Seeing as Merriam-Websters word of the day is vexillology (the study of flags), I thought it would be the perfect day to replace our wind ravaged, faded and torn Canadian flag. As with most things they seem to take longer than you expect. The retainer line (attaching the two ends of the flag halyard to make a continuous loop) was frayed so that was replaced first. I struggled a bit attaching the line on the bottom of the new flag and settled for an anchor bend knot and a half-hitch and left a long tail in case someone wanted to change the knot. A proud patriotic moment – Oh Canada….. was sung out loud.

Wildlife notes:

It was a glorious sunny and windy day. The currents and waves were lively. I watched a gull swallow an entire large chiton in one gulp and found a blue egg in the killing fields. I was worried at first that it was a pigeon guillemot egg but it seemed to be too large.

Mysterious blue egg amongst the gull eggs.

Female elephant seal on day 11 of its molt.

Facility Work

• cleaned solar panels
• replaced the Canada flag

Vessels

• Ecotourism: 24
• Private: 6

Weather

Fresh westerly breeze until early afternoon then blowing 30 knots for the remainder of the day. Skies partly cloudy. Daytime temperatures: low 10, high 12.

Mammals:

• Steller sea lion: 0  (June 7: 2, May 30: 10, May 23: 6, May 15: 21, May 8: 37)
• California sea lion: 3 (June 7: 12)
• Harbour seal: 211 (June 7, 103, May 30: 90, May 23: 50)
• Elephant seal: 1 female

Birds:

• Gulls:  603 plus a group of 122 immature gulls and some visiting California gulls on the western rocks  (June 7: 645, May 30: 464, May 23: 467, May 15: 391, May 8: 114)
• Pigeon guillemot: 36 – should be more but out fishing (June 7: 82, May 30: 6, May 23: 30, May 15: 78, May 8: 153)
• Cormorants: 33
• Canada geese: 3
• Bald eagle: 5
• Black oystercatcher: 12 adults plus 5 chicks

Wildlife notes:

The highlight of the day was finding the Coast Guard oystercatcher pair’s three chicks alive and well. Unless a parent comes with a meal, the chicks are hidden in the vegetation and are impossible to spot. What a relief they survived predation from the gulls! It was also a great comfort to find the West Jetty oystercatcher pair delivering food to their chicks. The chicks remained hidden behind a rock so I couldn’t determine if all three eggs hatched.

General location of the Coast Guard oystercatchers. They are in the area of the fog horn.

The Coast Guard black oystercatcher parent and its three chicks who have come out into the open for meal time.

Other things of note were what appeared to be vomit on the solar panels and odd looking fleshy bones on the walkway. I thought maybe a Canada goose leg, but they seem already plucked and were probably flown here from someone’s backyard barbeque.

Vomit on the solar panels. I do not know whose.

D’em bones.

The last remaining female elephant seal on day 10 of her molt.

Facility work

• cleaned the solar panels
• topped up battery fluids
• fresh water delivery, another is coming on Monday and I’ll report on the final volumes then.

DND

Two of the loudest blasts I have heard so far – shook the house. Coincidently they occurred while I was reading about the Israeli strikes on Iran. I can’t image the terror of people living in war torn regions.

Vessels

• Ecotourism: 15
• Private: 1

Weather

Fresh westerly breeze. Skies with scattered clouds. Daytime temperatures: low 10 , high 12.

I spent last night and most of today cursing the @#$* gulls after I found the East Beach oystercatcher nest empty yesterday.  Seeing all the gull egg shells strewn about I figured they had taken the oystercatcher eggs as well. Today I visited the other nests on the island:

East Beach oystercatcher nest surrounded by sea lion bones with 3 eggs on May 17 2025

• East beach – empty, 5/27/2025 3 eggs
• West Jetty – empty, 6/1/2025, 3 eggs
• Coast Guard nest – empty, 5/27/2025 3 eggs
• Keeper’ House – 2 eggs, as previously observed
• Energy Building – 2 eggs, as previously observed

I found it interesting that they still occupied the area and called when I approached. This is in contrast to the gulls on the walkway that lost their last egg to predation, who just vacated. It took about 24 hours before it occurred to me that they may have hatched. I researched incubation period and reviewed when I first observed an oystercatcher chick last summer – it was June 12th 2024!  I ran out and sat for a while with the binoculars watching the East Beach parents. What joy! Two chicks were scrambling about.

East Beach oystercatchers with two chicks on June 12 2025

Tomorrow is census day so I will spend some time sitting still and watching the other empty nests. It may be more challenging as the West Jetty and the Coast Guard nests are not on a beach but several meters above the shore and it is possible they took their chicks to down to the shore line.

In today’s reading I discovered this amazing Haida story explaining their pale feet and bright beak ( I used to picture them as old, heavily lip sticked ladies in panty hose):

“When Xaw’s North Wind son brought the daughter of Xyuu Southeaster to live at his father’s house, she found it covered in icicles. These were her father-in-law’s fingers. When she inadvertently broke some, Xaw grew angry and trapped his daughter-in-law in ice and snow while she searched the shore for skats’aguu limpets. After some time she called her father from the south, singing continually for his help. Then the wind blew from Gangxid Kun, the southern-most point of Gangxid Gwaay.yaay Kunghit Island. The ice trapping Xyuu’s daughter melted. Then Xyuu himself arrived attended by black clouds full of rain and Xaw’s icicles fell.

