the August 26 edition of The Victoria Times Colonist included this article on page A4.
Category Archives: Mammal Notes
Cloudy day on the rocks
Another whale sighting this morning! There’s been so much activity in the area lately. It was hard to tell from the distance, but I’m pretty sure it was the humpbacks again.
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- The thick grey cloud rolling in from the west created a stunning contrast in the ocean’s reflected light.
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- Soon there will be almost twice as many gulls to doge overhead!
Facility Notes
- Cleaned panels
- Repaired fence
- Tidied up main house
- Pantry inventory
Last night’s winds did a number on the perimeter fence- I was using the old materials and patching them with wire for most of the repairs to conserve the new strands for the September reconfigurations. One or two less carefully secured patches gave out, and there were some sections that just needed replacing altogether. Time to retire some of the older wire and put in new strands for the season.
Weather
Intermittent clouds, West-by-Southwesterly winds between 11 and 21 knots. Temperature from 13 to 16 degrees.
Vessels Observed
Ecotourism: 21
Private: 2
Small projects
Wildlife
Nothing out of the ordinary, today was filled with the usual shenanigans of newly fledged gulls crashing about and quickly taking off from surrounding nesting sites and sea lions wrestling around the outer edges of the rocks. The gulls that have found themselves suddenly sharing their space with much larger, equally vocal neighbours seem to be tolerating the change of scene as best they can. Every once in awhile, I’ll catch sight of a disgruntled exchange between a sea lion and the gull that has been forced to land on its back for lack of any bare rock around.
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- The rescued lion is looking well. No other entanglements sighted yet, let’s hope it stays that way!
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- The sea lions on the end of the jetty are becoming a little too habituated for comfort- even my raised arms and big intimidating presence don’t seem to be enough to shoo them off until I cross the electric fencing at the top of the steps.
Facility notes
- Washed panels
- Greg and Richard came by to refuel tank in shed, install a buffer at the end of the jetty to prevent lines getting chewed by the concrete when tied up. My first time drilling into concrete- what a fun learning experience!
- Weeded walkways and removed small driftwood debris from jetty entrance
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- Line buffer for tying up.
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- Our new, hopefully temporary fix for the end of the jetty.
Weather
Sunny, hazy skies. Shifting winds from WSW to NNE, from 9 to 25 knots. Temperatures from 13 to 16 degrees.
Friday August 21 Census
California sea lion: 232
Steller sea lion: 177
Harbour seal: 94
Cormorant: 103
Pigeon Guillemot: 42
Oyster catcher: 11
Turnstone: 27
Bald eagle: 2
Seagull (adult): 1200
Seagull (juvenile): ~400
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- Photo taken for census counting August 7th
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- This afternoon the turnstones were scattered more widely around the rocks by the arrival of more lions.
<em>Wildlife notes</em>
The shorebirds were a bit harder to count this time around, as the edges of the rocks and their usual concentrated areas were busy with sea lions. I also spotted a few whales off to the southeast this morning, but couldn’t quite make out the species- either humpback or minke.
Although many of the chicks are almost as big as their parents and starting to stay aloft for nearly minutes at a time, they’re unlikely to take off for a week or two still. It’s been such a privilege to watch these tiny, bandy-legged fluffballs grow into their flight feathers and prepare to head out on their own.
<em>Facility notes</em>
-Cleaned panels
-Continued work on fence
<em>Weather</em>
Cloudy, calm. Westerlies around 15, picking up to 25 knots later in the evening. Temperatures from 11 to 12 degrees.
<em>Vessels</em>
Ecotourism: 18
Private: 2
Sea Lion Disentanglement
The long-awaited window of fair weather and coordinated schedules finally arrived late this morning, allowing the Marine Mammal Rescue Society (VAMMR) team to carry out an operation for the sea lion caught in plastic line near the jetty. It’s been a few weeks since he was first spotted, and luckily he hung around long enough for this incredible group to come and bring some relief!
Dense morning fog initially cloaked the shoreline and outer rocks, lending the islands a soft, sunlit glow while complicating the search.
Because of all the activity around the jetty, the entangled sea lion had moved away from his usual resting spot. The team started by surveying the perimeter by water before launching a drone search once conditions calmed.
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- Many sea lions in the foggy morning at the jetty- our friend was nowhere to be seen.
Finally! He was spotted playing in the shallows near the southwest corner by the energy building. Just a few metres away from another sea lion sporting a clean scar from a prior, successfully healed entanglement. Let’s hope our friend has a good recovery and long life as well.
