Author Archives: Don + Nina

254 less Sea Lions

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Ecological Happenings

  • Weather conditions worsen as the brunt of the storms come through. Large swell, with larger forecast for tomorrow.
  • Two Ravens have been hanging around the reserve over the  last couple of days. Seen again today near Camera 5.
  • Juvenile  Bald Eagle hanging about the island this afternoon as. Bird species have moved closer to the main island with the change in weather.
  • There are currently 254 less Sea Lions in the reserve. This change has taken place over the last week.

Maintenance

  • Attempt to install the new water pump in the keepers house. This has been a task requiring time and research. While water is still not running, we are working on it!
  • With hours of daylight diminishing, generator use on the island has increased.

No marine vessels or visitors today

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Animal Census

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Steller Sea Lion 496
California Sea Lion 361
Harbour Seal 0
Elephant Seal 6
Cormorant 146
Gull 742
Black Turnstone 12
Canada Goose 22
Raven 2
Spotted during the week
Marbled Godwit 2
Bald Eagle 3
Whale 4
Killdeer 5
Harlequin Duck 19
Green Winged Teal 2
Snow bunting 1
Sparrows 13

Wild Weather

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Ecological Happenings

  • Wild weather today. +30kt winds and rough seas.

Marine Vessels

  • 1 tour boat this afternoon
  • 1 fishing boat

Maintenance

  • We have begun to build up our water supply again, after running it down in an attempt to sterilize the system after chlorination.
  • The main house water pump was dismantled ahead of the new pump and buffer tank being connected. It appears, from internet research, that there is an iron-reducing bacteria (IRB) in the system (a brown, rusty slime in the old buffer tank, and pitting corrosion on the inside of the pump housing). This would explain why the filters have been so dirty. Hopefully the new pump and tank, along with chlorination, take care of the problem.

Re-stocking day

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Ecological Happenings

  • No observations to report.

Marine Vessels

  • 1 tour boat this afternoon (we were away for a few hours though)
  • 1 fishing boat

Maintenance

  • We made use of the break in the weather to pick up supplies from Pearson college. We are now in a position to continue work on the whaler’s electrics and *finally* solve the water issues we’ve been having, by installing a new pump.

Glorious Afternoon

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Ecological Happenings

  • Afternoon clear sky, calm sea, and mild weather.
  • 2 Green Winged Teals and two other unidentified bird species spotted.
  • 19 Harlequins Ducks spotted.

Marine Vessels

  • 5 tour boats this afternoon. The calm sea and blue sky made it tempting for boats to get close to rocks.

Maintenance

  • Weed whacker troubleshooting! in perpetration for trimming the paths.

Swells high today

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Ecological happenings

  • Gulls have been feeding in large flocks
  • Swells of up to 7ft today
  • Many Sea Lions appear to have left the island. The swells have not been forgiving on the inhabited rocks.

Marine Vessels

  • Three tour boats
  • One sail boat

Other

  • Three visitors today, (1 from Pearson College) who were given a tour of the Island.

Harlequin Ducks

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Ecological Happenings

  • Three Harlequin ducks seen today.
  • Two Bald Eagles flying together (one juvenile).
  • Winds picked up speed today to 16kts. Strong wind warnings have and continue to be in effect.

Marine Vessels

  • Two tour boats seen today. They are missing the views of the Sea Lions, as boats usually visit the North West of the island, while currently most Sea Lions have moved to the south island.
  • One helicopter flying relatively low. Animals were startled.

Other

No visitors.

 

Visit from a Predator

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Ecological Happenings

  • Barred Owl in the reserve today. Its’ prey were found (one small bird near the lighthouse and a gull near the student house). Gulls and smaller birds were much fewer today.
  • Juvenile elephant seal and accompanying adult seal returned today.
  • South Seal Rocks is particularly crowded with the Stellers that have moved from other surrounding rocks.
  • California Sea lion brand 8456 spotted

Marine Vessels

  • Two tour boats
  • One pleasure vessel
  • 10 Canoers
  • A helicopter flying in good range of RR

Maintenance

  • Continuing to experience challenges with the water system. Next steps are to check the pumps and piping.
  • Boat maintenance and clean out.

No visitors today.

Animal Census

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November 5th

Steller Sea Lion 466
California Sea Lion 645
Harbour Seal 46
Elephant Seal 8 (including one juvenile tag B228)
Cormorant 206
Gull* 547
Barred Owl* 1
Black Turnstone* 5
*note: the Barred Owl was hunting in the reserve today and thus gulls and
smaller birds were much fewer
Spotted during the week
Bald Eagle 2
Whale 6 (4 of these were in one sighting)
Black Turnstone 5
Canada Goose 48
Killdeer 2

Steller with an infection

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Ecological Happenings

  • A Steller Sea Lion spotted that couldn’t open its eyes. Looked to have a serious infection, with puss streaming down its body. It was last seen making its way into the water.
  • No Sea Lions on North, Turbine, Middle or West Rocks, they have all migrated to the main island.

Marine Vessels

Two tour boats and two pleasure vessels

Maintenance

  • Continuing to clean the buildings, though currently options are limited without having the high pressure hose working.
  • Detached rain water tank from the building and started to clean the significant build up of organic matter inside it. The intention is to get the tank clean, and design a new system to catch rain water.
  • Continued rebuilding the electric fence at the dock and the NE of the island. Strong winds last week toppled parts of the fence and snapped wires.

No visitors today.