Daily Archives: Thursday,December 15, 2005

Acrosiphonia coalita: The Race Rocks Taxonomy

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chloro3 copy

The fine filamentous green algae <i>Acrosiphonia sp.</i> photo by Ryan Murphy

Classification :
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Viridiplantae
Phylum: Chlorophyta
Class: Ulvophyceae
Order: Acrosiphoniales
Genus: Acrosiphonia
Species: coalita

taxonomyiconReturn to the Race Rocks Taxonomy and Image File
pearsonlogo2_f2The Race Rocks taxonomy is a collaborative venture originally started with the Biology and Environmental Systems students of Lester Pearson College UWC. It now also has contributions added by Faculty, Staff, Volunteers and Observers on the remote control webcams. Dec 2005–Ryan Murphy

 

Hirundo rustica: Barn Swallow

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UPDATE 2023 Derek Sterling has taken some excellent photos and written about the return of barn Swallows to Race rocks

This video shows the barn swallow fledglings in their nest.

June, 2005: the adult birds were observed going in and out of the vents on the north side of the water desalinator building on Race Rocks.

June-July 2006: This nest was built of mud, lined with goose and gull feathers under the concrete stairway of the Marine Science Centre. (Tis structure was replaced with a wooden staircase in 2020) On July 4, they were seen to be flying in and out of the opening frequently. Barn swallows are frequent nesters in rural areas all throughout western Canada. They choose a nesting site always located in an assured dry location.Frequently this is an out-building on a farm with an open door or window. They have excellent aerodynamic  maneuvering control as they fly quickly over open areas catching insects with a wide opening mouth. They are valued for their voracious appetite for mosquitoes and flies. With their food being flying insects, the island certainly provides an abundant supply of the kelp fly Coelopa vanduzeei

These pictures were taken of a newly-fledged family on a balcony in nearby Metchosin. The juvenile birds were waiting to be fed

An interesting question was posed by someone recently. Since swallows fly from the brightly lit outside rapidly into a dark building, do they have a specially evolved vision system for rapid dark adaptation? We know that bats do this with their echolocation system, but birds don’t have that ability.

Domain: Eukarya
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Sub-phylum: Vertebrata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Hirundinidae
Genus: Hirundo
Species: rustica
Common Name:Barn swallow

Physical Description:
The barn swallow is the only one of its family with a deeply forked tail. It can be identified by its rusty under parts and orange rump as well as a dark orange forehead and throat. Like all swallows, it is a strong and elegant flyer. Its legs and bill are short, but it has a wide mouth for capturing insects. These birds are generally around 15 cm in length.


Habitat:
True to its name, the barn swallow is common near farms. It builds a nest of mud on the timbers of barns and other such buildings. It commonly inhabits caves and areas

underneath bridges. Barn swallows are migratory birds, and fly south from North America to South America for the winter.

Reproduction:
The length of incubation for barn swallow eggs is 13 to 17 days. They lay in open-cup nests made of mud pellets and grass. The eggs are speckled and nesting begins in the second half of May. If the pair of swallows is successful, two broods are raised each year.

Feeding Habits:
This swallow feeds exclusively on insects. Hunting typically takes place on or close to ground level. However, on summer afternoons, they can be seen flying high in the air. The barn swallow simply follows the desired insects and catches them in flight.

Global Distribution:
The barn swallow can be found in almost all parts of Canada and the USA. It typically inhabits every continent except Australia. It is a resident of rural areas, and populations are most heavily concentrated in southern Texas and central USA.

Predators:
Predators are most commonly cats and raccoons. When a predator approaches, the entire colony will launch an attack in a display of aerial acrobatics.

Interesting Fact:
The barn swallow’s song is long and twittering. They are commonly known to perch on wires and are often seen in large, mixed flocks.

