It's Not Too Late!
Please Consider a Year-End Gift for the Loons
Greetings!
I hope you and your family are having a wonderful holiday season! If you have already responded to LPC's 2018 Annual Appeal,
thank you for your support. Your contributions allow us to continue protecting New Hampshire's loon population.
For those of you still on the fence, it's not too late to make a year-end gift to LPC. We had another busy year in 2018-please see a list of some of our accomplishments below! With your support, we will be able to continue this important work in 2019.
2018 Year in Review
With help from hundreds of volunteers, members, and donors, we were able to do a lot of good for New Hampshire's loons in 2018! We:
- Surveyed 502 occupied or potential loon territories on 357 lakes
- Documented the presence of 309 loon pairs-the first time that the NH population has exceeded 300 pairs since we began monitoring in 1975!
- Floated 95 artificial nest rafts
- Floated 116 signs to protect nesting loons and loon chicks
- Protected 92% of the loon chicks hatched within the state through either signs, rope lines, or water level management
- Banded 40 loons to learn more about loon life history, health concerns, and contaminant levels
- Rescued 18 loons in distress
- Partnered with New Hampshire Fish and Game for a lead tackle buyback program that resulted in over 4,700 pieces of illegal lead fishing tackle removed from our environment
- Live streamed 2 loon nests from start to hatch, totaling 79 days of live footage watched by viewers in 184 countries
- Gave 121 presentations about loons and our work to protect them
- Accomplished all of this with the help of over 600 dedicated volunteers
Despite all of these successes, loons are still a threatened species in New Hampshire and continue to face many challenges. Due largely to testimony from LPC, the state of New Hampshire banned the sale and freshwater use of lead fishing tackle in 2016. However, lead poisoning continued to be a major cause of adult mortality this year-in total, we lost 10 adult loons due to lead poisoning in 2018. Though it can no longer be purchased within the state, illegal lead fishing tackle persists in old tackle boxes. In 2019, LPC will significantly ramp up our lead tackle buyback program and will continue to educate the public about the dangers of lead. We will also continue to address other threats to loons, including climate change, shoreline development, and contaminants. Will you join us? With your support, we can continue to work as hard as ever to protect our loons in 2019.
