Plate 25: Red-throated Diver
Gavia stellata
Graceful fish-hunter found along larger lakes and waterways.
The Loon is at perfect ease in the water; on land it shuffles along, using its wings as feet, and it cannot rise in flight from the ground. It lives almost altogether on fish which it captures under water and swallows entire. As a rule, it is to be seen far out from shore, floating quietly. Easily it slips under the water, perhaps to reappear a hundred yards or more from the point at which it went down.
The smaller Red-throated Loon (Gavia stellata), usually a rare bird in Pennsylvania, is found during winter or early spring. In winter the back is gray, flecked with white; in spring there is a triangular patch of red-brown on the lower throat; it is always white below.
An Introduction to the Birds of Pennsylvania
Suggestions
- Print out the notebooking pages provided below.
- Read the section on the Red-throated Diver in Nests and Eggs out loud.
- Have a younger student orally narrate what was read. He can then copy a few lines of his narration onto the notebooking pages.
- Older students can read the text, Plate XXV: Red-throated Diver, and provide a written narration.
- Sketch the bird. This encourages attention to detail, which will aid in identifying the bird later on. Another option is to use the printables provided below.
- Sketch the nest of the bird, along with the eggs. Note where the nest is usually found.
- Older students can include the taxonomy.
- Learn more about the Red-throated Diver or Loon at Cornell.
- On one notebooking page note the facts:
- Description.
- Habitat.
- Range.
- Food.
- Nest.
- Eggs.
- Call.
- The Loon is covered in The Burgess Bird Book: CHAPTER XXXVIII. Honker and Dippy Arrive.
Additional Resources
30 Narration Ideas
At some point you might appreciate some variety.
The Bird Study sections of our free nature study series: Our Wonderful World:
- Free Nature Studies: Hunting Birds With Eyes & Camera
- Free Nature Studies: Bird Guardians (Owls)
- Free Nature Studies: Landlord to the Birds
Printables & Notebooking Pages
Red-throated Diver (Loon) Notebooking Pages
Free simple notebooking set.
Red-throated Diver
Bird picture for notebook.
Red-throated Loon Range Map
For notebook from Cornell.
Bird Facts Notebooking Page
One option in a more graphic organizer style that is especially nice for noting the facts and range.
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