# Red-throated loon (*Gavia stellata*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/red-throated-loon  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The red-throated loon (Gavia stellata) is a medium-sized bird in the family Gaviidae and the order Gaviiformes. It is a migratory, aquatic carnivore of wetland habitats, classed as an aquatic predator. Adults weigh 1.486 kg, with reported values from 1.477 to 1.729 kg, and the wingspan is 1.04 m. It lays 2 eggs per clutch, one clutch per year, with an incubation period of 27.5 days, and the IUCN lists it as Least Concern.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 1.48 kg – 1.73 kg |
| Length | 55 cm – 67 cm |
| Wingspan | 1.04 m |
| Lifespan | 23.6 years |
| Diet | Aquatic predator |
| Longest recorded lifespan | 23.7 years |
| Main food | vertebrates |
| Habitat | wetland |
| Egg incubation | 27.5 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 2 |
| Age at maturity | 2.74 years – 3 years |
| Litters or clutches a year | 1 |
| Reproduction | Eggs |
| Lifestyle | Aquatic |
| Migration | Migratory |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Aves
- order: Gaviiformes
- family: Gaviidae
- genus: Gavia
- species: *Gavia stellata* (Pontoppidan, 1763)

Synonyms: *Colymbus rufogularis*, *Colymbus septentrionalis*, *Colymbus stellatus*, *Gavia lumme*, *Gavia septentrionalis*, *Plotus claudicanus*, *Urinator bailloni*, *Urinator lumme*, *Urinator stellatus*, *Urinator striatus*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the red-throated loon?

The red-throated loon is a medium-sized bird in the family Gaviidae, order Gaviiformes.

### How heavy is the red-throated loon?

Adults weigh 1.486 kg, with reported values from 1.477 to 1.729 kg. Its wingspan is 1.04 m.

### What does the red-throated loon eat?

It is an aquatic predator and a carnivore.

### What habitat does the red-throated loon use?

It lives in wetland habitats and has an aquatic lifestyle. It is migratory.

### Is the red-throated loon endangered?

No. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category.

### How long does the red-throated loon live?

Its lifespan is 23.58 years, with values up to 23.7 years reported.

### How many eggs does the red-throated loon lay?

It lays 2 eggs per clutch and has 1 clutch per year, with an incubation period of 27.5 days. Sexual maturity comes at 2.9 years.

### Who named the red-throated loon?

Its scientific name, Gavia stellata, is credited to (Pontoppidan, 1763).

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7), CC BY 4.0, v7. Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Red-throated loon (Gavia stellata). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/red-throated-loon