The news of recent loon die-offs due to botulism in the Great Lakes has indeed been troubling, but as of yet, we have seen no evidence of a decline in Minnesota's loon population. Fortunately, the DNR's Division of Ecological Resources conducts the annual Minnesota Loon Monitoring Program, which provides us with a "finger on the pulse" of our state bird's well-being.
Through this program, each year volunteers visit about 100 lakes in each of six study areas in which loons are present. After 13 years of counting loons on these 600 lakes, we have detected a very slight increase in population in several of the study areas, and see no evidence of declines.
While we hope the botulism die-off is a short-term problem, the DNR will continue to closely monitor the state's loon population to provide an early-detection system for any problems that may arise. For more information on loon monitoring, or to participate as a volunteer, go to http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/eco/nongame/projects/mlmp_state.html.
- Rich Baker, DNR Division of Ecological Resources
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