Category Archives: Animal census

Animal Census

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Birds

  • Harlequin duck                                  7
  • Bald eagle adult                                2
  • Bald eagle juvenile                           5
  • Turnstones                                        11
  • Killdeer                                               2
  • Gulls                                                   64     
  • Cormorants                                        42
  • Pigeon Guillemots                             73
  • Oyster catcher                                     8
  • Canadian goose                                 10
  • Surf Birds                                             6

 

Mammals

  • Steller sea lion                             23
  • Harbour seal                                 47
  • California sea lion                        18
  • Elephant seal sub adult male      3
  • Elephant seal adult female          3
  • Elephant seal pups(2F 1M)          3

Animal Census

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Help with the survey from WestCoast Adventure College Students

Birds

  • Harlequin duck                                    18
  • Dunlin                                                    6
  • Bald eagle adult                                   2
  • Bald eagle juvenile                              6
  • Turnstones                                          28
  • Gulls                                                   195
  • Cormorants                                          77
  • Pigeon Guillemots                            105
  • Oyster catcher                                       8
  • Canadian goose                                   12
  • Raven                                                      2

Mammals

  • Steller sea lion                             34
  • Harbour seal                                31
  • California sea lion                       22
  • Elephant seal male                      1 sub adult
  • Elephant seal female                   2
  • Elephant seal pup                        3 – 2 females,1 male
  • Sea otter                                       1 reported to me by Eco-Tourism Vessel
  • Animal Tracking and Injuries:     1 tagged Elephant Seal – Green #K646

Special Guest Animal Census

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Thank you to Andrew Jacobs and his associate for this onsite survey conducted on March 8 …..

It shows the difficulty in Gull ID’s, and why I normally report ### – “Gulls”

 

Total – Species – Stationary (on water or rocks staying in area) Flying (Flying around or past the area)

8 Canada Goose : 8 stationary

25 Harlequin Duck : 25 stationary

17 Black Oystercatcher : 17 stationary

64 Black Turnstone : 9 flying 53 stationary

17 Surfbird : 17 stationary

8 Dunlin : 4 Stationary 4 flying

14 Rock Sandpiper : 14 stationary

7 Common Murre : 7 flying

35 Pigeon Guillemot : 9 stationary 24 flying

1 Marbled Murrelet : 1 stationary

19 Short-billed Gull : 5 immature flying 14 adult flying

4 Western Gull : 2 adult stationary 2 immature stationary

2 California Gull : 1 adult stationary 1 adult flying

2 Herring Gull (American) : 1 immature flying 1 immature stationary

9 Iceland Gull (Thayer’s) : 4 adults stationary 1 adult flying 4 immature stationary

18 Glaucous-winged Gull : 3 adults stationary 3 adults flying 8 immature stationary 4 immature flying

78 Western x Glaucous-winged Gull : 10 adult flying 57 adult stationary 6 immature stationary 5 immature flying

1 Herring x Glaucous-winged Gull : 1 immature stationary

1 Red-throated Loon : 1 flying

121 Brandt’s Cormorant : 20 flying 101 stationary

53 Pelagic Cormorant : 6 flying 47 stationary

9 Double-crested Cormorant : 8 stationary 1 flying

13 Bald Eagle : 1 adult stationary 5 immature stationary 7 immature flying

2 Common Raven : 2 stationary

Harbour seal 23

California sealion 18

Steller’s sealion 19

Elephant Seal Pups 3

Sea Otter 1 (reported by Eco-Tourism Vessel)

Animal Census

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Birds

  • Harlequin duck            14
  • Bald eagle adult             7
  • Bald eagle juvenile        14
  • Turnstones                     28
  • Dunlin                              14
  • Gulls                                38
  • Cormorants                    130
  • Oyster catcher                 6
  • Canadian goose              14
  • Ravens                             2
  • Green-winged Teal          23

 

Mammals

  • Steller sea lion                      38
  • Harbour seal                          19
  • California sea lion                45
  • Elephant seal female            1 coming and going
  • Elephant seal pup                 3
  • Sea Otter                                1

 

Animal Census

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Birds

  • Harlequin duck             12
  • Bald eagle adult            6
  • Bald eagle juvenile        8
  • Turnstones                     40
  • Dunlin                              9
  • Gulls                                132
  • Cormorants                     78
  • Oyster catcher                 8
  • Canadian goose              14
  • Ravens                              2

 

Mammals

  • Steller sea lion                      24
  • Harbour seal                          27
  • California sea lion                 84
  • Elephant seal female            1
  • Elephant seal pup                 3

 

Animal Tracking and Injuries:

  •  Currently 2 California Sea Lions dragging the hind section, apparent broken backs. They are both healed and at reasonable weight.

