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Monday, July 18, 2005
Maine volunteers count loons, sea creatures
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Mainers took time out of their weekend to scan the lakes and search the sea in annual wildlife counts. A loon count, now in its 22nd year, sponsored by Maine Audubon was designed to get a population number after loon chicks have hatched. Maine has about 4,300 loons - the largest population in New England. But this year's count occurred amid concern about the health of the species in the state. Loon populations are threatened by increased waterfront development, high levels of mercury, lead sinkers and boats that rip at high speeds across the water's surface - all long-standing concerns. There's additional worry that this spring's cold, wet weather also harmed the birds. "It's been a tough year for loons so far," said Susan Gallo, wildlife biologist at Maine Audubon and director of the organization's Maine Loon Project. Meanwhile, 100 recreational scuba divers jumped into the Gulf of Maine on Saturday to count the number of fish and invertebrates they encountered. The divers were creating a database that scientists could use to gain insight into the range and populations of marine life in the gulf. "We are just trying to be the eyes and ears of the scientists and give them information they don't have," said Bob Michelson, who is coordinating the Gulf of Maine survey. Saturday was believed to be the largest one-day dive event associated with the Great Annual Fish Count, which is held in coastal waters in North and South America. A half-dozen divers launched from Nubble Light in York, while more than 100 divers did surveys off Cape Ann in Massachussetts. The effort in the Gulf of Maine is only four years old, so there is not enough data yet for significant scientific value, said Michelson, who trains New England divers to count fish as part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Marine Sanctuary Program. He said the value will increase as the database grows. So far, divers in the Gulf of Maine have produced about 800 surveys. "If you get thousands of surveys over the course of years," Michelson said, "it starts to do some good."
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