Red-throated Loon on nest
Gavia stellata

f6.7 @ 1/3200s, ISO:3200, Nikon D3S w 500mm lens and 1.7X tele-converter


\"Red-throated Loon,\" Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The Red-throated Loon is a monogamous species which forms long-term pair bonds. Both sexes build the nest, which is a shallow scrape (or occasionally a platform of mud and vegetation) lined with vegetation and sometimes a few feathers, and placed within a half-metre (18 in) of the edge of a small pond. The female lays two eggs (though clutches of 1–3 have been recorded); they are incubated for 24–29 days, primarily by the female. The eggs, which are greenish or olive-brownish spotted with black, measure 75 mm × 46 mm (3.0 in × 1.8 in) and have a mass of 83 g (2.9 oz), of which 8% is shell. Incubation is begun as soon as the first egg is laid, so they hatch asynchronously. If a clutch is lost (to predation or flooding, for example) before the young hatch, the Red-throated Loon usually lays a second clutch, generally in a new nest.
Latrabjarg, Iceland
 
06/01/2013