13 | December | 2014 | Race Rocks Ecological Reserve-

: kingfisher in the morning

: bald eagles on West Rock

: cormorant landing

: cormorants on east side of great race

: Banded cormorant KCO- (See note below)

: Double Crested cormorant

: Brant’s cormorants

: Brant’s cormorants

: Cormorants “stare down?” a tanker

: These tanker images join our gallery of such risks

Atmospheric pressure rose to a high of over 1020 h Pa today. The NE wind has started to return, 10 to 20 knots most of the day.

One whale watching boat and one dive boat in reserve today.

Thursday the weather/visibility was pretty bad for a census and on Friday I went off island so I did a makeup census on Saturday.

Notably: there was a high count of cormorants, 520, compared to last week as well a yellow banded individual (KCO)- details documented on next post. There was a high number of bald eagles (20) in reserve, and a lone kingfisher and pelican again in the reserve. While there have been over 40 black oyster catchers here this week there were none observed today.

Harvested driftwood including a good size fir log I tied up at high tide and bucked and chopped once the tide had fallen. Worked on toilet install and hammer drilling for plaque install.

Census:

California Sea lions: 38
Northern Sea Lions: 222
Harbour Seals: 5
Elephant Seals: 6
Cormorants: 520
Canada Geese: 2
Gulls: 680 mostly Thayer’s)
Bald Eagle: 20
Harlequin Ducks: 5
Black Turnstone: 2
Dunlin: 3
Sparrow: 0
Kingfisher: 1

Pelican:1

Double-Crested Cormorant photo by Ecoguardian Alex Fletcher

Note on banded cormorant:
The bird (KC0) was banded as an adult at a breeding colony on East Sand Island in the Columbia River estuary (near Astoria, OR) in May 2013 by the group, Bird Research Northwest (http://www.birdresearchnw.org). They banded the bird as part of their study on movement and demography of the species. (There is a large DCCO colony there and some think authorities are trying to destroy it as the corms are eating all the fish that are trying to get up the river. See
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/11/141118-shooting-cormorants-columbia-river-salmon-endangered-species-environment/)

On Dec . 30, 2014 the following details were sent to us after we reported it to the
The North American Bird Banding Program

Banding Data returned after reporting:
Band Number :1128-01387 KC0
Species: Double-Crested Cormorant
Age of Bird : Hatched in 2011 or earlier
Banded : 05/31/2013 Sex Unknown
Location: East Sand Island, 2.4 KM West-Southwest of Chinook, WA, Clatsop county , Oregon USA (Coordinates: LAT: 46.25833; LON: -123.975 )
Bander Dr. Daniel D. Roby Oregon Cooperative WRU Oregon State University 104 Nasgh Hall Corvallis OR 97331 3803
Encounter Data
Location 2 mi SSE of Rocky Point, British Columbia, Canada
Encountered 12/13/2014
Desc: Race Rocks Ecological Reserve

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Info from : BandReports@usgs.gov

The North American Bird Banding Program
Bird banding is important for studying the movement, survival and behavior of birds. About 60 million birds representing hundreds of species have been banded in North America since 1904. About 4 million bands have been recovered and reported.

Data from banded birds are used in monitoring populations, setting hunting regulations, restoring endangered species, studying effects of environmental contaminants, and addressing such issues as Avian Influenza, bird hazards at airports, and crop depredations. Results from banding studies support national and international bird conservation programs such as Partners in Flight, the North American Waterfowl Management Plan, and Wetlands for the Americas. The North American Bird Banding Program is under the general direction of the U.S. Geological Survey and the Canadian Wildlife Service. Cooperators include the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Mexico’s National Commission for the Knowledge and Use of Biodiversity and Secretary of the Environment and Natural Resources; other federal, state and provincial conservation agencies; universities; amateur ornithologists; bird observatories; nature centers; nongovernmental organizations such as Ducks Unlimited and the National Audubon Society; environmental consulting firms and other private sector businesses. However, the most important partner in this cooperative venture is you, the person who voluntarily reported a recovered band. Thank you for your help.

U.S. Geological Survey
Canadian Wildlife Service
Please Report Bands at www.reportband.gov or call 1-800-327-BAND

Direct reporting form we used can be found at:
https://www.pwrc.usgs.gov/BBL/bblretrv/

Race Rocks Ecological Reserve-

marine ecology educational resource, remote-control webcams,elephant seal colony,Sea lion haulout,sustainable energy, solar energy

Daily Archives: Saturday,December 13, 2014

census, banded cormorant

Banded Cormorant data:

The North American Bird Banding Program
Bird banding is important for studying the movement, survival and behavior of birds. About 60 million birds representing hundreds of species have been banded in North America since 1904. About 4 million bands have been recovered and reported.

The North American Bird Banding Program Bird banding is important for studying the movement, survival and behavior of birds. About 60 million birds representing hundreds of species have been banded in North America since 1904. About 4 million bands have been recovered and reported.

The North American Bird Banding Program
Bird banding is important for studying the movement, survival and behavior of birds. About 60 million birds representing hundreds of species have been banded in North America since 1904. About 4 million bands have been recovered and reported.