One of my daughters lives in a house fronting one of 2 ponds next to the Guthrie Medical Complex in downtown Sayre, Pa. She called last evening to report 4 large black and white birds on "her" pond. I immediately thought common merganser, but she then described what were obviously COMMON LOONS. Excitement!! She wanted to know how long they would remain, and I said they would most likely be gone today.She called this morning to say 3 had departed, but one remained. It would swim to one end of the pond, and try to get airborne, just clearing the water before it realized there were houses in the way, whereupon it splooshed back into the water. It repeated this a number of times. My daughter wanted to know what was going on, and I, as the bird expert, started a spiel about how it was somehow damaged, lead poisoning, contacting the DNR, wildlife rehabilitator, and was just blathering into the difficulties of capturing it, when the phone almost leaped out of my hand and all I could hear was loud, incoherent shouting and screaming. When some measure of calm returned, I heard "HE MADE IT, HE MADE IT", as indeed it did, like the little engine that could, it gave its all and just cleared the houses, took a loop over the pond, and headed north. S. FastBrooktondale --
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