Tringa melanoleuca: Greater Yellowlegs , The Race Rocks Taxonomy


Tringa melanoleuca at Race Rocks Photo R. Murphy
Although this species was first photographed at Race Rocks in 2009, it is a relatively common shorebird that occurs in large numbers when migrating through this area from March to May. Their breeding habitat is bogs and marshes in the boreal forest region of Canada and Alaska, nesting on the ground, in well-hidden locations near water. ( Wikipedia)

David Allinson of the Rocky Point Bird Observatory comments :”This is a moulting into breeding Greater Yellowlegs . Note the legs look pretty yellow to me (but at this time of year and in certain light they can look orangeish). Lots of both Tringa’s are moving through our area right now…(For Greater Yellowlegs, listen for their loud ‘tiew, tiew, tiew’ calls, esp. when in flight…but Lesser’s should be fairly uncommon out there… (they prefer mudflats over rocks; whereas Greater’s can be seen on either).

Domain Eukarya
Kingdom Animalia
Phylum Chordata
Subphylum Vertebrata
Class Aves
Order Charadriiformes
Family Scolopacidae
Genus Tringa
Species melanoleuca
(Gmelin, 1789)
Common Name: Greater Yellowlegs

Other Members of the Class Aves at Race Rocks.

taxonomyiconReturn to the Race Rocks Taxonomy
and Image File
April 2009 Ryan Murphy

Ninene the Elephant Seal pup Returns to Vancouver Island April 15, 2009

Ninene on Taylor Beach

Ninene starts back up the shore on Taylor Beach to the dry sand.

Ninene on Taylor Beach

She is now 2 and a half months old.

What a pleasant surprize to see little Ninene this afternoon down in front of my home on Taylor Beach on Southern Vancouver Island. She has come through a load of problems and remarkably has made it this far. She was born on Race Rocks on January 30, 2009. Was weaned four weeks later when her mother left, was then badly beaten up by a young aggressive male, who was then driven off by Slash an older male, possibly her father, then she stayed on Race Rocks alone until March 30 without feeding, She then left Race Rocks on March 30, and arrived in Port Angeles on April 7, was moved from downtown to Ediz Hook Coastguard station. and then disappeared the next day. She showed up at 2 and a half months age on Taylor Beach in Metchosin , Southern Vancouver Island. In the past few weeks has traveled well over 50 kilometres.

Ninene on Taylor Beach

At 4:00 on the afternoon of April 15 2009 Garry is walking his dog and discovers that Ninene has arrived back in Canada

Ninene on Taylor Beach

She has been on the sandy part of Taylor beach , has just gone to the water to get cooled off …

Ninene on Taylor Beach

Looking much better than when we last saw her..

Ninene on Taylor Beach

She now only has to contend with humans and their dogs.

Tags on Ninene

The tags were added in Port Angeles by NOAA which has jurisdiction in the US over whales,dolphins,porpoises,seals and sea lions.

Path from ocean

She rests high up on the beach at the top end of the trail in the sand.

Tags on Ninene

Close up of tags on both sides of her rear flippers.

Baby Elephant seal on Taylor beach

The first elephant seal born in Canada lies near the Sir James Douglas rock on taylor beach. William Head is in the distance and behind it is Race Rocks.

nine scratches scar tissue

Nine scratching scar tissue
on her healing wounds. See the video linked here for an action shot.

Video of Ninene

Video of her on the beach April 15, 2009

When she was banded and observed in Washington, several researchers there believed that Ninene did not gain as much weight with her mother as she should have, so she is considered to be underweight for her age. So at this point she still is in a vulnerable situation and we hope she is able to forage well and put on more weight very soon. Ninene stayed only for the day and night. Hse was gone the next day, and we have never seen her since (as of 2014)

 

Baby Elephant seal born at Race Rocks