day 16
Is there anything as soft as the gray on the neck of a loon?
I am tempted to spell it ‘grey,’ since that is removed, reminiscent of old England, more complex than gray. But I am not fond of deliberate attempts at appearing continental when one is, in fact, not. It is tough to come up with an adequate description for the mixes of color and texture to be seen on a loon neck: grey may be too romantic and pompous, but velvety (which sadly also immediately springs to mind) is worse. It sounds crass and cheap. I am at a loss.
There was a Red-throated Loon (our grayest-necked, with a shocking rusty-red patch on its throat) in full breeding plumage in the waters off of Plum Island yesterday. This was not the best bird of the day for rarity, but it was a little unusual, and very nice for the visually inclined. The bird was sitting calmly, in close to shore. I have only seen these loons in their summer breeding (definitive alternate) plumage once, while in Alaska during the end of one May, and then I was wholeheartedly distracted in looking for Bluethroats and stints of various sorts. The Red-throated Loon is a winter bird to New England, and it usually floats around in its drab basic plumage here – also gray, but not the same. The winter feathering has the speckled colors of rocks and freezing seas, but this was lustrous, profound, in the sense of having significant depth.
Birds of North America Online describes parts of the head and neck as “medium light gray or variable (bluish, ash, pearl, glossy dark, dove), occasionally darker dusky gray on lores and around eyes.” The writings of ornithologists may be a little dry, but there is something in this that is clearer than trying to get at it with florid language. citation
I suppose it is fairly obvious that I am an admirer of the subtleties of grays, but I kid you not, I only just now linked up my fascination of this bird’s neck with my drawing habits. Cause I was just sitting down to post this beginning of a drawing. It is pen on gray paper, 7.75 x 10.5.”
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Cathy,
Come to Seattle! The amount of gray here is promising!
Alina! You are a gray nutcase! Cathy, your description and drawing of the soft gray neck of the loon makes me want to stroke one. I will settle for the soft fuzzy gray neck of my cat, Willy, who is purring in response. Do you suppose that a loon would purr its call if stroked?
It might bite you… & if it did it has “sharp, chitinous denticles on tongue and roof of mouth to assist in holding and ingesting fish.” (from BNA Online)
I may be a gray nutcase, but I’d bet money that Cathy is way more versed in the nuances of gray then I! Seriously though, I look around Seattle during this season & I notice birds existing in these blankets of gray & I think if only Cathy could be here to draw the scene, that would be awesome.
Beautiful drawing. I spend a lot my time thinking about this species. They had a steep decline in numbers here in Alaska, and part of my job is to collect data examining why. Nice to separate the science from the bird and just admire its beauty. Thanks for drawing this, and if you are ever back in Alaska, be sure to let me know.
All the best,
Dan