Ecological Notes:

• A pod of humpbacks is still spending time to the southwest of the island. I spotted several last evening from the kitchen window while I was doing dinner dishes.
• There are now two female elephant seals near the boat ramp. They are similar size. The one who I first spotted today, has a bit lighter fur and more scars on her back, as compared to the other who has been around on and off for a few days.
• I have seen about 50 dead gull chicks around the island. There could be more in the areas I can not see. A few of the chicks have been ripped apart by a bird. I am not sure if it was an eagle or gull. Most of the dead chicks do not have any obvious signs of death, they are just lying in the grass near nests.
• See the photo gallery below for more ecological happenings from the past two days.

Weather:

• Yesterday (July 21):
  • Sky: Fog overnight until mid-morning, partly cloudy for the rest of the day
  • Wind: W 19-32 kts
  • Sea: up to 2′ chop, low westerly swell
  • Temperature Low 11 ^oC, High 14 ^oC
• Today (July 22):
  • Sky: Partly Cloudy
  • Wind: W 13-33 kts
  • Sea: up to 3′ moderate
  • Temperature Low 12 ^oC, High 15 ^oC

Visitors:

• No visitors

Facility Work:

• Cleaning solar panels, routine tidying and checking infrastructure around the island.

Vessel Traffic:

• Many Canadian and American ecotour boats have been nearby and heading through the waters of the ecological reserve.

Here are photo highlights from the past two days. Click on the photos for larger views and captions.