Plate 409
Havell CCCVI
Common Loon
(Gavia immer)
On July 9, 1833, while Audubon was in Labrador, he wrote in his journal. “I have drawn all day at the Loon, a most difficult bird to imitate.” And, on the following day, he wrote, “I tried to finish my drawing of the Loon, but in vain; I covered my paper to protect it from the rain, with the exception only of the few inches where I wished to work, and yet that small space was not spared by the drops that fell from the rigging on my table; there is no window, and the only light is admitted through hatches.” Ultimately, Audubon was able to finish the loon in breeding plumage, at right. He states in his text that the bird at left, shown in winter plumage, was drawn from a specimen shot in October of 1819.
Source: The Original Water-Color Paintings by John James Audubon. Copyright 1966 by American Heritage Publishing Co., Inc.
Learn more about this print on the National Audubon Society's website.