Rather than attempting a risky water intervention, the shore crew monitored the lion from a distance while the support boat stood by in the bay.
He looked to be thinking about hauling out several times, but there was no chance to safely tranquilize him before he headed back out!
Luckily, he swam back around the rocks and hauled out in his usual spot on the concrete jetty, where access was significantly safer and more manageable.
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- Photo by Kendra Luckow
The crew moved in swiftly to carry out the procedure. Marty must have been taking lessons from the seagull chicks, as from my vantage point in the lighthouse (and through the fog) he did a pretty bang-on job of blending in.
After administering a tranquilizer to safely restrain him, they cut away the constricting plastic line from his neck, collected a small blood sample for analysis, and applied a new identification tag so we can monitor him in future sightings. Once the reversal was administered, he woke up a bit groggy but was visibly relieved to be rid of the plastic before it caused further injury. The entire intervention drew a curious audience both in and on the water.
To cap off a demanding day of careful planning and execution, the crew were sent off with the breathtaking sight of a transient orca pod hunting and breaching in the rips just off the rocks. It’s inspiring to see all of the hard work and dedication to our wild neighbours here on the coast- this would not have been possible without the incredible caring people with VAMMR and the DFO.
Facility notes
-Cleaned panels
-Continued repair of fence
Weather
Rolling fog banks throughout the day, sunny otherwise. Winds mainly from the west, from 15 to 25 knots. Temperatures 11 to 12 degrees.
Vessels
Ecotourism: 5
Private: 2
Windy days and checking in with the elephant seals
Tuesday May 5th
Ecological Notes
It has been quite windy on the rocks for the past few days!
Even the gulls are feeling it
As you may know, elephant seals haul themselves out of the water once a year to shed their fur and outer skin layer. You and I shed some hair and skin a little bit everyday, no big deal, but elephant seals do it more like a snake: they shed it all at once in what is called a catastrophic molt!
The five elephant seals are all at different stages of their molt, lets check in with them!
The youngest (yearling) is going through her first molt, which can be quite challenging the first time.
Send her good wishes, she is going through a lot!
Two of the other young females are yet to be started on their molt. Here’s one of them looking really cute:
Just being the cutest, so photogenic 💕
Her again, so baby 💖 (not actually a baby, but you know what I mean)
The two adult females spend a lot of time dozing in the grass.
One of the adult female is quite advanced in her molt and is looking a little bit like the stuff of nightmares at the moment (no offense).
A very interesting process to watch!
Facility work
- Battery top-up
- Generator check
- Salinity testing
- Fence check: fixed tear, unfortunately broken spot was right in front of the nest I addled the day before and the geese were not pleased to see me again so soon
DND Event
3 blasts, between 11:20 am and 12:32 am. I scare easily and that definitely does it every time.
Weather Events
⋄ Wind (kts): 28.2
⋄ Sunny clear skies
⋄ Air temp (°C): min 10.5, max 13.5
⋄ Sea state: white caps
Wednesday May 6th
Ecological Notes
One of the geese nest I addled previously had a new egg today. I am now public geese enemy number one.
I have not found an oyster catcher nest so far, but I saw one of those little guys harassing a bald eagle! Pretty bold.
Fearless
This gentlemen had to be politely asked to move
Quite a nice sunset tonight! Unfortunately, I was pooped on while taking pictures.
We know who did it
Facility work
- Fence check
- Keeper’s kitchen deep clean: floors, house laundry, all kitchen surfaces
- Salinity testing
- Addling: 1 egg
Visitors
Today a group of Pearson students with their chaperones Laura (another Laura!) and Bella came to Race Rocks for a field trip. Students took notes on the species they were seeing around the island and observed how different organisms were distributed in the intertidal zone. Laura (not me) was very knowledgeable about Race Rocks and I learned quite a few things!
Weather Events
⋄ Wind (kts): gusting 8-15, Gale warning in effect for the evening
⋄ Overcast in the morning, brief hour of sun in the afternoon, large clouds in the evening
⋄ Air temp (°C): 12.3
⋄ Sea state: white caps
NB: All pictures were taken with a telephoto lens, which makes distant objects appear closer. All animals were photographed at a respectful and reglementary distance.
Month End, and Bye for now!
Thanks for another fun term out here at Race rocks, Will be back in the fall!
Ecological Notes:
- 2 adult female Elephant Seals
- The Female that had the pup here this season is particularly vocal and bossy!
