Pat-a-pat-a-pat-a-pat-a-pat-a-pat-a-pat-a-...

We read about the four signature calls of a common loon. Another sound they make is just as distinctive – when you hear it, you know it’s a loon.

You may remember the sound Fred Flintstone’s feet made as he ran his stone-wheeled car up to travel speed. That’s it: Pat-a-pat-a-pat-a-pat-a-pat-a...And not just a few pat-a’s. Loons have to beat their webbed feet in a long running in order to get airborne.

Loons are adapted best for life on and under water, not on land or in air. They make a living by diving and chasing fish for food, so they have short wings (for streamlining) and less-buoyant bodies than other birds (solid bones instead of hollow, for example). On land, they’re awkward, the feet positioned far back on the body. That’s why they nest right at the water’s edge. In the air they fly fast (some 50 miles per hour), though flight is energy intensive for them – they have to flap every second to stay airborne.

Getting into the air is the real problem. Ducks? Startle them and they leap right off the water, airborne in an instant. Loons need a runway. On a calm day they may need 600 to 700 feet. They need less if able to take off into a wind, and yes, they do aim themselves upwind, without the benefit of the wind sock human pilots use.

So if you’re out on your lake fishing, pier-sitting or kayaking and hear that pat-a-pat-a pat-a-pat-a-pat-a..., you’ll know what it is. Turn toward the sound and watch the show.