The common loon, although beautiful up-close, is now the Minnesota State Thief instead of bird. A recent walleye excursion turned into an “avoid the thief” exercise with our looney friend stealing our bait . . . repeatedly. Has this ever happened to anyone?
The loon was extremely adept at his art. Leeches and minnows were the food of choice for this scavenger. A quick lure-check would reveal a nipped bait. He’d steal it right off the hook. We reeled-in in order to avoid landing the wrong species. It might have been our remote location that led to his lack of aversion to humans.
He followed within feet of the boat as we trolled the shoreline and often dove underneath within inches of the hull. Again, it was an interesting and beautiful sight, but the bait was meant for the walleyes!
Here he is looking for our shiners!
Copyright 2012 Backwoods Revolution