Fog as an Abiotic Factor at Race Rocks

Wikipedia lists 9 different types of fog. Race Rocks experiences precipitation fog in the winter and steam fog in the summer. Steam fog occurs when cold air passes over warmer water.

Precipitation fog occurs when clouds of water vapor begin to condense. When the temperature reaches the dew point, vapor condenses to leaves behind small droplets of water. Fog is therefore a source of moisture. See example below: Many animals and plants can survive on the moisture left behind by fog. In tropical areas fog has the greatest effect on the surrounding ecosystem, providing water crucial to the survival of many plants and animals. Fog data for Race Rocks has not been collected , but the precipitation from either steam or precipitation fog is often recorded as a 0.2mm entry on the weekly rain record . An example is shown below.

Frequently in the summer, the Strait of Juan de Fuca is blanketed with fog. In this picture, the Olympic Mountains protrude above the fog bank which lies to the south of Race Rocks. (Photo taken June 17, 2006 on the remote camera 5 by PB)

 

The opening scenes of this video show how dense the fog was on one trip in June to Race Rocks. The boat was guided by radar.


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Click here to see our file on the Fog Horn at Race Rocks.
An early morning sunrise through the fog.
At 10:00 AM on July4 2007, this heavy fog enveloped the island. The sun was totally obscured, even though it was a hot sunny day back in Pedder Bay. A ” fog arch” could be seen to the west. This is caused by diffraction of light by the water droplets. It continued down into the ocean. (Photo from camera 5 remote by Garry F)

See the posts in this log noting the days with fog

SOME INFORMATION ON THE EFFECTS OF FOG ON ORGANISMS

In some coastal areas, tree species receiving the highest amount of pollutants via fog are experiencing damage. At Race Rocks, in foggy weather, the dried grasses will condense moisture from the atmosphere. This moisture allows the plants to recover from summer drought.On hot summer days the temperature at Race Rocks can be as high as 10 degrees C lower due to the fog compared to the adjacent shoreline of southern Vancouver Island.

Below is an example of “the perfect storm” –conditions for the creation of “Precipitation Fog”This particular week in September of 2006 has been chosen to show how we can get “rain” recorded in the tipping bucket sensor at Race Rocks even when there is “no rain in sight” at Race Rocks.. Late Monday evening of Sept 4, 0.2 mm. of precipitation was recorded. I recall seeing a heavy dew on the fields in Metchosin on that particular morning. At the same time, the dew point was 12.8. The humidity was 100%

 

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The temperature was at 12.8 degrees C, so the formation of moisture would happen on surfaces on the island. Previously, the light keeper would record this as trace when doing the rain calculation.

 

Students at Race Rocks on a foggy day

Find the light tower

Recent Posts

Pacific willow dock

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 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.

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