Category Archives: Mammal Notes

Fog horn drum

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Weather

Light fog early morning, building to thicker fog throughout the day with poor visibility (the fog horn sounded for a few hours). Winds were generally <5kts. The barometer was at 101.6 for most of the day dropping to 101.5. The marine forecast shows winds picking up to 10-15kts and rain for Monday.

Boat activity

  • Not so many fishing vessels on the water this Sunday with all the fog (total count of 4)
  • 7 tour boats, mostly in the afternoon as the fog faded

Ecological happenings

  • Two Californians spotted with relatively fresh gashes
  • Californian seal lion brand 8329 and 9776 spotted (need to verify whether this record has been collected)
  • Commenced looking for tangled sea lions in preparation for detanglment on Oct 28th
  • 3 Dunlins spotted

Maintenance

  • Cheeky sea lions continue to dismantle the electric fence and drop equipment into the water, so we’ve been on top of mending it.
(possible) Sandpiper and Black Turnstone

Dunlin and Black Turnstone

Sleepy sea lion

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Weather

Light cloud cover this morning and mostly sunny in the afternoon. Wind was variable – light in the early morning picking up towards the afternoon to as high as 16kts @ 17:00. Barometer was up a little to ~1012hPA. Forecast is for winds steadying between 10-15kts, and a chance of showers this evening and Sunday.

Boats in the reserve

15 Pleasure vessels, one of which was fishing in the reserve. After failed attempts to make contact on VHF16, DFO will be notified. There were also 3 tour boats and trawler activity around the reserve.

Ecological happenings

  • New Californian Sea Lion tag sighted (C733) – no photo yet
  • Two gulls spotted with broken wings
  • Harbour seal hanging out close to RR docks

No visitors today.

Golden Day at Race Rocks.

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This morning dawn came with a mostly overcast sky and fog distant. It cleared by late morning and stayed sunny, only clouding over in the early evening. The wind was light, less than 10 knots and easterly all day. The barometer was up to 2022 earlier and is falling now. The forecast includes a strong wind warning for tonight. Thursday is expected to be sunny with a few clouds.

Four whale watching vessels were observed working in the protected area today. Several sport fishers passed through. The salmon gillnet fleet and packers passed through Race Passage heading east. There was a big swell during the morning and early afternoon.

Second Nature brought one of the Pearson College student dive teams today and the students who got into the water had a fantastic dive. Not only were they able to observe and film the incredible richness of this biodiversity hotspot, they were also visited underwater by curious sea lions.

Several new sea lion brands were noted today including Californians U20, U503, U363 and U844. One of the California Sea Lions made it right up to camera #5 today. By the time I got outside with the blog camera, he was already descending.

I noted the other day that I hadn’t noticed cookie Cutter Shark scars on the Steller’s Sea Lions. Well since I made that remark I am seeing theme everywhere, so take that back.

On the bird front, we had a little female American Goldfinch visit today. It landed on the thistles right in front of me over by the tower. Also on the bird front a suspected Brandt’s Cormorant with two leg tags was spotted today; yellow on the left leg and white on the right leg. There was also a strange bird amongst the Brandt’s Cormorants that I was hoping would be the Brown Booby that has been floating around out here.

 

Chores were routine and in preparation for the new eco-guardian crew coming out tomorrow. There were nine people on board Second Nature.

 

Plastic No No Band

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Thanksgiving Monday was a wet day dominated by light north-northeast winds in the morning and a moderate westerly in the afternoon. Wind speed was 10 or less knots until it turned to west. By early evening it had risen to 15 – 20 knots. The barometer fell early and has been climbing since late morning boding better weather tomorrow. The wind is forecast to drop after midnight and switch to light easterlies for Tuesday. Forecasters expect a mix of sun and cloud with fog patches dissipating in the morning. A brighter day expected.

Seven whale watching vessels visited in the morning and none in the afternoon and the three pleasure craft that passed through were also in the morning.

On wet days, it seems as if the sea lions spend more time in the water although there are pockets of Californians (on the cairns, for example) that stayed put, hauled out all day. The rock-climbers also stayed where they were (up by the heli-pad), some for a couple of days. I did see one “new” (to me) brand today, California Sea Lion ‘U755’ from the Columbia River area. There was also a “necklaced Stellers Sea Lion on the rocks by the energy building today. That rock is quite popular with Stellers which surprising due to its proximity to the activity.

Six young Northern Elephant Seals were ‘hanging out’, tussling in the water by the jetty all day today.

Salmon continue to pass through, as observed in sea lion kills throughout the area. The Glaucous-winged Gulls and Thayers Gulls continue to scavenge at the surface during the kills and in the mixed species feeding flocks where diving birds force forage fish balls up to the surface. Humpback Whales continue to forage adjacent to the protected area. The Humpback out by Rosedale Reef today is an extremely large one (probably a female). It spends very little time at the surface with dive times averaging greater than 10 minutes

California Sea Lion with brand U755. The U is also a C and indicates the animal was branded as a weaner near the Columbia River.