Census

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  • Bald eagle adult                     4
  • Bald eagle juvenile                  12
  • Black Turnstones                 38
  • Surfbirds                                 10
  • Black Oyster Catchers           22
  • Gulls (mostly Iceland)            53
  • Cormorants                             65
  • Canadian goose                    10
  • Ravens                                      2

Mammals

  • Steller sea lion                               78 (mix of large, medium, and small)
  • Harbour seal                                     8
  • California sea lion                           52
  • Female Elephant Seal  adult            2
  • Newborn Elephant Seal (Dec 26)     1
  • Newborn Elephant Seal (Jan 13)     1

Animal Census

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  • Bald eagle adult                       6
  • Bald eagle juvenile                  8
  • Black Turnstones                   28
  • Surfbirds                                 28
  • Black Oyster Catchers           42
  • Gulls (mostly Iceland)            62
  • Cormorants                             87
  • Canadian goose                       8
  • Ravens                                      2

Mammals

  • Steller sea lion                                98 (mix of large, medium, and small)
  • Harbour seal                                    13
  • California sea lion                           45
  • Male Elephant Seal (yearling?)       1
  • Female Elephant Seal  adult            2
  • Newborn Elephant Seal (Dec 26)     1

 

Census

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  • Bald eagle adult                         8
  • Bald eagle juvenile                   10
  • Black Turnstones                     42
  • Brown Turnstones                    53
  • Surfbirds                                    28
  • Black Oyster Catchers             132 (in very large groupings)
  • Gulls                                           128
  • Cormorants                                175
  • Canadian goose                         8
  • Ravens                                        4

Mammals

  • Steller sea lion                        168 (mix of large, medium, and small)
  • Harbour seal                              23
  • California sea lion                      87
  • Male Elephant Seal                      0
  • Female Elephant Seal  adult       1
  • Newborn Elephant Seal (Dec 26)   1

Census

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December 08, 2022

  • Bald eagle adult                          5
  • Bald eagle juvenile                     4
  • Black Turnstones                       14
  • Black Oyster Catchers                6
  • Gulls, Glaucous and Western    56
  • Cormorants                                  64
  • Canadian goose                          14
  • Crows/ Ravens(?)                        4
  • Surf Scoters                                  9

Mammals

  • Steller sea lion                          190
  • Harbour seal                                42
  • California sea lion                      124
  • Male Elephant Seal                      0
  • Female Elephant Seal  adult       1
  • Female Elephant Seal yearling   1
    • tag X188
  • Sea Otter                                      1

Several Humpback Whales visible from the reserve,occasionally venturing in

Orcas Feeding and Humpback Whales

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From the moment light touched the surface of the ocean there seemed to be excitement around me. 6:55 I stood on the end of the jetty finishing up our daily salinity and temperature readings, I looked out just to see the brief moment a pod of Orca passed through the reserve and as I headed up to the house the spray of a humpback whale arose in the east. A few hours later I found myself captivated for over an hour as the T109A pod hunted and fed upon, likely a young seal that tended to be hidden within the north kelp bed to which the orca swam, jumped, herded and slapped their tails in. While hundreds of nervous sea lions popped in and out of the nearby rocks worriedly. As the meal ended they slowly made their way west out of the reserve, whilst 4 humpback whales passed back and forth through the south of Race Rocks Ecological reserve.

 

Weather:

    • Sky: Clear
    • Wind: East 5kts
    • Sea: Calm
    • Visibility: 10 nautical miles due to haze from smoke

Weekly Census:

  • Steller/Northern sea lions: 768
  • Female Stellar/Norther sea lion: 2
  • California sea lion: 1257
  • Female California Sea lion: 1
  • Harbour seals: 53
  • Black oystercatchers: 14
  • Cormorants: 127
  • Glaucous-winged gulls: 334
  • Juveniles Glaucous-winged gulls on Great Race Rock: 5
  • California Gull: 48
  • Hermanns Gull: 5
  • Harlequin Duck: 1
  • Black turnstones: 41
  • Fox Sparrow: 4
  • Surfbirds: 2
  • Raven: 1
  • Elephant Seal (female): 2
  • Humpback Whale: 4
  • Orca (T109As): 6

Visitors:

  • Students from Marine Sciences at Pearson College visited throughout the week.
  • Greg and Cedric delivered water along with another.
  • Dan from IT with another, worked on our internet connections (Sept.30)

Facility Work:

  • Cleaned solar panels
  • Cleaned windows
  • Electric fence repairs has become 3 times a day.
  • Rewired sections of electric fence
  • Built some bracing for electric fence posts
  • Ran Generator for a few hours to top up batteries.
  • Treated stairs
  • Removed 2 Flashers that had been entangled on sea lions and got stuck in rocks.

Vessel Traffic:

  • Many Canadian and American ecotour boats have been nearby and heading through the waters of the ecological reserve. Cruise ships are going by daily.
  • Many small recreation fishing vessels drift through observing wildlife.