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Maine loon count steady despite slight drop from prior year

Despite a slight drop in the number of loons in 2019, 2020's projected loon count looks strong and steady.

Credit: AP

FILE - In this July 2007 file photo, a loon with a chick on its back makes its way across Pierce Pond near N. New Portland, Maine. Maine's loon tally could go down this year following last year's record numbers because of the wet spring, according to an Audubon official. Up to 1,000 volunteers across the southern half of the state aim to find out Saturday as they scout out lakes and ponds in Maine Audubon's 28th annual loon count. Loon surveys are being held the same day in New Hampshire and Vermont. Southern Maine's adult loon population has grown steadily in the past 25 years, with last year's count of 3,220 about double the number in the mid-1980s (AP Photo/Pat Wellenbach)

FALMOUTH, Maine — The Audubon Society says Maine's annual loon count showed a slight drop in the number of birds, but the population appears strong and steady.

Common loons live on Maine's lakes and ponds, and are known for their plaintive call, called a tremolo.

Maine Audubon says it's estimating the 2019 loon population below the 45th parallel in Maine to include 3,219 adults and 372 chicks.

The 2018 count found 3,269 adults and 406 chicks.

The number of adults is more than twice the count from the mid-1980s, and the number of chicks has also trended up over the decades.

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