California Sea Lion with brand U755. The U is also a C and indicates the animal was branded as a weaner near the Columbia River.

and sometimes only one or two blows. They are tremendously high, straight blows.

More and more Double Crested Cormorants arrive daily raising the total number of cormorants using the protected area to forage and roost. The adult Bald Eagle returns each morning and worries the gulls and cormorants.
Chores are routine and it is really great to have company.

Giving Thanks.

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The morning was calm and mostly clear with very light winds (<5 knots) from the southeast. The wind picked up a little in the afternoon and switched to north-northeast by evening. The barometer peaked at 1020 hPA mid-day after rising quickly from yesterday’s low of almost 995. As the sun sets, the barometer is falling almost as fast as it rose and the forecast has a strong wind warning in effect. The forecast also calls for clouds and periods of rain on Monday along with the wind.

Five whale watching vessels were observed in the protected area. There may have been more when I went ashore for a few hours. Four pleasure craft were observed in reserve. One rental boat was observed speeding in reserve on the south side but stopped just after they were spotted and left the area slowly and carefully. There was one over-flight observed, it looked like a fisheries patrol vessel and they were high, probably one thousand feet.

One very large Humpback Whale was blowing near Rosedale Reef in the morning and there was some whale activity near West Rock in the afternoon, but unable to identify the species. Whale watching vessels were aggregating there.

The adult Bald Eagle was back on North Rock today and I counted 95 cormorants in the water just after a flock of gulls flew past alerting the presence of the eagle. As the salmon rivers start to be less busy there will be more and more eagles.

Processing some of the photos taken earlier in the fall brought to light a few showing a very young (still black) Stellers Sea Lion on Middle Rock. That might be a new record.

Red-winged Blackbirds moved through Great Race today and as in the spring they landed on the tower before heading south. There were seven on them and they may have come down to ground but I was busy and didn’t see them.

My husband is here for Thanksgiving and I am thankful

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6-spot the Harbour seal Observed at RR since 2008

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sixspot-harbourseal

6-spot the harbour seal observed by Pam Birley on the rock by the jetty October 9, 2015

A record for long term observation has occurred with Pam Birley of Lesteshiire England observing over a period of 7 years a certain harbour seal she named 6-spot because of the distinctive markings. Oddly enough she often gets an image of it from the remote camera 5 in the fall as it lies on the same flat rock near the Jetty.  You can see some of her other observations of it at https://www.racerocks.ca/pam-birley-photo-records/

Pam sent the picture with the note: “Hi Garry,  YES….it is 6-spot !!!!    I got a good clear view this morning as it lay basking below Cam 5.  Here is a picture. First seen 2008 I believe, that makes it seven years !!!    I love it !!!!    Pam

 

 

 

Drizzle, Fog and Steaming Sea Lions

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It was a wet, drizzly, foggy day at Race Rocks but very calm. For most of the morning, the wind varied little from  east northeast at less than 5 knots. It only picked up to 10 – 15 knots as it swung around to north northeast in the evening. The forecast for Thursday is similar and while winds are expected to rise to 25- 35 knots southeast on Friday. Periods of rain, cloud and showers are on the horizon in spite of the barometer rising (overall trend) since late Monday.

It was a quiet day on the vessel observation front and only three whale watching vessels were noted in reserve. One ‘sports’ fishing vessel came through at very low speed, well positioned away from the animals.

There was some cetacean activity noted during the day as visibility increased to over 5 nautical miles. This included two Humpback Whales feeding near Rosedale Reef just outside reserve to the south, a Minke Whale just east of North Rock and Dall’s Porpoise to the southwest.

On Great Race, the Sea Lions were steaming today as air temperature hovered around 12 degrees C. and the cooling rain was evaporated off. Part of their haul-out at this time of year is a physiological need to warm their skin during the moulting process, thus the tidy rows of animals pressed against each other and the piling on top of each other to share their body heat. Some California Sea Lions have taken to rock climbing these last few days. They are well established above the boathouse now and at the base of the cliff under camera 5, so the logical (to them) extension was to move further up and there were three of them up by the helicopter pad today. I suspect that they will really like the heli-pad, if they make it that far.

There were six Northern Elephant Seals hanging out in the water around the jetty today.

Adult Glaucous-winged Gulls and this years young, continue to frequent their nesting territories much to my surprise. I have seen them chase off Thayers Gulls. The “visiting” gulls roost in peripheral areas away from the nest sites. A family of four Canada Geese continue to make the island their home.

Chores were as usual and there were no visitors.

Noticeably Darker Day

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Today was more of a fall day with cooler temperatures and a threat of rain in the air. Light levels were way down too. The barometer rose to 1014 hPA from a low of 1010 yesterday and it has just started to fall again. Rain and east winds of up to 25 knots are predicted to bring tomorrow’s forecasted rain, with a cool, wet outlook for the week ahead.

Thirteen visits to the protected area, by whale watching vessels, were observed today. Only one pleasure craft was noted.

