A Loon Is a Diving Bird With an Eerie Call
A loon is a North American diving bird. Its wailing call gave English a word for madness.
A loon is a large diving bird of northern lakes, called a diver in British English. Its wailing night call is behind the American phrase *crazy as a loon*, though the sense of a foolish person may come from a separate older word. Loons have solid rather than hollow bones, unusual among birds, which reduces buoyancy and helps them dive to sixty metres. They can barely walk, since their legs sit so far back that they are built almost entirely for swimming.
- A diving bird. *A common loon.*
- Diver — the British name. *A diver.*
- A foolish person. *A crazy loon.*
- Crazy as a loon. *Crazy as a loon.*
- Old Norse — *lomr*. *The source.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | loon | A loon. |
| Plural | loons | Loons. |
| Adjective | loony | Loony. |
| British | diver | A diver. |
| Old Norse | lomr | A loon. |
- A loon called across the lake.Bird.
- Crazy as a loon.Idiom.
- Their bones are solid.Fact.
Built for diving, not walking
- Solid bones reduce buoyancy, rare among birds
- Legs set far back give powerful propulsion
- That same placement makes walking almost impossible
- They need a long run across water to take off
- Dives can reach sixty metres
Old Norse *lomr*, the bird. The sense of a fool may be a separate word of Scottish origin.
Why can loons barely walk?
Their legs sit far back on the body, which makes them powerful swimmers but leaves them almost unable to move on land.
Do loons have hollow bones?
No. Unlike most birds they have largely solid bones, which reduces buoyancy and helps them dive deep.