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Join Conserving Carolina and the Landrum Library for a free lecture entitled, “Loons of Lake Jocassee,” presented by Brooks Wade and Dr. Jay Mager.  The program will be held on Thursday, November 10 at 6 p.m. at the Landrum Library, 111 East Asbury Drive Landrum, SC. 

The Common Loon is one of the most studied birds on the planet. Most of the research has been on
their summer breeding behavior while they raise their young, but who knows what they do in winter?

Brooks and Jay do! For six years, they have watched and recorded the behavior of these enigmatic birds on Lake Jocassee. It is the first-ever study of loons in winter in a freshwater environment. Loons have spent most of their natural history wintering in marine environments and only within the last 100 years or so have they begun to winter on lakes such as Jocassee. This year, the study has been expanded to include loon migration in spring, when loons use Lake Jocassee as a significant stop-over lake. Both research projects will be the topic of discussion.

 

Dr. Jay Mager is the principal investigator of the ongoing Jocassee loon research and is a Professor of Biological & Allied Health Sciences at Ohio Northern University, where he teaches courses in ecology, ornithology, and animal behavior. He is also a book review editor for the American Ornithological Society. Dr. Mager earned his PhD in ornithology from Cornell University.

Brooks Wade is the co-founder, along with his wife Kay, of Jocassee Lake Tours and Jocassee Wild Outdoor Education. Brooks is the host, guide, and co-investigator for the Jocassee research. It is Brooks’ passion for loons and his awareness of the unique opportunity for research on Lake Jocassee that brought the attention of the scientific community to Lake Jocassee.

This lecture is part of Conserving Carolina’s monthly Speaker Series at the Landrum Library, and it is made possible thanks to the Landrum Library.  Keep an eye out for the 2023 schedule, starting in January!

 

For more information, contact Pam Torlina at pam@conservingcarolina.org, or contact the Landrum Library at 864-457-2218.

 

 

Submitted by Pam Torlina