There was a lot of cetacean action in and around Race Rocks for most of the day. It started with two big, bull, Biggs Killer Whales (Transients), travelling in from the west on the Rosedale side. They were later spotted in Race Passage and not long after an adult female Killer Whale was seen well inside the reserve by Turbine Rock. There were two Humpback Whales, one feeding just east of Race Rocks that moved west through Race Passage. It had a definite white splotch on the right fluke. The other one was feeding just west and had dark flukes, the same one, I think, that has been around for a while. There was also a Minke Whale feeding just to the south of Race Rocks.

Accumulated solar radiation levels today were less than half of what they have been for the last few days, 150 versus 300 to 350 Langleys and the days are getting noticeably shorter, faster now. Migrant species are moving through the reserve daily with hundreds of Surf Scoters moving through from west to east every day. All three species of cormorants are using the rocks here as roosts now and feeding in the multi-species flocks that surround the reserve with much commotion. This change into autumn not only impacts the biodiversity of the reserve but also has an impact on practical things like power generation.

Solar power has been producing over 90% of the power needed to run everything on the island and that amount will change over the next few months. Right now the shortfall is made up with a diesel generator but the plan is to move to cleaner burning propane in the near future. A great deal of progress has been made in reducing the amount of fuel stored and used here, from the days of the Coast Guard when there were six giant diesel tanks dominated the rock and the generators ran 24/7. A big shout goes out to Pearson College, for both reducing the ecological footprint in terms of CO2 and for reducing the risk of a spill.

Sun-Monday Log: Double Billing Blog

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Two more, lovely, sunny days squeezed in with the barometer down at ~ 1010 hPA and dropping. Light southeast wind today and yesterday will switch to variable and east on Thursday and the forecast looks like a change towards showers and southeasters towards the end of the week.

Ten visits by whale-watching vessels were observed in the Ecological Reserve each of the two days being reported. A handful of pleasure craft came through as well and everyone except the same guys who are always in a hurry and one boatful of lucky fishermen, were well behaved. The fishermen were lucky as they must have lost power and were swept over the little reef by Turbine Rock. One was ready with a paddle and the youngest one got the kicker going which got them out of there (eventually). That was exciting, especially for them. Eight kayaks came through the reserve yesterday. The paddlers at the front came through without disturbing any of the animals hauled out. The weakest paddler came by on her own, last. The tide pushed her a bit too close the Middle Rock and the sea lions stampeded. Sometimes it doesn’t take much.

Humpback Whales are feeding close if not in the reserve just about every day now. The individual spotted by the Marine Science students is feeding downstream just to the west of Middle Channel, during ebbing currents. I am curious if it goes down and just orients itself into the flow and filters away. There is a lot of food in the area and large multi-species feeding flocks driven by diving birds such as Common Murres and all three species of cormorants. The gulls, and there are a lot of them, roost on Race Rocks and then rush out to the feeding frenzies which I am assume are either small schooling fish like herring, sand lance or anchovies and/or large zooplankton like krill. These crustaceans are also known as Euphasiids and they look a bit like tiny shrimp with really big eyes. Those are the same sort of treats that Humpback whales like to feed on with their baleen and they use their really big fore flippers that are white on the underside, to herd krill and forage fish.

I have come to realize that the Glaucous-winged Gulls are still sitting around on the territories. Something I didn’t notice or understand last year until the spring shift and then I thought that they had just come back from somewhere. The juveniles that were raised here are mostly out foraging but also sometimes ‘hang-out’ where they were raised and also do a fait bit of begging from their parents. This week a lot of them have been practicing picking objects in their bills, flying with them and dropping them. Not sure if they are working on their aim but have noticed rocks, chunks of wood and bark and clumps of vegetation on the walkways. Yesterday morning I found a rock on the roof of the energy building and when I looked around saw the damage done to one of the solar panels.

Other birds seem a lot more refined. It is so nice to see the Harlequin Ducks back again, they are a favourite of mine. More and more Surf Scoters are flying through from west to east and it seems that fall is in the air.

 

Chores were routine both days and there were no visitors.

 

 

Hotel California

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It was a glorious October day with sunshine and light southeast winds. The barometer slid down to almost 1015 hPA but the forecast looks good with more light winds and sunshine.

Only two whale watching tour boats were observed visiting the Ecological Reserve today. Several ‘pleasure’ craft came through and only one speeder was observed, two young men in a rental boat.

There are more and more California Sea Lions and they are damaging the burial cairns and the area above the boat shed where the rare plants used to live. Where ever they haul-out for more than a few days becomes quickly burnt looking and devoid of vegetation. Today they knocked down a big boulder from above the boat house onto the walkway. The Canada Geese have returned as well and are stubborn about staying so it feels like an invasion. The Stellers Sea Lion numbers are staying steady and individually they seem much wiser and wilder than the California party lions. The Northern Elephant Seals sleep amongst the Californians and are much less reactive than either of the two sea lion species.

Chores were all about fighting entropy today. The sunshine was a bonus for power generation and making fresh water. There were no visitors.