flapping during migration takes a toll, too. It takes a lot of energy to grow new feathers, so loons have to time their molt (replace their feathers) so they won't waste energy while they're migrating, producing eggs, or struggling to raise babies. Adult loons replace their body feathers twice a year--in late summer AFTER raising their babies, and in late winter BEFORE migrating. Loon flight feathers are a different story. They're very big, and replacing each one requires a tremendous amount of energy and time. And during that time, the loon is in danger. Why? Because loon wings are barely large enough to support their weight when all the feathers are there. If only one or two flight feathers are missing, loons can't fly. That means they can't escape danger or fly to a new source of food. So since they can't fly anyway, loons drop all their flight feathers at once. During this time they can't fly at all. But when they're done molting, they'll have a complete new set of fresh feathers, all ready for spring migration! Except for a few lakes in the south, and the few loons wintering on northern lakes this extraordinary winter, loons virtually always molt on the ocean. Can you think of a big advantage for loons to molt on the ocean rather than on a lake? Can you think of any advantages the loons wintering on Massachusetts lakes this winter had over loons in the ocean? Put it all together to answer: Challenge Question #11: "Why do so many more loons winter in the ocean than on lakes? List two or three reasons." (To respond to this question, please follow the instructions below.) How are loon wings adapted to carry them all the way from the ocean to their breeding lakes hundreds of miles away? Find out here! Loon Adaptations: The Wing--Not Too Big and Not Too Small Recognizing Home: Discussion of Challenge Question #7 Last time we asked you: "List as many clues as you can think of that a redwinged blackbird might use for recognizing his territory from last year." Fourth graders Patrick, Genevieve, and Taylor at Ferrisburgh Central School came up with some good ones: They follow the same route every year. They might look for landmarks, like big trees, bodies of water. They might remember bird feeders or sources of food. They might follow other birds. They have a good sense of direction and a great memory. All those clues will help it get close to home. Once it arrives in the area, it might use familiar trees and shrubs and other landmarks to figure out exactly where his own little patch of territory is. Starter Home: Discussion of Challenge Question #8 When a redwing dies, it usually happens over the winter. That means some redwing territories won't have an adult male to return them this spring. If a good territory isn't claimed by last year's owner, what will happen to the empty territory? We asked: "Try to come up with three different possibilities for what happens to a red-winged blackbird territory that isn't taken over by last year's male." Ferrisburgh Central fourth graders Kate and Dylan made some fine suggestions, and we added our own discussion in parentheses: The territory could be abandoned and other birds won't go to it. (That actually happens a lot when a species is declining. In most areas in North America, redwings are increasing or holding steady, so usually any open territory will quickly be taken by another redwing.) A young male Red-winged Blackbird might take it over. (This happens most often when the young blackbird is VERY spunky--he's got to challenge older, more experienced birds, and will only win if he's strong and determined!) If it's good territory then a family with bad territory might take it over. (This happens a LOT!) Another species of bird might take over the territory. (Some other species actually share territories with redwings--they don't even bother each other! But if a Northern Harrier (a big hawk also called a marsh hawk) moved in, the redwings would have a good reason to steer clear. We came up with one other possibility: neighboring redwings might each take just a little piece of the empty territory, making their own a little bigger. Name That Tune! Discussion of Challenge Question #9 After reading the Red-winged Blackbird Dictionary and taken the Redwing Vocabulary Quiz, Ferrisburgh Central Third Graders Isabelle, Lilian, Laura, Isabel, Sam, Oakes, Daniela, Jennifer,and Hannah quickly figured out the answer to Challenge Question #9: "What call does a redwing give when it sees YOU coming?" They answered, "When a redwing sees you coming, it will give the "whistle" call. We have heard that song a lot, just didn't know it was telling others that we were around. We have red-winged blackbirds in our backyards in the summer. A big thank you to Linda Thurber and Ferrisburgh Central class for coming up with answers to ALL our Challenge Questions this week! We hope lots of classes will put on their thinking caps and submit answers to this week's questions! Report your "Signs of Spring" sightings to Journey North. Please Report "Signs of Spring" From Your Part of the World! Remember to share your sightings of first loons, frogs, earthworms, red-winged blackbirds, barn swallows, emerging leaves, flowing sap, melting ice and other spring events. We'll incorporate your news into these reports. How to Respond to Today's Challenge Questions: IMPORTANT: Answer only ONE question in each e-mail message. 1. Address an E-mail message to: jn-challenge-spring@learner.org 2. IMPORTANT: In the Subject Line of your message write: Challenge Question #10 (OR #11) 3. In the body of the message, give your answer to the question above. The Next Signs of Spring Update Will be Posted on March 22, 2002. Copyright 2002 Journey North. All Rights Reserved. Please send all questions, comments, and suggestions to our feedback form