(video coming)
- 2 Elephant Seal pups, 1 might be a small yearling
- With the warmer weather, all the Elephant Seals enjoy their daily dip in the water.
(video coming)
- As usual, the Geese are very protective of their nests
- But the “baby” Elephant seal seems to take great pleasure in harassing the gees at their nests
- Orca only observed passing the reserve once in the last week (but from other reports, they may have passed by unnoticed or early in the morning)
Visitors:
- 1 volunteer came out to help Richard with projects
- 2 sets of students came out for orientation and tasks assignments, they also enjoyed some mini presentations from the Eco-Guardian
- Richard came to work on his projects when the students were here
Facility Work:
- Battery electrolyte levels
- Fuel Transfers
- Full general house clean
- Tidy student house after visitors
- Ongoing solar panel cleaning, and battery electrolyte top ups
- Valve replacement and servicing on the salt water pump to fill the cistern
- Filling the cistern, and then flushing the pump with fresh water
- Some desalinator runs, successful running on just solar as well
- All month end reports and filing
DND events:
- Some blasts on Friday, no noted disturbance
Noted Vessel Traffic:
- As most Whale sightings were east of Victoria, only a occasional Eco-Tourism vessel visits
- Some Private boats
Noted Infractions:
- none
Weather Events:
- Sunday, April 26:
- Sky: Mostly clear overhead, with a few clouds rolling through in the afternoon …. north and south of the reserve had more clouds, and low lying mist/fog to the west and south
- Wind: W 5-10kts until noon, then rising to 30kts by midnight
- Sea: rippled most of the day
- Temperature Low 8.2oC, High 13.3oC
- Monday, April 27:
- Sky: Foggy until mid-afternoon, clear and sunny to overcast
- Wind: W/WSW 16-37 kts
- Sea: light chop turning to high waves by evening
- Temperature Low 12oC, High 20oC
- Tuesday, April 28:
- Sky: Foggy until mid-afternoon, clear and sunny to overcast
- Wind: W/WSW 16-37 kts
- Sea: light chop turning to high waves by evening
- Temperature Low 12oC, High 20oC
- Wednesday, April 29:
- Sky: Mostly clear overhead, with a few clouds rolling through in the afternoon
- Wind: W variable to 8kts, shifting to S mid day, then rising to W 18kts late afternoon
- Sea: rippled
- Temperature Low 8.3oC, High 14.2oC
- Thursday, April 30:
- Sky: Mostly clear overhead, with a few clouds rolling through in the afternoon
- Wind: Rising through the day to 25kts, variable directions all day
- Sea: rippled most of the day
- Temperature Low 8.6oC, High 15.6oC
- Friday, May 1:
- Sky: Foggy until late-afternoon, mixed sun and clouds afterwards
- Wind: W 15-25 kts, rising slightly in the evening
- Sea: light chop turning to 2 ft chop and whitecaps late in the day
- Temperature Low 8.6oC, High 15.6oC, cool windchill though (while cleaning solar panels on the roof!)
** Any wildlife photos taken at the furthest distance possible, and may be cropped to improve detail! **
Weather – Current:
https://tempestwx.com/station/190757/
Weather – Past:
More Elephant Seals!
Ecological Notes:
- 2 Adult female Elephant Seals
- 2 young ones…. 1 is this years pup born here… the other is a bit bigger, it seems pretty big to be a new pup, but a bit small to be a yearling….. we will see when the moult starts
The 2 newest ones
- Gulls and Oyster Catchers still paired off, no noted nest building yet
- Orca and a Humpback passed the reserve, without entering
- Although most have given up, found a new Canadian Goose nest…. easy to miss them when they use an old site, and cover it well when they’re not there!
Visitors:
- Greg And Richard for fuel and grocery delivery
- Guests of Pearson College came to the Rock to stay in the Student Building
- Greg also brought the future Eco-Guardians for a quick overview of the site.