References:
. Brunn, B. C.S. Robbins, Singer and H.S. Zim. 1966. A Guide to Field Identification, Birds of North America. Golden Press. New York, NY.
. http://www.americanartifacts.com/smma/per/b4.htm
. http://www.museum.gov.ns.ca/mnh/nature/msbirds/bns0261.htm

 

Other Members of the Class Aves at Race Rocks 
taxonomyiconReturn to the Race Rocks Taxonomy
and Image File
pearsonlogo2_f2The Race Rocks taxonomy is a collaborative venture originally started with the Biology and Environmental Systems students of Lester Pearson College UWC. It now also has contributions added by Faculty, Staff, Volunteers and Observers on the remote control webcams.

December 2005-  Chelsea Howard, Nfld. year( PC year 32)

Ulva lactuca

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ulvaporphyra

Ulva lactuca images by Ryan Murphy

Description: This plant is light to dark green, erect, lanceolate to broadly ovate, often ruffled along the margins, 18-60 cm. high; at times irregularly split into broad lobes, tapering abruptly near the base to a short stipitate region and a small discoid holdfast of rhizoidal cells.

Habitat:  On rocks and epiphytic on other algae in the upper intertidal zone; often floating on mud flats in the lower intertidal zone in quiet bays and lagoons.

Pacific Coast Distribution: Bering Sea to Chile.

Robert Scagel, 1972
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Chlorophyta
Class: Ulvophyceae
Order: Ulvales
Family: Ulvaceae
Genus: Ulva
Species: U. lactuca
Ulva lactuca
Linnaeus, 1753

taxonomyiconReturn to the Race Rocks Taxonomy and Image File
pearsonlogo2_f2The Race Rocks taxonomy is a collaborative venture originally started with the Biology and Environmental Systems students of Lester Pearson College UWC. It now also has contributions added by Faculty, Staff, Volunteers and Observers on the remote control webcams. Dec 2005-Ryan Murphy

 

Cymathere triplicata: The Race Rocks Taxonomy

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ctriplicata2Description: This blade-like plant is yellowish brown, with a linear undivided blade up to 4 m. long and 18 cm. wide; the blade is thick and rigid below, thinner above; three to five prominent longitudinal folds run the full length of the blade. The base of the blade tapers (or is broadly rounded) to a stipe that is up to 25 cm. long, flattened above and cylindrical below, where it terminates in a prominent discoid holdfast.

Habitat:           On rocks in the upper subtidal zones.
Pacific Coast Distribution:           Bering Sea to Washington.
Robert Scagel, 1972

Classification:

Eukarya
Phylum: Phaeophyta
Class: Phaeophyceae
Order: Laminariales
Family: Laminariaceae
Cymathere triplicata (Postels and Ruprecht) J. Agardh
Common name -three-ribbed kelp

There is a publication called “Seaweed-assisted, benthic gravel transport by tidal currents” which  has shown the role of Phaeophytes like this in depositing rocks and gravels on beaches.   An example of this can be seen in this posts on the MetchosinCoastal  website. ( To be added)

See all Phaeophytes in the Race Rocks Taxonomy

taxonomyiconReturn to the Race Rocks Taxonomy and Image File
pearsonlogo2_f2The Race Rocks taxonomy is a collaborative venture originally started with the Biology and Environmental Systems students of Lester Pearson College UWC. It now also has contributions added by Faculty, Staff, Volunteers and Observers on the remote control webcams. Ryan Murphy PC yr 26

 

Enteromorpha intestinalis:

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pprasiolameridionalis

Moist Enteromorpha . intestinalis on the Race Rocks slipway-photo by Ryan Murphy

 Description: This plant is green in colour, elongate, usually unbranched and tubular, sometimes occurring singly but usually in tufts or dense stands.

Habitat: On rocks and epiphytic on other algae in the upper intertidal zone; often in somewhat brackish water.

Pacific Coast Distribution: Alaska to Mexico.

