A common loon flaps its wings, which are short in comparison to its body size. Loons' small wings require them to get a running start to fly, according to Montana Loon Society President Lynn Kelly.

MINNESOTA, USA — "Imagine now, a clear summer evening in the north woods. Above you, the bands of the Milky Way framed by the dark spindly boughs of spruce and fir. And cutting though the stillness ...

The population of a beloved Maine bird, the common loon, dipped for the second straight year, but wildlife surveyors said they are heartened by an increased number of the bird's chicks. Maine has the ...

Officials have announced that they are cautiously optimistic after receiving a pleasant surprise. For a while now, the loon ...

The loon's "wing loading ratio", figured by comparing the weight of the bird to the surface area of the wings, is the largest in the bird family. For example, although approximately the same weight, ...

Although loons were historically only a very small part of Oklahoma's bird life due to the lack of open water, they can now be found during migration and winter on a number of lakes nearly statewide.

Achieving takeoff requires a clear aquatic runway measuring nearly 1 football field in length. The 12-pound weight and specific foot placement make terrestrial movement almost impossible.

"Common" may be defined as communal and cooperating or prevalent, well-known and everyday. But there are also not so pleasant connotations: mediocre, inferior, lowborn or vulgar. None of the above ...