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| Demolition at Race Rocks: Shows the stone building originally built at the base of the tower and the wooden foghorn tower. Both removed in the ’60’s and 70’s. See this file on the foghorns. | Darcy Mathews explains his research on Burial Cairns at Race Rocks to the Anthroplogy students from Pearson College. |
Rusted parts of the old boiler from the engine room are carried up to a
collection of other old parts stored at the base of the tower.
Throughout the year, on the main island of Great Race Rocks, a changing array of introduced garden flowers range over the landscape of the island. This island had been used by the British Colonial Navy and then by the Canadian Coast Guard since the 1860’s . During that time, many light keepers and their assistants had brought ashore soil and had planted gardens for their own provisioning. Along with the soil came many introduced species, and over the years, those species of plants that have been tolerant of the salt spray and the extreme drought of the summer months have survived. A further selective force was the “trimming and mowing” of the grass and the rock knolls on the island. Fire was always a hazard and as a result every attempt was made to prevent the build up of organic materials. In 1997 when Lester Pearson College started managing the environment on the island, a decision was made to attempt to restore the grassed area to a more natural environment by leaving it in its natural state. The introduced flowers are not cultivated, if they survived the conditions, they are allowed to flourish. Those that are unpalatable to Canada geese grazing now have an advantage. The unique thing about these perennials is that they often remain flowering throughout the winter since the air temperature, moderated by the surrounding waters keeps it the above freezing.
Link to other Posts on the Terrestrial Plants of Race Rocks
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| Hyacinthoides non-scripta: English bluebells. Native to Europe. | Matthiola incana: evening-scented stock, first discovered growing on cliffs above the sea in England. Also in picture with tower, above right. | Muscari racemosum / neglectum: Grape Hyacinth: native to Armenia | Crocus vernus subsp. vernus: Native to Asia. |
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| Sedum sp.: possibly Sedum album see also below This was introduced beside the assistant keepers house in the mid 1980s and has since spread over most of the rock-exposed parts of the island, partially because of increased pressure of Canada goose grazing on other plants | Calendula sp.: Native to the area from Macaronesia east through the Mediterranean region to Iran. Also shown beside the paths below where it self-seeds each year. | Cheiranthus allionii: Perennial wall flower, native to the Canary islands. This plant will flower throughout the year.In mild winters it does not stop blooming. | Cheiranthus allionii .–wallflowers near the residence with the tower in the background |
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| Sedum sp. | Pathway at Race Rocks with naturally growing border of Calendula.(Gulls will occasionally rip some out for nesting material.) | Gladiolus imbricatus : It is not yet in bloom in this picture, but several clumps grow in late May on the east side of the main residence. | G.imbricatusin bloom: Originally from south-eastern Europe/Turkey, it has been growing unattended here for over 50 years. |
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| This fiddleneck,Amsinckia spectabilis is a recent arrival to the islands, | Amsinckia spectabilis in bloom. Although not a garden escape, it has colonized many areas here possibly because of the unpalatability to Canada geese. | Close up of Amsinckia spectabilis in bloom.. | Fiddle shaped seed heads of Amsinckia spectabilis. Below are the seeds Unless otherwise stated, photos on this page were taken by G. Fletcher |
The Philadelphia Inquirer Monday April 4 2006 Note the webcams at race Rocks are listed in the listing of webcams on the last page
Chris Blondeau and Juan Carlos do another video of the substrate at the site of the piling installation prior to the pile drilling operation for the Tidal Current Energy Project. They document some of the species of hydroid, colonial ascidian and sponges which grow on the giant barnacles in the area. March 29, 2006.
Note: The video pauses on each clump in order to have a better view.
Chris Blondeau and Juan Carlos do another video of the substrate at the site of the piling installation prior to the pile drilling operation for the Tidal Current Energy Project. They document some of the species of hydroid, colonial ascidian and sponges which grow on the giant barnacles in the area. March 29, 2006.
Note: The video pauses on each clump in order to have a better view.
Invertebrate Scenes from the video:
Chris Blondeau and Juan Carlos Yabar, did this survey to document the Invertebrates, particularly hydroids,sponges and colonial tunicates in the are where the turbine Piling was to be installed later in the year.
