Started the day with the generator running, walked the fence and then cleaned the solar panels. When I was on the roof cleaning the solar panels, the sun came out; perhaps the cloudy weather forecast was wrong.
Today is census day, so I grabbed a notepad and climbed the tower. I found out very quickly how hard it is to count all the wildlife! From sea lion piles, to hundreds of seagulls, I tried my best. I found it very difficult to know what wildlife is beyond the many rocky outcrops. Using the binoculars in a somewhat methodical breakup of the island into sections, I counted each section and added the numbers. I was amazed at the wildlife on the outer rocks that I don’t normally see…there are lots sausages out there!
Sea lion piles from the tower
Mammals:
- California sealion: 662 plus ~22 on outer islets
- Stellar sealion: 81 plus ~30 on outer islets
- Harbour seal: 90
- Humpback whales: 4 inside the reserve, many more outside throughout the day
Birds:
- Gulls: 471 plus 616 on outer islands (Aug 30 >2200 including chicks)
- Cormorant: 231, more may be just out of view
- Black oystercatcher: 0
- Pigeon guillemot: 1
- Black turnstone: 3
- Savannah Sparrow: 4
- Canada Goose: 6, they have come the past twos day in the late afternoon
Notes on Census
It’s very difficult to see the animals on the outer islets, so the count may be low. I also had difficulty picking out the Stellars from the tower, so the ratio may not be correct.
Facility work
- cleaned solar panels
- ran the gas generator
- fence repairs
Vessels
- Ecotourism: 26
- Private: 7
Weather
Cloudy most of the day. Winds 3 to 6 knots mainly from the west. Daytime temperatures 13 to 15 degrees.