Robert Scagel, 1972

Phylum: Chlorophyta
Class: Chlorophyceae
Order: Ulvales
Family: Ulvaceae
Enteromorpha intestinalis (L.) Link

greenalg

Dried E. intestinalis on the Race Rocks slipway photo by Ryan Murphy

taxonomyiconReturn to the Race Rocks Taxonomy and Image File
pearsonlogo2_f2The Race Rocks taxonomy is a collaborative venture originally started with the Biology and Environmental Systems students of Lester Pearson College UWC. It now also has contributions added by Faculty, Staff, Volunteers and Observers on the remote control webcams. Dec 2005- Ryan Murphy

 

Cladophora flexuosa:: Race Rocks Taxonomy.

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cladomorpha-1

Cladophora flexuosa  in the intertidal zone — photo by Ryan Murphy

Description: The plant is light green in colour, filamentous, erect, 5-20 cm. high, and profusely branched. The filamentous branches are uniseriate, with elongate cells, 4-6 times as long as broad. The branches taper at the ends to a subacute apex; the branching habit is alternate, with the ultimate branchlets being only a few cells in length. The plant is attached to the substrate by means of a short, basal, simple or branched rhizoidal filaments.
Habitat: In rock pools in the lower intertidal zone.
Pacific Coast Distribution: Alaska to California
Robert Scagel, 1972

Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Chlorophyta
Class: Ulvophyceae
Order: Cladophorales
Family: Cladophoraceae
Genus: Cladophora
Species: flexuosa (Kütz., 1843)

unk2

Cladophora flexuosa amongst the Californianus sp mussels

taxonomyiconReturn to the Race Rocks Taxonomy and Image File
pearsonlogo2_f2The Race Rocks taxonomy is a collaborative venture originally started with the Biology and Environmental Systems students of Lester Pearson College UWC. It now also has contributions added by Faculty, Staff, Volunteers and Observers on the remote control webcams. Dec 2001–Ryan Murphy

 

Cystoseira geminata

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cgeminataccali

A branch of Cystocera geminata shown by Joe Downham –photos by Ryan Murphy

cgeminata

C.geminata sub-tidally at Race Rocks

Cystoseira geminata
Description: This plant is profusely branched, yellowish brown to dark brown in colour, reaching a height of 2-5 m. The plant is fastened to the substrate by a stout discoid holdfast.           A short, terete stipe arises from the holdfast. This stipe is soon dissected into a number of stout radially arranged primary branches, which in turn bear long filiform secondary branches.         The long filiform branches produce shorter alternately arranged tertiary branchlets. Near the base these tertiary branchlets undergo a few divisions, become markedly flattened and leaf-like, and give the basal region of the plant the appearance of a fern frond. These flattened branches are short, lanceolate in shape, with smooth margins, and are ribless.           The ultimate branchlets have inflations, or air vesicles, borne singly or in pairs or chains.

Habitat:           On rocks in the lower intertidal and upper subtidal zones.

Pacific Coast Distribution:           Bering Sea to Washington.
Robert Scagel, 1972

Scientific classification
Kingdom: Chromalveolata
Phylum: Heterokontophyta
Class: Phaeophyceae
Order: Fucales
Family: Fucaceae
Genus: Cystoseira geminata (L.) C.Agardh, 1820 [1]

taxonomyiconReturn to the Race Rocks Taxonomy and Image File
pearsonlogo2_f2The Race Rocks taxonomy is a collaborative venture originally started with the Biology and Environmental Systems students of Lester Pearson College UWC. It now also has contributions added by Faculty, Staff, Volunteers and Observers on the remote control webcams. Ryan Murphy, PC Year 26

 

