Monthly Archives: December 2013

Dec 31, visitors, octopus

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overcast, wind light.

Chris came out in the morning with a group of 8 visitors.

Several octopus encounters today: there was an octopus near jetty as the guests were leaving, I heard a fisherman on the radio talking about having caught an octopus, and in the evening I came a across a small octopus in a tide pool at a very low (0.1 meter) tide.

1 ecotour and 1 recreation boat in the reserve today

-tidy engine room and house for visitors
-did a maintenance tour with Chris
-cut, chopped, stacked wood
-checked battery water level
-fuel inventory for month end report
-started preparing month end report

December 2013 Seawater Data

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Fisheries and Ocean Institute of Ocean Sciences
Daily Seawater Temperature and Density Record Shore Station
Time Zone: PDT
Station Race  Rocks  Lightstation
Month: December Year: 2013
Observer Lester B. Pearson  College  of  the  Pacific
Date Time Sea
Temp.
°C		 Jar
Temp.
°C		 Hydro-  meter   No. Observed Density YSI Salinity YSI Temp °C
1 10:05 31.1 8.5
2 10:40 31.5 8.1
3 11:03 31.6 7.9
4 11:58 31.5 7.8
5 NA NA NA
6 14:00 31.7 7.6
7 7:50 31.6 7.4
8 7:40 31.2 7.3
9 8:00 31.8 7.5
10 8:20 31.8 7.5
11 9:00 31.5 7.6
12 10:00 31.3 7.5
13 10:00 31.3 7.7
14 10:30 31.3 7.8
15 10:40 31.3 7.9
16 12:00 31.4 7.9
17 11:00 31.5 7.8
18 11:30 31.5 7.8
19 12:05 31.5 7.6
20 12:30 31.4 7.6
21 7:50 31.5 7.6
22 8:00 31.5 7.7
23 7:30 31.4 7.7
24 8:30 31.6 7.5
25 8:00 31.6 7.5
26 8:00 31.5 7.6
27 8:20 31.2 7.6
28 8:30 31.4 7.5
29 9:00 31.4 7.6
30 9:30 31.3 7.7
31 10:00 31.4 7.7
Mean*                * #DIV/0! #DIV/0! #DIV/0! 31.4533 7.6833
Recorded by Race Rocks Marine Protected Area Guardian

Dec 29

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Wind light, overcast.

2 ecotour vessels in the reserve today

There is a sea lion on the East bay of the island that has some kind of neck injury. It is usually higher up in the rocks and isolated from other sea lions. It’s neck is swollen on one side and fur is moist/matted, some blood is visible. It has been there for several days now. Though it does go into the water occasionally it is mainly stationary.

-cleaned solar panels
-replaced burnt out florescent tube lights in boat house, work room, engine room
-measured and photographed fuel lines on generator for replacement
-cut, chopped, stacked fire wood
-sharpened tools
-ran chain saw

Sea Lion Notes from Race Rocks

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ER Warden’s Report by G. Fletcher.

On December 28, 2013  I was out at Race Rocks doing the Christmas Bird Count. While there I made several observations concerning the Northern and California Sea lions. There are only a few California sea lions left after the heavy influx of the fall. The number of Northerns on the South island is still fairly high ( over 100)

sealionhouse On the  November 28 log there were still 479 Stellars and 555 Californias. This image taken in the fall, shows how much they came up near the houses where there wasn’t an electric fence to repel them:

The vegetation of the areas on both sides of the island were heavily impacted by the sea lions this fall.  In the following images those areas that are now brown are  normally green.

sealionhauloutarea

North East of Ecoguardian’s residence

2013-12-28sealionsoilm

South of the Marine Education House

I observed from the tower an unusual behaviour shown in the image below. It is not unusual in that the California Sea Lions are rafting. What is unusual is that Northern sea lions flank them on both sides without having their fins raised out of the water.

2013-12-28raftsealionm

Be sure to click for a large image of sea lion rafting

 

Christmas Bird Count

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Overcast, wind light.

