A pod of 6 to 8 Orcas moved towards Victoria

Posted on by

Sunday, June 09, 2002 Good Evening

TEMPERATURE: A beautiful day, Max. 14.2C  Min. 9C  11.5C
MARINE LIFE: Today’s animal pace was quite busy. Some of the Gulls are still collecting for their nests, while others are already incubating 2 or 3 eggs. The goslings are becoming very independent, frequenting the waters with their parents and exploring the little mysteries of Race Rocks. Some fly-overs by the resident Bald Eagle this morning, however it didn’t stay very long. A pod of 6 to 8 Orcas moved towards Victoria late this afternoon, one pair had a calf with them. The Sea Lion that has frequented the docks for the last couple of days did not return today, perhaps a sign of improving health.
HUMAN IMPACT: A total of 12 ecotourism vessels in and around the reserve today. Three fishing vessels on the reserves boarder for several hours. A group of canoes and kayaks paddled around the island today, unfortunately disregarding the 100m restrictions about approaching the seals. The group’s close proximity scared the seals into the water. We often have problems with kayakers. They think they are being so environmentally responsible but in this reserve they scare more marine mammals into the water than many other user groups. At approximately 10am a Victoria Coast Guard Auxillary boat, ( rigid hull inflatable, similar to the whale watchers vessels, sped straight through the reserve at excessive speed. They came within 20m. of the divers off the docks, the two groups of divers complaining of wake, despite a dive flag being in place and the no wake policy within the MPA.
posted by at 8:52 PM
Good Morning:
WEATHER: Sky Clear  Vis. 8 miles Wind 8 Knots from West Sea 1 Foot Chop
posted by at 5:43 AM

The divers observed a new species of Nudibranch

Posted on by

Saturday, June 08, 2002

TEMPERATURE: Max. 13.7C  Min. 8 C  Reset 11.5 C
MARINE LIFE: The Gulls have had a calm day with no visits by bald eagles. One Sea lion appeared on the boat ramp this afternoon. The divers observed a new species of Nudibranch at around 10m.
HUMAN IMPACT: The divers finished the repairs to the conduit in the afternoon. Three ecotourist boats were spotted in the reserve and one pleasure craft was spotted speeding right through the reserve.
posted by at 10:48 PM

Good Morning
WEATHER: Sky Partly Cloudy  Vis. 8miles Wind From West 15knots  Sea 1 foot chop
posted by at 5:39 AM

Eagles harassing gulls in early morning

Posted on by
Friday, June 07, 2002
TEMPERATURE: Max. 11.8 C  Min. 7.4 C Reset 9.8
MARINE LIFE: Some interesting bird life today. What we believe was an Arctic Tern hovered for a few minutes over the Gull colony late this afternoon. We also spotted a pair of Cormorants (probably Pelagic) on the cliff behind the heli-pad, perhaps the pair are checking out what used to be a common nesting site. The Gulls were frightened during the four visits by the Bald Eagles today, however some of the nesting pairs with two or more eggs refused to lift off from their nests. Indeed the eagles were quite a harassment early morning, with two landing within the middle of the nesting sites, only 15m from the house. One Sea Lion appeared on the boat ramp this morning, perhaps with some sort of eye problem.
HUMAN IMPACT: Hyaku and Second Nature docked early this morning, spending nearly two hours docked. The divers made some underwater repairs to the conduit, just off the docks. No eco-tourism or other boat activity within the reserve.
posted by at 11:02 PM
WEATHER UPDATE: Large Storm Front Moving North West South of Race Rocks
posted by at 10:11 AM

A Turkey Vulture was flying about in the strong winds,

Posted on by
Thursday, June 06, 2002
TEMPERATURE: Max. 12.0 C  Min. 11.0 C  Reset 11.0
MARINE LIFE: Early this morning one Bald Eagle flew around the Gulls nests, spending around 10 minutes looking for prey, despite the constant harassment by the Gulls. The eagle flew of to the west, and was out of site. Perhaps an hour later two Bald Eagles were spotted hunting together, they brought down a Glaucous-winged Gull and one eagle was seen carrying a Gull wing away. There was also other interesting bird action mid-morning. A Turkey Vulture was flying about in the strong winds, attempting to find food. The winds were a challenge for the vulture, with the bird struggling in the gusts. It was particularly noteworthy that the Black Oyster Catchers made a great effort to harass the vulture. This was caught on video just before the divers entered the water and can be seen at http://www.racerocks.com/racerock/archives/vidbenmovie.htm The divers reported an abundance of sperm and eggs in the nutrient rich water off the docks.
HUMAN IMPACT: No whale watching activity within the reserve today. Indeed the strongs winds, 25-35 knots, kept most vessels away. Hyaku docked twice, bringing equipment and materials for the web-cast and conduit repairs. One major disturbance was the Defence Forces Blasting on Bentinck Island which clearly frightened the Sea lions into the water, Around 10 of the 12 Sea lions disappeared within the first two blasts, approximately 10:30am, and have not yet returned. (Note: As of June 18- they have not returned- will not be back until August now. ) .The three blasts with only a few minutes spacing sent shock waves that rattled the house and were not at all pleasant.
posted by at 9:45 PM
Good MorningWEATHER: Sky Partly Cloudy  Vis. 12miles  Wind West 25-30knots Sea 2-3 foot chop and rising posted by at 6:42 AM