Today sgaada.nga black oystercatcher skitters along the coasts of Haida Gwaii on crooked legs, still white and bent from the cold Xaw brought upon her for breaking his fingers. She pokes the shore with her long nose, reddened with Xaw’s frost. Their distinctive, long legs never carry them far from shorelines where they forage.” (See source)

Some of what I learned today (For more fun facts see source 1, 2)

• they are monogamous, loyal long term mates
• the incubation period averages 27 days, both sexes incubate
• their eggs are hardy enough to withstand occasional cold water submersion
• estimates of population size 10,000 pairs from the Aleutian Islands to Baja California – at least 5 of these are here on this tiny rock

I also learned too much about their incubation and sex roles in Prince William Sound, Alaska (See source)

• they attend their nest for 96% of the day
• nest failure due to predation by mammals or flooding (there are gulls there)
• females spend 20% longer on the nests because they aren’t as disturbance-motivated as the males
• duration of disturbance ending incubation period  is 56-73 minutes and duration of incubation period ending for duty relief is 94-110 minutes
• the night time incubation bouts are longer, which could be due to prevalence of nocturnal predators or the lower temperatures at night

Revised map of black oystercatcher nests on Race Rocks in 2025

Facility work

• cleaned the solar panels
• started cleaning in the tank shed

Vessels

• Ecotourism: 4
• Private: 1

Weather

Fresh westerly breeze most of the day, winds increasing to WNW 30 knots by early evening. Daytime temperatures: low 11, high 14.

There were visitors, a fresh water delivery and a technician from Veridian to inspect and trouble shoot issues with the solar panels.

I wore my helmet today as it was required to lay out the fire hoses. The hoses run from the Water Tank Shed, across the fields, walkways and rock down to the Jetty where the boat and portable water tank are tied up. There were may gull nests to weave the hose around and they were not pleased with me. Sometimes one can carry a small broom over your shoulder as a target for the swooping gulls but this job required two hands. I was spared a direct head strike this time. After the hose was place and I left, they simply went back to their nests or on look out duty. The elephant seal however was very unsure of the hose. To avoid it, she went the long way around from the field to the walkway intersection to make her way to the water via the walkway to the Fuel Tank Shed.  When she discovered the hose there as well, she went back up to the intersection and took the other walkway to the Boat Shed instead. She clearly has a good mental map of the place.  With all the effort and the lack of options, she braved the last section of hose on the boat ramp to make it to the water. The hoses were left in place as the next water delivery is scheduled in two days.

The female elephant seal on Day 8. She is almost there.

In terms of other wildlife, four pelicans did a tour over the eastern part of the island and headed back across the straight to the east. As I watched them approach, their dark colour and size and their lengthy periods of soaring alerted me to fetch the camera. It was been a while since a pelican last visited.

Brown pelicans

Also of note, the egg thief, or at least one of the culprits responsible for the growing patch of shells revealed himself with a new egg. No distinguishing features or obvious marking so it would be hard to put on a “Wanted” poster…last seen with a wet beak. I watched him walk away and stand near a female a nearby nest. He’s from the neighbourhood! The number of scattered egg shells at the front of the house is also increasing.  Why they deposit them near the house, like proud cats with their catches, is curious.

It seems the other female elephant seal “Silky Smooth” has left for good and is now back in the sea. The last sighting and photo of her was on June 9th. I will miss watching her.

Facility work

The solar technician found two failed solar panels and replaced many of the corroded wire connectors. Tomorrow we will have a better idea how our solar input has increased with the new connectors.

• cleaned solar panels
• laid out fire hoses and water pump

Visitors

The park warden, marine biology instructor, two seafront staff, the solar technician and one visitor were on the island today.

Vessels

• Ecotourism: 11
• Private: 1
• Paddleboarder: 1

Weather

Steady westerly moderate breeze until mid afternoon, then increasing to a strong breeze with gusts of 30 knots. Skies clear with periods of overcast conditions. Daytime temperature: low 10, high 16.

Wildlife notes

I had a special treat today. Three killer whales swam past the west side of the island and up the straight. One was a little one hard to spot without the camera. These are first I have seen arriving on May 15th!

There was more carnage on the walkway. Soo much orange. I wonder if this was dropped from a height? There are two gull nests nearby, one of which is now down to a single egg. If only our store bought eggs had were so dark in colour, although looking at this I loose my appetite for eggs.

The female elephant seal made huge progress in her molt the past 24 hours. She looks to be half way there.

Facility work

• cleaned the solar panels
• finished weeding the bricks by the Energy Building

Vessels

• Ecotourism: 7
• Private: 0

Weather

Clear skies and light and variable winds in the morning. Scattered clouds and gentle westerly breeze in the afternoon. Daytime temperatures: low 11, high 13.

