July 25 – 31, 2025Vol. 27, No. 7

Monkey See, Monkey Do!

by Dick Greenan

We had another fun and educational day on the lake this past Saturday with the Winners of the 2024 BLA Summer Bonus Raffle’ First Prize, a Loon Tour of the eleven loon nesting sites on Long Pond. We observed several chicks learning the ropes from their parents, behaviors that are seldom seen and if so, often taken for granted. Enjoy!

An adult loon holds a crawfish in its beak, while a chick swims behind. — Caught in the act! (No pun intended)

Two adult loons, one of whom offers a crawfish to a seemingly uninterested chick. — “Take that ugly thing away!” (The crawfish is a loon staple.)

The chick seems to be swimming away. — “I’m out of here!”

The chick imitates the stretch done by its parent. — “Monkey see, monkey do!”

The chick swims after the parent. — “I’m ready, what’s next?”

The preceding photographs were all taken within thirty minutes of each other of the same loon family on lower Long Pond. Summers are certainly exciting times here in the Belgrades!

If you have particular questions regarding our Belgrade loons, please email your inquiry to info@blamaine.org, and we will try to answer your question either in this column or via email. Have a great summer enjoying the Call of the Loon!

Dick Greenan is chairman of the Belgrade Lakes Association’s Loon Preservation Project.

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