Overview
The black-throated loon (Gavia arctica), also known as the Arctic loon and the black-throated diver, is a migratory aquatic bird found in the Northern Hemisphere, primarily breeding in freshwater lakes in northern Europe and Asia. It winters along sheltered, ice-free coasts of the north-east Atlantic Ocean and the eastern and western Pacific Ocean. This loon was first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758 and has two subspecies. It was previously considered to be the same species as the Pacific loon, of which it is traditionally considered to be a sister species, although this is debated.
Summary from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Range and habitat
Continents
Countries
- Albania
- Algeria
- Armenia
- Austria
- Azerbaijan
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Bulgaria
- China
- Croatia
- Czechia
- Denmark
- Estonia
- Finland
- Georgia
- Germany
- Greece
- Hungary
- Iceland
- Ireland
- Israel
- Italy
- Japan
- Jordan
- Kazakhstan
- Kyrgyzstan
- Latvia
- Moldova
- Monaco
- Mongolia
- Montenegro
- Netherlands
- North Korea
- North Macedonia
- Norway
- Poland
- Romania
- Russia
- Serbia
- Slovenia
- South Korea
- Spain
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- Taiwan
- Turkey
- Turkmenistan
- Ukraine
- United Kingdom
- United States
Sources and further reading
- Wikipedia: Black-throated loon
- eBird: sightings, maps and photos
- xeno-canto: sound recordings
- Birds of the World: full species account (subscription)
- BirdLife DataZone: status and threats
- IUCN Red List (threat status)
- AviList global checklist (taxonomy)
Last updated September 29, 2026.
