One of Wisconsin's favorite bird species is in the midst of a long trip.
Stacey Craig, Loonwatch coordinator for the Sigrud Olson Environmental Institute at Northland College, says loons travel all the way down to the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico.
Craig says the birds typically begin their trip by staging on Lake Michigan and fly down to the Gulf of Mexico or stick to the Great Lakes and end up of the coast of the Carolinas.
Craig says loons typically depart Northwoods Lakes in late August and early September to begin their journey. Juveniles start a little later, as they continue to build their flight muscles.
Bands placed on loons show at least 80-percent come back in the spring. Craig says there may be more that return, but which are not seen because they have changed lakes.