TORONTO -- In a never-before documented fatal clash between a bald eagle and a loon protecting its chicks, Canada鈥檚 loonie mascot stabbed America鈥檚 national bird through the heart.
It鈥檚 a wildlife first, according to Courtney Moulton of the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. Moulton wrote a titled "Bald Eagle Shot Through the Heart 鈥� By a Loon!" about the incident this month, saying it excited loon researchers who had never before documented a loon killing an eagle, but plenty of the inverse.
After the dead bald eagle was found floating face-down in Highland Lake in Maine last summer near a dead loon chick, Moulton was 鈥渋ntrigued,鈥� she wrote, adding that a woman in a nearby cabin said she鈥檇 heard a 鈥渉ullabaloo鈥� the night before 鈥渃onsistent with agitated loons.鈥�
鈥淲e know conflicts between bald eagles and loons have soared in recent years as a result of the recovery of our eagle population. We are seeing more and more eagle predation on loon chicks and even adult loons. Who would think a loon would stand a chance against such a powerful predator?鈥� she asked in the blog post.
When X-ray returned no evidence of a bullet, but an external exam revealed a puncture wound, researchers sent the bald eagle to the National Wildlife Health Center in Wisconsin.
鈥淭his puncture wound could have been due to an adult loon鈥檚 beak as a result of its attempt to protect its chick from the eagle,鈥� wrote Moulton, adding that marks consistent with the spacing of eagle talons were found on the loon chick.
鈥淎 loon鈥檚 best weapon is its dagger-like bill, and it will often attack adversary loons by coming up from beneath the water鈥檚 surface with its bill straight towards the other loon鈥檚 sternum, or chest. Many adult loons have several healed-over sternal punctures from fights like these.鈥�
In Wisconsin, researchers determined the wound was similar in size to a loon鈥檚 bill and showed fatal precision:
鈥淸I]t extended straight to the heart which likely led to a quick death,鈥� wrote Moulton.