Alaria marginata: drilly kelp–The Race Rocks Taxonomy

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amarginataAlaria marginata is recognized because the sporophyll length is less than 5 times its width, and its found in the lower intertidal and subtidal regions from Alaska to Monterey, California. In Race Rocks area, Alaria marginata‘s habitat is the north area of the island. Its located at 0 level tide (rocky intertidal or low tide zone). Its long stipes are usually destroyed by the waves pushing the kelp against the rocks. The broken pieces desintegrate in the sea water. Alaria tends to out-compete in areas of high- wave action. In summer time, when the tide is considerably low, and the sun is too harsh for the organisms that are living in tidepools, the life of these pools migrates down, and hides under the  Alaria marginata kelp. The kelp protects these organisms. The reproductive sporophytes are low on the blade. They contain a chemical that discourages gazing.One of the uses for this kelp is to harvest it and sell it for food. People eat it with salads, or cooked. Alaria marginata is one of the seven species which represent the winged kelp Alaria (Latin: wing) in this area. Each species consists of a branched holdfast that gives rise to a stipe up to 60 cm. long but usually less than 30cm. Arranged along the upper third of the stipe are two rows of sporophylls of various sizes .

and shapes. Alaria marginata is from 2 – 3 metres or -10 feet long.
Classification:
Domain: Eukarya
Kingdom: Protista
Division: Phaeophyta
Order: Laminariales
Family: Alariceae
Genus: Alaria
Species: marginata
Common Name: Short stipe alaria or drilly kelp
Other Phaeophytes or Brown Algae at Race Rocks

taxonomyiconReturn to the Race Rocks Taxonomy and Image File
pearsonlogo2_f2The Race Rocks taxonomy is a collaborative venture originally started with the Biology and Environmental Systems students of Lester Pearson College UWC. It now also has contributions added by Faculty, Staff, Volunteers and Observers on the remote control webcams. Constanza Holzapfel Dec.12, 2002

 

Oncorhynchus keta: Chum salmon –The Race Rocks Taxonomy

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Dead Chum Salmon after egg and sperm removal for the Salmon Enhancement Program at Pearson College- in the 1980s

environmental systems students at the chum salmon incubation box

Ivan from Pearson College Assisting the Volunteer members of the Sooke Salmon enhancement group

DESCRIPTION: Ocean fresh chum salmon are metallic greenish-blue on the dorsal surface (top) with fine black speckles. They are difficult to distinguish from Sockeye and Coho salmon without examining their gills or caudal fin scale patterns. Chums have fewer but larger gill rakers than other salmon. After nearing fresh water, however, the chum salmon changes colour – particularly noticeable are vertical bars of green and purple, which give them the common name, calico salmon. The males develop the typical hooked snout of Pacific salmon and very large teeth which partially account for their other name of dog salmon. The females have a dark horizontal band along the lateral line; their green and purple vertical bars are not so obvious. A mature adult chum is usually about 65 cm in length and 4.5 kg (10 pounds) in weight. The females are generally smaller than the males.
DISTRIBUTION: Chum salmon are probably the second most abundant of the Pacific salmon (behind pinks) and have the widest distribution of this group. They are found from Japan and Korea northward to the Laptev Sea (northern Siberia) and Beaufort Sea (northern Alaska) and southward to San Diego, southern California. DNA analyses indicate that there are three main population groupings: 1) Japanese, 2) Russian – Yukon River and 3) southeastern Alaska – British Columbia. These may reflect the areas of refuge for this species during the last glaciation.
Domain Eukarya
Kingdom Animalia
Phylum Chordata
Subphylum Vertebrata
Class Actinopterygii
Order Salmoniformes
Family Salmonidae
Genus Oncorhynchus
Species keta (Walbaum, 1792)
Common Name: chum salmon

HABITAT: Research indicates that streams, coastal wetlands and estuaries are important habitats for chum salmon. Stream quality is critical to the initial survival of the species. Eggs are laid in medium size gravel and need good water flow (to supply oxygen) to survive. Most chum mortality occurs in freshwater as a result of poor environmental conditions, like siltation, gravel disruptions and changes in water temperature. Coastal wetlands and estuaries are vital habitat for chum salmon which spend several months in residence before migrating out to sea.

FEEDING: Chum salmon feeds on squid, plankton, crustaceans, crab larvae and fish while at sea. They will stop feeding once the spawning run starts and they enter fresh water.

PREDATORS: The most important predators are: bears, birds and fishes. Gulls and other birds aggregate at river-mouths during the season of chum salmon for feeding with chum salmon.

