Pacific Loon at East Fork??

Tweet Some of the most seasoned birders in Cincinnati had found what is thought to be a Pacific Loon at East Fork Lake State Park.  It has been staying very distant, so good, quality photos can not be obtained.  Having heard it was west of the main swimming beach, I decided to use my knowledge of the lake and try to get as close to the bird as possible today (Nov. 16).  I parked at the US Army Corps of Engineers visitor center off of ST RT 222 and Slade Rd.  This put me slightly closer to the birds, but they still remained fairly far off.

When I got down to the bank of the lake, I noticed two loons out from me.  One was clearly a Common, the other looked smaller, darker and thinner billed.  However, the differences were very subtle.  The light was not good (horrible).  Here are the photos.  Most are heavily cropped.

Update:  A very reliable source ID's this as a very small female Common Loon.  I know this birder and refer to him as an expert.  It is a nice study in the variability of Common Loons.  I would speculate that a lot of COLOs are misidentified as other species fairly often when stellar photos are not obtained.  

It also should be noted that I did not see the original bird in question the day that it was seen. 

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