Looners Earn Award

Big Mantrap Lake’s loon nesting program recently earned national recognition. Our volunteer program received the 2025 John Muir Resource Preservation Award.

For 47 years, the John Muir Association, based in California, has honored those who continue Muir’s legacy of environmental preservation through awards in four categories. Awards were announced in late April. Steve Maanum, longtime loon volunteer, writer and photographer, wrote the nomination and surprised the team with the honor.

Here’s the award summary, also featured on the John Muir Association website:

2025 Preservation Award – Mantrap Lake Loon Conservation Project

Mantrap Lake, located in central Minnesota, hosts a remarkably high density of successfully breeding loon pairs. Mantrap’s twisting shorelines, abundant bays, natural aquatic vegetation and undeveloped shorelines allow these highly territorial birds to breed successfully in such high densities. There is an equally remarkable effort put forth by local volunteers to bolster loon reproduction with a thoughtful and detail-oriented nesting platform program that has been going on for nearly 40 years. This is an outstanding model of citizen-led conservation efforts that have been wildly successful for loons, and the impact of their work goes well beyond Mantrap Lake due to outreach and education efforts, and partnerships with multiple conservation entities. The Mantrap Lake Loon Conservation Project works closely with the Minnesota Nongame Wildlife Program and allied federal agencies to protect miles of shoreline on Mantrap Lake.