REPRODUCTION: Chum salmon’s life cycle is a typical anadromous life cycle. Their average life span is four years but some may reach six years. Reproduction takes place in small river channels, chum salmon are typically shallow spawners. Female fish rapidly pump their tails to wash out a depression in the stream gravels. As she deposits her eggs, they are fertilized by the male. . The female salmon then uses the same tail movements to completely cover the eggs with the gravel.
On average, a female chum salmon can lay up to 4000 eggs, but only 70% or so are fertilized. After the reproduction the male and female chum salmon die in the stream, it is the cycle of their life.
ONE INTERESTING FACT:
* During ocean migration, salmon travel distances as great as 35 miles per day, and, once in their home river, may swim over 10 miles upstream each day. Chum usually spawn in their 3rd, 4th, or 5th year and is the last of the Pacific salmon to return to their natal streams. So their life cycle is they have to be born and die in the same place (stream).
* ‘Chum’ comes from a word meaning ‘variegated coloration’ in the native language and chum salmon have a different coloration (from other salmon species) that is variegated.

REFERENCE:
Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
http://www.fishtrek.com/salmon/chum-salmon.htm
www.google.com
chum salmon Fishing Holidays.htm
ESPN Outdoors — Tips & Techniques.htm
Fishing & Processing.htm
M010003.htm
The Chum Salmon Great Canadian Rivers.htm
WDFW — Chum Salmon Chum Salmon Life History.htm
Wild Pacific Salmon Overview.htm
Yukon River Panel -.htm

 

Andy Lamb and Phil Edgell: “Coastal fishes of the Pacific Northwest”

                  J.L Hart: “Pacific fishes of Canada”

 

Other Members of the Class Actinopterygii at Race Rocks
taxonomyiconReturn to the Race Rocks Taxonomy
and Image File
pearsonlogo2_f2The Race Rocks taxonomy is a collaborative venture originally started with the Biology and Environmental Systems students of Lester Pearson College UWC. It now also has contributions added by Faculty, Staff, Volunteers and Observers on the remote control webcams.

Name: Cinthia Ibeth Isla Marin, Peru, Year 32 (PC)

Oncorhynchus kisutch: Coho Salmon- The Race Rocks taxonomy

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Physical Description:
At sea, they are coloured metallic blue on back, with silvery sides. Also have irregular black spots on back, upper fin and lower dorsal fin. Gums are white at base of teeth and fins are tipped with orange.
Maturing males in fresh water will have bright red sides, with their head and back coloured bright green, and often dark on their bellies. Females are less brightly coloured, with bronze to maroon coloured sides.
Fry is orange with dark spots concentrated on back and fins.
Can also be identified by their “hook-nose” jaws; their upper jaw hooks down slightly towards the lower jaw.
Coho salmon can grow to be a length of 79cm and weigh 14kg.Global Distribution:
Coho salmon spawn in coastal streams from Northern Japan to the Anadyr River in Siberia, and from Monterey Bay in California to Point Hope in Alaska. They can be found at sea from Japan and Korea to the Chukchi Sea and southeastward to Baja, California. They have a center of abundance between Oregon and southern Alaska.
Humans have introduced Coho salmon to the Great Lakes with enormous success. Attempts to introduce them to the Atlantic coast of North America between 1901 and 1948 failed miserably.

Habitat:
Coho salmon are extremely adaptable; they occur in nearly all accessible bodies of fresh water and utilize nearshore and offshore environments during lifecycle. However, they prefer to stay close to shore to avoid predators and will not be found deeper than 30m.
Coho salmon will not be found in temperatures lower than 6.5°C or higher than 21°C, and those that live off of the southern United States have been known to migrate north as the temperature rises.
Coho salmon prefer to spawn in streams with low velocity, shallow water and small gravel. Most Coho fry stay in the stream where they are born for a over a year in schools that are located in quiet areas free of current.