I went off island in the morning and dropped two visitors off at Pedder Bay. At 0930 I Picked up Garry Fletcher and local bird expert, Val George for the annual Christmas bird count. We traveled, slowly, out Pedder Bay through Bentinck Channel and across to Race Rocks, going between Middle Rock and West Rock. Val and Garry did a count from the top of the tower. I brought them back to Pearson College around 1300.

There was a relatively high number of sports fishing boats out today, a factor of good weather and the holidays. In the waters between Albert Head and Beechy Head there were 35 boats, 3 of which were underway (not fishing). We count the boats daily for the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. This was the highest count I have recorded this month.

I returned to RR around 1630 on a fairly low tide so got to test the new boat dolly at the bottom of the ramp. It did still stop once on the curve going down the ramp but was way better than previously. Mounting the boat on the dolly was easier and faster than before too. the rails at the bottom of the ramp were a bit overgrown, will try to clean it on a low tide.

-cleaned solar panels

Christmas Bird Count at RR 2013

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Also-Warden’s Report for Dec 28, 2013.
Link to the Index for the past records of the Christmas Bird Counts

2013-12-28songsavan

Song Sparow on the left and Savannah Sparrow on the right of this lichen covered log on the West side of Great race Rocks..

Ecoguardian Alex Fletcher picked up Val George and myself from the Pearson College docks mid- morning and we started our count by water in Pedder Bay, then across Rocky Point, through Eemdyck Channel and then across Race Passage to Race Rocks via West Rocks and Middle Rocks. The following includes only the Race Rocks portion of the census:

Observers:  Val George, Garry Fletcher and Alex Fletcher

2013  Christmas Bird Count – Summary      Date ___Dec28___Area or Sub-Area__Race Rocks Ecological Reserve__
Observers (in field)—3 Leader Garry Fletcher
Temp—-6 Wind NE,  3.5km Time Start__10:30___a.m.   Finish___12:00__a.m.
A.M. Clear,calm partly cloudy Moving water open ocean around
for your entire count team # hours (on foot) 1.5 distance (on foot) .35km, and top of tower
Northwestern Crow 2
Common Raven 2
Thayer’s Gull 200
Canada Goose 6
Black Oystercatcher 30
Black Turnstone 14
Harlequin Duck 10
Bufflehead 8
 Song Sparrow 1
Savannah Sparrow 1
Glaucous-winged Gull 20
 Common Murre 4
Pacific Loon 2
Common Loon 1
Brandt’s Cormorant 80
Double-crested Cormorant 120
Pelagic Cormorant 17
Bald Eagle  (adult) 1
Bald Eagle
(immature		 7
Total Number of Birds 528
Total Number of Species 17

Dec 27 Westerly

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The wind picked up right around noon reaching up to 35 NMPH from the West with an average speed around 30 NMPH throughout the afternoon and into the evening.

One ecotour vessel was in the reserve.

-worked on trying to fine tune boat house door, unsuccessful.
-cut, chopped, stacked fire wood, successful.
-cleaned solar panels
-fuelled up station whaler
-replaced corroded hose clamp on whaler fuel line

Westerly, speeding, visitors

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Monday a west wind picked up over night and was blowing over 20 knots most of the day with gusts over 40 knots.  The wind diminished over night and was calm on Tuesday.  I had been planning on picking up some guests Monday but it was too windy so rescheduled for Tuesday morning. Tuesday was partly sunny and today there has been a light N wind and partly cloudy sky. I went off island today for a short christmas visit with family.

On Tuesday a private sports fishing boat traveled through the reserve well in excess of the 7knot speed limit (within 400m of rocks). I signalled to the boat to slow down, they saw me and slowed down but not enough. I photographed the boat and got ID numbers and made a request to Pedder Bay Marina to check if it was a boat returning to their marina and if they could speak to the operator about the speed limit in the reserve.

On Sunday Chunk left great race and returned to Middle rock. There has been one moulting female elephant seal hauled out in the rocks in south bay.

-cut fire wood
-pulled in log from water
-cleaned solar panels
-2 visitors (arrived Tuesday)

Photos from the past of couple weeks

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