Did you have a guess for last week’s puzzler? The sound is pretty distinctive and for most people, a sound they would recognize, especially if you’ve ever spent any time on a wilderness lake like those in Canada, Minnesota or the Adirondacks of NY.
It’s the call of a common loon. Loons are a relatively heavy bird because their bodies are designed for diving. Unlike other birds, their bones are solid. And while their weight makes them super fast swimmers and able to maneuver accurately under water, their weight makes them need a running head start to take off. If you’ve ever seen one start to fly, they travel for a long time on the top of the water, getting up to speed in the way a plane takes off from a runway.
Some other birds that have solid bones are penguins, puffins and auklets. These birds are generally less skillful flyers than birds with hollow bones.
Are you familiar with the common loon? Do you enjoy listening to their haunting calls? What do you know why they sometimes get stranded on small ponds or how fast they can fly? Do you know how long they can stay underwater or where they spend the winter? Do you know what they eat or why they have red eyes? Check back next week as they will be the Weekly Creature Feature. See you then!!
Here is the next Weekly Puzzler!