Reproduction:
Coho salmon, like all salmon, are anadromous fish, which means that they spend most of their life feeding at sea, but return to fresh water to breed (and always return to the same place where they were born and lived as fry). Coho salmon are also oviparous, which means that they reproduce by the female laying eggs and the male fertilizing them after they leave the female’s body.
Because of the large spread distribution, spawning occurs over a very large period (between October and March). Generally, more southern spawning occurs later during this time period. More specifically, spawning in British Columbia occurs in October and November. The closest spawning river to Race Rocks is the Goldstream river just north-west of Victoria.Spawning occurs at night. A female will dig a nest, called a redd, and deposit an average of 2 400 to 4 600 eggs (but up to 7 600). The male will fertilize the eggs as she lays them. A female can make several redds, and usually deposits all of her eggs between them.
The eggs develop during winter and hatch into larvae in early spring. The warmer the temperatures, the faster the eggs develop. After hatching, the larvae stay under the gravel for a few weeks and then emerge as fry.
The spring following this, they will start their journey towards the sea. Females and some males will return to spawn after three years. Most males (known as jacks) will return after two years to mate.
Coho salmon die 3-24 days after mating.

Feeding:
As larvae, they feed off of their yolk (which is still attached to them). They do not emerge from the gravel as fry until this source of nourishment has run out. It is then that they start eating aquatic insects, zooplankton, small fishes, and the remaining carcasses of the salmon that died after spawning.
At sea, Coho salmon feed on fishes like herrings, anchovies, sand lances and rockfishes, and invertebrates such as krill and squid.
Coho salmon only feed during the day.

Predators:
Humans are a Coho salmon’s biggest threat. They are considered prize sport fish because of the ‘memorable’ fight that they put up, and make up for half of the recreational salmon catch in British Columbia. Coho salmon have also developed a reputation for being particularly tasty, making them the perfect victim of the commercial fishing industry. It is estimated that the Coho population off of California is 6% of what it was in the 1940s due to the fishing industry. And British Columbia still ‘wins’ for the highest catch per year in North America!
In addition to humans, Coho salmon are eaten by some larger fishes, as well marine mammals like seals, orcas and white-sided dolphins.

Interesting fact:
All salmon undergo smoltification upon entry to the sea in order to live in sea water. This process works both backwards and forwards: it allows them to leave the sea for fresh water, and to leave fresh water for the sea.
However, some Coho salmon have been known to live in fresh water their whole lives, and these freaks of nature are known as residuals.

Domain Eukarya
Kingdom Animalia
Phylum Chordata
Subphylum Vertebrata
Class Actinopterygii
Order Salmoniformes
Family Salmonidae
Genus Oncorhynchus
Species kisutch
Common Name: coho salmon

Resources:

1. Coho Salmon Facts. 1996. Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission. November 11, 2005. http://www.psmfc.org/habitat.edu_Coho_facts.html
2. Coho Salmon: Wildlife Notebook Series. 1994. Alaska Department of Fish & Game. November 11, 2005. http://www.adfg.state.ak.us/pubs/notebook.fish.Coho.php
3. Deutsch, A. Coho Explained. 2005. Pacific Coast Salmon Coalition. November 11, 2005. http://www.Cohosalmon.com/Coho_explained.htm
4. Hart, J.L. Pacific Fishes of Canada. Ottawa, ON: Information Canada, 1973.
5. Love, Milton. Probably More Than You Want to Know About the Fishes of the Pacific Coast. Santa Barbara, CA: Really Big Press, 1996.

References: Andy Lamb and Phil Edgell: “Coastal fishes of the Pacific Northwest”

                  J.L Hart: “Pacific fishes of Canada”

Other Members of the Class Actimnopterygii at Race Rocks 
taxonomyiconReturn to the Race Rocks Taxonomy
and Image File
pearsonlogo2_f2The Race Rocks taxonomy is a collaborative venture originally started with the Biology and Environmental Systems students of Lester Pearson College UWC. It now also has contributions added by Faculty, Staff, Volunteers and Observers on the remote control webcams.

 Name: Amanda Judd, OntarioYear 32