Blue-waved chiton , Tonicella undocaerulea Photo by G. Fletcher
Domain Eukarya
Kingdom Animalia
Phylum Mollusca
Class Polyplacophora
Order Chitonida
Family Tonicellidae
Genus Tonicella
Species undocaerulea
Common Name: Blue-waved chiton
Other Members of the Phylum Mollusca at Race Rocks.
 Return to the Race Rocks Taxonomyand Image File |
 The Race Rocks taxonomy is a collaborative venture originally started with the Biology and Environmental Systems students of Lester Pearson College UWC. It now also has contributions added by Faculty, Staff, Volunteers and Observers on the remote control webcams. |
In October of 2011, Ryan Murphy reported many of these at Race Rocks. This coincided with a large infestation in Puget Sound at the same time.
Image by Ryan Murphy
Two individuals of this species were observed at Race Rocks in 1980, Photo by Pearson College Divers
| Domain | Eukarya |
| Kingdom | Animalia |
| Phylum | Cnidaria |
| Sub-Phylum | Medusozoa |
| Class | Scyphozoa |
| Order | Semaeostomeae |
| Family | Pelagiidae |
| Genus | Chrysaora |
| Species | fuscescens |
| Common Name: | West Coast Sea nettle |
Link to the Race Rocks Taxonomy:
Link to other jellyfish specimens from Race Rocks:
This file is provided as part of a collaborative effort by the students, staff and faculty of
Lester B. Pearson College, Ryan Murphy.
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| Locations of three of the concrete cylinders that we think we were used in the construction phase of the tower | Correct location as indicated by concrete adhesions on the rock surface | Cylinder #1 had become detached from the rock, as it was in a storm exposed area on the East side. |
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| Cylinder 2 lies down on the vegetated area. We have not determined its original location yet. | Cylinder #3 is in its original location, the only marker undisturbed over the years. | Surface markings on cylinder #3. |
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A significant reference in this article helps explain the occurrence of three similar markers at Race Rocks. This was in reference to Discovery Island, but the same type of markers occur at Race Rocks. ” Three cast concrete cylinders referenced the original lighthouse. These were positioned in a straight line with distances measured between each and the lighthouse.” |
| Cylinder #3. | Cylinder #4 was just recently found down in the surge channel west of the engine room. We are still trying to figure out its original location so we can reattach it. |
Materials for this file have been assembled in 2006 by Garry Fletcher, Educational director, racerocks.com, former faculty member at Lester B. Pearson College.
Jeremias tests the salinity using a hydrometer. This manual method has been used at Race Rocks from 1935 until more recent years when a digital salinometer has been used.
For monthly records of Salinity refer to :
https://www.racerocks.ca/?s=Salinity&submit=Search
“During our project week at Race Rocks, Mike Slater, the Race Rocks Marine Protected Area Guardian asked us if we could make a video explaining the daily duties necessary to maintain the facility. Students who are relieving on the island during Mike’s absence will be able to use this data as a guide for performing their duties, as well as providing a useful information resource for students visiting the island.
These duties include two daily engine checks, a salinity check one hour before high tide, and keeping a record of the days weather, as well as explaining the functions and instructions for testing machinery located on the island.”
ABIOTIC EFFECTS OF SALINITY ON ORGANISMS
Organisms which live in Tidepools have to withstand changing salinities which may range from 0 parts per thousand to over 100 parts per thousand. Here is an example of an algae that in the summer lives in concentrated brine of the evaporated tidepool number 7.
Rob measures salinity with the salinometer in tidepool Number 4..This file shows the results that one class in environmental systems got when measuring the salinities of tidepools. Note there can be quite a variation in both temperature and salinity, depending on the elevation of the pool and therefore the frequency of flooding from the ocean.
Mean Monthly Sea Surface Salinity at Race Rocks-1936 to present .
Two decades of mean monthly Salinity records are compared in the following investigation.
Salinity Comparisons for 2 Decades
There are a number of interesting features of the two decades almost 50 years apart.
Some open-ended questions that you may wish to pursue:
You may also see the the raw data used to make the graphs in the two tables below. It may be useful in this format to clip and paste into an EXCEL workbook for further analysis. If you come up with any other interesting analysis of the data from this exercise or from looking at the complete data archive. We would be interested in carrying it attached to this page.
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