Editing Red-throated loon (section)

==Taxonomy and etymology==
First described by Danish naturalist [[Erik Pontoppidan]] in 1763, the red-throated loon is a [[monotypic species]] with no distinctive subspecies despite its large [[Holarctic]] range.{{sfn|Carboneras|1992|p=162}} Pontoppidan initially placed the species in the now-defunct genus ''Colymbus'', which contained [[grebe]]s as well as loons. By 1788, German naturalist [[Johann Reinhold Forster]] realized that grebes and loons were different enough to warrant separate genera, and moved the red-throated loon (along with all other loon species) to its present genus.{{sfn|Allen|1897}} Its relationship to the four other loons is complex; although all belong to the same genus, it differs from the others in terms of [[morphology (biology)|morphology]], behaviour, ecology and breeding biology{{sfn|Carboneras|1992|p=162}} and may be the basal lineage of the genus.{{sfn|Boertmann|1990}} It is thought to have [[evolution|evolved]] in the [[Palearctic]], and then to have expanded into the [[Nearctic]].{{sfn|Carboneras|1992|p=162}} Analysis of molecular data together with the fossil record suggests the lineage of the red-throated loon diverged from that giving rise to the other loon species around 21.4 million years ago in the [[Miocene]], and that it may be most closely related to the fossil Pliocene species ''[[Gavia howardae]]''.{{sfn|Sprengelmeyer|2014}}

The genus name ''Gavia'' comes from the [[Latin]] for "sea mew", as used by ancient Roman naturalist [[Pliny the Elder]].{{sfn|Johnsgard|1987|p=265}} The [[specific name (zoology)|specific epithet]] ''stellata'' is Latin for "set with stars" or "starry",{{sfn|Simpson|1979|p=883}} and refers to the bird's speckled back in its non-breeding [[plumage]].{{sfn|Johnsgard|1987|p=265}} Members of the family [[Gavidae]] are known as ''loons'' in North America and ''divers'' in Great Britain and Ireland.{{sfn|Cocker|Mabey|2005|p=4}} The [[International Ornithological Congress]] uses the name ''red-throated loon'' for this species.<ref name = "IOC"/> "Diver" refers to the family's underwater method of hunting for prey, while "red-throated" is a straightforward reference to the bird's most distinctive breeding plumage feature. The word "loon" is thought to have derived from the [[Swedish language|Swedish]] {{lang|sv|lom}}, the [[Old Norse]] or [[Icelandic language|Icelandic]] {{lang|is|lómr}}, or the [[Old Dutch]] {{lang|odt|loen}}, all of which mean "lame" or "clumsy", and is a probable reference to the difficulty that all loons have in moving about on land.{{sfn|Carboneras|1992|p=169}} A local name from Willapa Harbor, Washington, was ''Quaker loon''.{{sfn|M'Atee|1917}}