The Three-Minute Outdoorsman: Wild Science from Magnetic Deer to Mumbling Carp

42. Loon Hunting

A N I M A L S A N D U S 161 as subtle. Maybe we should consider walking our dogs in areas deemed less ecologically sensitive; I don’t think my dogs would object to a walk in a less-than-pristine area. They might appreciate more dog company. 42 loon hunting a bygone tradition On 6 May 1950, eleven federal and state wildlife enforcement officers staged a long planned, coordinated raid on Shackleford Banks, Carteret County, North Carolina, apprehending nearly 100 hunters, of whom 78 were formally charged with illegally shooting loons (Anonymous 1950) in violation of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918. So begins a fascinating article on the hunting of Common Loons written by Storrs Olson, Horace Loftin, and Steve Goodwin in the December 2010 issue of the Wilson Journal of Ornithology. I had never heard of loon hunting, and what I learned was some astounding early history of Minnesota’s state bird and its past perils on its East Coast wintering grounds. The Shackleford Banks is a narrow east–west barrier island that separates the open Atlantic on its south shore from Harkers Island to the north, with Back Sound in between. Shackleford Banks was settled by the early 1700s by people who made their living catching whales, mullet, and dolphins. The area was devastated by the San Ciriaco hurricane in 1899, resulting in people moving inland, many to Harkers Island. The banks were mostly uninhabited and were used for grazing cattle; they became part of the Cape Lookout National Seashore in 1966. Loons are fairly large birds, with males averaging sixteen t h e t h r e e - m i n u t e o u t d o o r s m a n 162 pounds and females ten pounds. They were never a common species in the bags of waterfowlers or market hunters, because they are hard to hunt and have a reputation as being too “fishy” to eat. They do not respond well to decoys. Although in winter they molt their flight feathers offshore and are flightless, pursuing them with boats is difficult because, as most of us know, when they dive, it is hard to predict where they’ll come up, and they often ride low in the water, making them a difficult target. As Minnesotans know, they require a running start across the water’s surface to become airborne. When they are migrating, they often fly very high and well offshore, out of shotgun range. And although their calls have nothing to do with this article, close your eyes, and recall their eerie vocalizations, which fascinate us during their summer residency on our lakes. Before dawn, hunters would cross in boats from Harkers Island across Back Sound to the northern shores of the Shackleford Banks. The hunters moved to the outer shore and often lined the entire length of the Shackleford Banks to shoot passing migrating loons in spring. Much of the North Carolina Outer Banks region where these once traditional, but long-since illegal, loon hunts occurred is now designated as National Seashore. Broad Creek Cedar Island Beaufort Bogue Sound Emerald Isle Salter Path Bogue Banks Shackleford Banks Harkers Island Back Sound Cape Lookout Atlantic O cean Core Sound Morehead City A N I M A L S A N D U S 163 If loons are hard to hunt and taste fishy, why was there a tradition of loon hunting on Shackleford Banks? There was a flaw in the loon’s migration strategy. Along Shackleford Banks loons become common in spring and take off to the north from just offshore, bringing them low over the banks and within shotgun range. The original Shacklefordians took advantage of this to put meat, albeit loon, on their tables. Harkers Island became the focal point for this activity, although loons were killed in large numbers in other areas. By the mid-1800s loon hunting was well established. Generally in April and May, hunters would depart Harkers Island before dawn, especially with a northeast wind, and beach their boats on the north (protected) shore of Shackleford Banks. They walked southwards across the dunes to await the first flights of loons, which usually occurred at first light. Hunters usually didn’t require much concealment, although during World War II they sometimes hid behind antisubmarine buoys that had broken loose and beached. At times there were so many hunters...