Odyssey of an Unhatched Loon Egg
As they’ve done every year since 2003, Bob and Carole Otto approached a spring day in 2017 with the same mission. A couple of days after ice-out, on April 5, they launched a loon nesting platform onto Eagle Lake in Crow Wing County.
Through their binoculars, they watched as a pair of loons took up residence on the platform, which is built to protect them and their offspring from predators.
The loons nested, laid two eggs, and took turns fishing and sitting on the eggs. On May 28, an egg hatched and a chick emerged. The Ottos watched as the adult loons continued sitting on the nest for a couple more days. Then, the adult loons abandoned the unhatched egg May 31.