Facility Work:
- Richard sealed a crack on the desalinator bunker roof
- Solar Panel cleaning
- Fuel transfers
DND events:
- Several Blasts on Wednesday and Thursday
Noted Vessel Traffic:
- Starting to see more Eco-Tourism vessel
- Weekends also included more private vessels coming through to observe the wildlife
- RCMSAR vessel did a bit of a tour through the reserve
Noted Infractions:
- none
Weather Events:
- Wednesday, April 22:
- Sky: haze overhead, clouds in all directions on the horizon
- Wind: WSW 10-22kts, variable throughout the day
- Sea: rippled to 2′ chop
- Temperature Low 9.3oC, High 12.4oC
- Thursday, April 23:
- Sky: High overcast with haze on all horizons…. giving way to mostly clear late afternoon overhead
- Wind: W/WSW 16-37 kts
- Sea: light chop turning to flat by afternoon
- Temperature Low 9.0oC, High 11.8oC
- Friday, April 24:
- Sky: Sunny and bright, some haze on the horizon lines though
- Wind: Variable wind, mostly NE to SE, 5-15kts
- Sea: light chop turning to high waves by evening
- Temperature Low 7.6oC, High 15.9oC
- Saturday, April 25:
- Sky: Sunny and bright, some haze on the horizon lines
- Wind: Variable S SE winds 0-10 kts
- Sea: very little chop, some slight current lines
- Temperature Low 7.3oC, High 16.6oC
- Great Solar generation today so far! (the “from battery” number includes everything drawn during the night too)
** Any wildlife photos taken at the furthest distance possible, and may be cropped to improve detail! **
Weather – Current:
https://tempestwx.com/station/190757/
Weather – Past:
https://tempestwx.com/history/190757
Animal Census April 12 2026
- Harlequin duck 8
- Bald eagle adult 2
- Bald eagle juvenile 4
- Turnstones 18
- Gulls 340
- Cormorants 187
- Pigeon Guillemots 74
- Oyster catcher 14
- Canadian goose 8(?)
- Surf Birds 3
- Brown Pelicans 1
- Small wren like birds. flickering between scrubs, Pacific wrens? 8
- Swallow looking birds, black or very dark brown on the back 4
Mammals
- Steller sea lion 17
- Harbour seal 34
- California sea lion 22
- Elephant seal pup 1
- Elephant Seal Adult Female 1
- Animal Tracking and Injuries: Steller branded 595Y
Christmas at the rock
Merry Christmas
Ecological Notes:
- Although there are still no Elephant Seals hauled out here, a picture of one temporarily hauled out at Trial Island looks like one of the females normally here
- The Snow Goose is again hanging out with the Canada Geese…… they often chase it a bit, so perhaps when I though it had left, it was just away from them hiding
- I always feel bad when I’m moving Sea Lions down the ramp and notice an injured one ….. when I am aware of one, I try to move them more slowly
Visitors:
- A quick touch and go run by Greg for a quick grocery top up before the holidays…. He also delivered bottled water for drinking, and some for the battery top ups
Facility Work:
- Bucked and split another load of firewood, stocking up for the cold months of January and February
- Lots of daily fixes on the fences in the heavy winds
- Twice a week top ups to the battery fluids
- Transferring fuel to the generator building as often as possible
- Topped up the cistern and put away the hoses
- Sometime the calendar blurs a bit out here, other than set weekly chores….. but every now and then you get a reminder of the passage of time…. Printed out the tide and current tables for 2026
- Cleaned the outside of the main house windows ….. even with all the rain, there is salt and other debris sticking
- Cleaned the solar panels a couple times for the same reason
- Don’t know how the wind managed to break this with the door latched closed, but it had a previous repair, so maybe it was extra weak
Noted Vessel Traffic:
- Occasional Eco-Tourism vessels
- A couple private vessels transiting and observing in the reserve
- All behaved appropriately
Weather Events:
Typical December weather, many variable wind directions and strengths. On and off rain nearly every day.
- Wednesday, December 24:
- Sky: Overcast, rain most of the day
- Wind: Mostly N, 10-15kts in the morning, dropping briefly to 0 mid afternoon, then rising again
- Sea: 2 ft waves most of the day
- Temperature Low 5.5oC, High 8oC
- Thursday, December 25:
- Sky: high and low overcast, rain squalls
- Wind: ENE shifting to NNE mid day, 10 – 15 kts
- Sea: medium cop all day
- Temperature Low 5oC, High 6.5oC
- Friday, December 26:
- Sky: full mix of high and low overcast, rain squalls and sunny breaks
- Wind: W rising early morning to a mid morning high of 38kts
- Sea: lots of chop, very messy around the reserve, but overall not to bad in the strait as wind is currently running with tide
- Temperature Low 5oC, High 8oC (much cooler “feels like” temperatures though)
10 minutes after a big rain squall
** Any wildlife photos taken at the furthest distance possible, and may be cropped to improve detail! **
Weather – Current:
https://tempestwx.com/station/190757/
Weather – Past:
https://tempestwx.com/history/190757