Jean Tam of the Anchorage Audubon Society says that the Connors Lake Loon Cam Project is ending for the season.
On Thursday, volunteers will pull the island built for the Pacific loon to shore and disassemble the cameras and other equipment.
"The loon chick has grown fast and is getting its juvenile plumage now," Tam reported. "It has been feeding on its own as well as being fed by one of the adults. I expect it to leave the lake in two to three weeks."
The chick hatched in late June.
Every year for more than a decade, a female Pacific loon has descended on Connors Lake, near Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport in west Anchorage. There, for all but one of the last 12 years, a loon has laid eggs on a nesting platform constructed specially for her.
In recent years, the Audubon Society has sponsored a live-streaming camera mounted on the platform, allowing viewers from around the world to observe the loon on the nest as well as the hatching of chicks. The loon was first banded in 2003, enabling confirmation that the same loon has been returning year after year.
Halibut commissioners sought
Two seats on the powerful International Pacific Halibut Commission are open, and a federal agency is extending the nomination period to Sept. 18.
In May, NOAA Fisheries appealed for nominations for U.S. commissioners, who serve two-year terms. They elicited only nominations for the sitting commissioners, who are eligible for reappointment, but are now making a broader search.
"NOAA Fisheries is seeking a greater number of nominations from which to propose two candidates for appointment by the president," according to a NOAA press release.
There are six commissioners, split between Canada and the United States. For information, email Patrick Moran at IPHC2015nominations@noaa.gov.