Reseachers seek to learn more about Walker Lake loons

Monday, May 18, 1998 | 9:54 a.m.

State wildlife officials discovered only nine years ago that the dying desert lake was an important stop for hundreds of loons during their spring and fall migrations.

"What we want to know is where do these birds breed and is there a geographically identifiable population that is using Walker Lake," said Larry Neel, a Nevada Division of Wildlife biologist.

"We want to understand what the impacts of losing Walker Lake would be."

Walker Lake, located 150 miles southeast of Reno, derives most of its water from the Walker River.

But since the turn of the century, the lake's level has dropped more than 125 feet and its surface area has been reduced by more than half as competition for water intensified among upstream users, primarily farmers.

A fourth straight wet winter has provided a reprieve for the dwindling lake.

Researchers are unsure how long migrating loons stay at Walker Lake, whether the lake is their primary stop and where they spend their summers and winters.

Biologists speculate the fish-eating birds breed in Montana or Canada, then winter in the Gulf of Mexico.

Researchers released the three loons back to Walker Lake after wiring them late last month. The birds stayed put the first two weeks, but two of them were on the move last weekend.

One turned up 100 miles away at Pyramid Lake near Reno, while the other was 500 miles away at Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area on the Utah-Wyoming border. The third loon was at Walker Lake.

"(Satellite tracking) will tell us every week where the birds are and we can get rough migration tracks," said Mike Yates, a biologist at Boise State.

Batteries in the birds' satellite transmitters are expected to last about six months.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Great Basin Bird Observatory and Boise State University also are participating in the project.