Wildlife notes:

The bigger female elephant seal is in day 6 of the shedding part of her molt. The smaller post molt female is still here. These days they seem to be dragging themselves to the water several times a day. There is nothing unusual to report with the other wildlife. Some of the gulls haven’t laid their eggs yet but the majority are sitting on nests. It is a relief not to see any entangled sea lions. There have been whales in the area the past two days as evidenced by the distant groupings of ecotourism boats, but they have been too far off for me to see.

Day 6 – dressed in rags an tatters

The silky smooth post molt female elephant seal making the slow trip (many rests required) up the ramp after a swim.

Facility work

• cleaned the solar panels
• topped up fluid levels in the batteries
• cut a few rounds and chopped kindling

Visitors

A group of staff from Pearson College came for a site tour.

Vessels

• Ecotourism: 12
• Private: 1

Weather

Skies clear. Winds light and variable most of the day. A gently westerly breeze developed by late afternoon. Daytime temperatures: low 12, high 20.

Wildlife notes:

The gulls are eating something new.  The solar panels today were covered with exceptional large sprays of pinky-orange gull poo. One day I may write a Cleaners Guide to Gull Poo, rating ease of clean up from 1: requiring several rounds of pre-soaking and excessive scrubbing to 5: easy wipe, little water needed. Today’s poo rates as a 4: no scrub, extra water due to chunky consistency.

The egg thief is making a statement. Their collection of gull eggs shells near the house is growing.  I’d love to discover who is responsible – if only I had a trail camera to set up.

Unlike the egg thief, the female elephant is quietly minding her own business in the field.

Four chattering purple martins (3 female or immature and one male) visited today. I believe they are trying to find a nesting spot and were inspecting the pipes on the south side of tower that emit signals for the fog detectors. There are two nesting boxes on the island that have not yet been mounted. Seeing they have returned, I’ll look for a place to stand them up.

Facility work

• cleaned the solar panels
• worked on the walkways
• cleaned the outside windows on the Keeper’s House
• 690 L of diesel fuel was delivered today (415 L large tidy tank, 100L small tidy tank, 175 L into a barrel). The next delivery will not be until the fall.

Vessels

• Ecotourism:18
• Private: 11

Weather

Light SE and NE winds until late afternoon when the temperature reached 25 degrees C. Westerly fresh breeze in the early evening bringing the temperature down to 13 degrees C. Daytime temperatures: 13 low, high 25.

Parts of Vancouver Island reached over 30 degrees today. Here it is comfortable – no long underwear needed and I even skipped lighting the woodstove tonight.

Pacific willow dock (Rumex transitoris) is growing on the concrete stairs leading to the grassy field on the west side of the Keeper’s house. Unlike the curly dock pulled from the field on the opposite side of the path, this is a native plant that grows from California to Alaska. Happy to find another native plant species on the Race Rocks!

Pacific willow dock

Wildlife notes

The killing has begun.  I walked down the path to the Tank Shed, spent a under a minute there and walked back up to find an egg shell on the path. There were no eagles present during that time so it must have been another gull. The male (thicker beaked of the two) associated with the nest came right at me as if I did it. Shame, the nest had only one egg to begin with. It will be interesting to see if she will lay more and how long this will take.

Seagull egg

Facility work

It is chilly here in the house and the fire wood is running low. In preparation I took the chainsaw out for a cleaning and sharpening as I noticed it was dull when I cut the boards for the compost bin. I suppose it will get dull quickly in this environment cutting drift wood with tiny hidden embedded rocks and grit. It has been a while but the task and the smell of the chain oil brought back some fond memories of special times in Prince Rupert and Rosswood.

• cleaned solar panels
• weed whacked a bit (one batteries worth of charge)
• cleaned, inspected (worn sprocket) and sharpened the saw

Vessels

• Ecotourism: 2
• Private: 2

Weather

Fog present in the am. Winds predominately WSW, gentle to moderate breeze. Daytime temperatures: low 10, high 12.

Wildlife notes

The east beach black oyster catchers have moved their nest. They now have two eggs in a different location about two feet away. I am not sure if they moved the first egg that distance (picked it up or rolled it over a rock to get there?) or if they started over again after the first egg was taken. I have to correct my comment in the post presenting the black oystercatcher nests on the island, suggesting they laid the same number of eggs this year as hatched in 2024. I’ll have a look in a week and see what the status is on their eggs.

Locations of the black oystercatcher nests on the Energy Building beach in 2024 and 2025

Facility work

• cleaned solar panels
• topped up battery fluid levels
• did a manual run on the generator
• measured specific gravity
• started on the first part of the walkway to the Student Building

Started clearing the pathway to the Student Building – the right fork.

Vessels

• ecotourism: 6
• private: 0

Weather

Periods of fog with visibility <1 mile in the morning and for short periods in the afternoon. Winds light WSW in the morning, moderate westerly breeze in the afternoon.  Daytime temperatures: low 8, high 10.