the whales look even more beautiful in the straits without an entourage of power boats.

Posted on by
Wednesday, June 05, 2002
Good Evening
TEMPERATURE: Max. 12.4 C  Min. 9.8 C  Reset 11.1
MARINE LIFE: We have been gifted over the last few days with many Orca visits. Again, early this morning, a large pod of 9 or 10 Orcas moved past south Race Rocks. It was nice to see them without the whale watching boats for once, the whales look even more beautiful in the straits without an entourage of power boats. We have sited several Gull eggs over the last couple of days, hopefully we get some chics soon. The Bald Eagle was back again this afternoon, sending the Gulls up in a cloud of wings and deafening squawks It appears that the eagle only attempts to make a surprise kill and if unsuccessful leaves the harrassement of the other birds quickly.
Human Impact: The whale watching boats appeared quickly after the Orca sitings, probably from radio information of their presence. There was a total of 12 whale watching boats today, the majority arriving between 9am-11am. One fishing vessel was filmed during our live web cast speeding well within the reserve. The name and number of the boat was taken for further action. Second Nature was docked from 9am-Midday, it provided support for the live webcast to World Wildlife Fund Canada. The divers again entered the water around the docks, spending just over half an hour in the water.
posted by at 9:39 PM
Good Morning
WEATHER: Sky Overcast  Vis. 12miles Wind South East 5knots  Sea 1 foot chop
posted by at 5:19 AM

Eudistylia vancouveri: feather duster tubeworm –The Race Rocks Taxonomy

Posted on by

 

The Feather Duster Tube worm is often associated with floating docks on the southern part of Vancouver Island. At Race Rocks, there are no floating docks but Eudistylia inhabits the protected rock crevasses of the lower intertidal zone. It can not withstand drying out too long so being in this tidal level will provide a maximum of an hour exposure at the lowest tides. While exposed in the air, their feather like gills are retracted, and the leathery parchment -like tubes are pinched closed at the opening. Underwater, the gills when released, are often banded a deep red and purple colour.

 

Domain Eukarya
Kingdom Animalia
Phylum Annelida
Class Polychaeta
Order Canalipalpata
Suborder Sabellida
Family Sabellidae
Genus Eudistylia
Species vancouveri
Common Name: Northern Feather Duster Wor

GF photo, 2007

Other Members of the Phylum Annelida at Race Rocks 
taxonomyiconReturn to the Race Rocks Taxonomy
and Image File
pearsonlogo2_f2The 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.

 June 2002  Garry Fletcher (PC)

Westmont School visit June 2002

Posted on by

 

In June, 2002 the grade six students of Nadine Cruikshank’s class at West-Mont school in Metchosin came out to Race Rocks to participate in a live webcast. Pearson College students Ben,Joe, Kiprop and former student Ryan Murphy introduce them to the ecology and the history of Race Rocks. (17 minutes)

 

West Coast Adventure for Women

Posted on by
Tuesday, June 04, 2002
Good Evening
TEMPERATURE: Max. 15.1 C  Min. 9.5 C  Reset 11.7
MARINE LIFE: Two Bald Eagle encounters today, one early this morning and one late this evening. The Gulls are very wary of any such danger to their nests and eggs. It appears we have a Gull nest on the roof of the science centre, the pair appear to be bringing material up to the old chimney, a most unorthodox place. The Crows have taken some more eggs, with a few cracked shells found about the place.
HUMAN IMPACT: Only one eco-tourist boat appeared today and no fishing vessels. The early morning fog that reduced visibility to less than a quarter of mile probably kept the tour boats away. Arriving at 9:30 in Second Nature, a small group of adults attending the week-long course going on at Pearson College (West Coast Adventure for Women) and their instructor Catrin Brown and Garry joined us for our morning webcast. The group stayed to the paths and respected the birds nesting areas.
Zodiac left and returned with supplies just after midday.
posted by at 9:12 PM
Good Morning
WEATHER: Sky Cloudy  Vis. 5 Miles  Wind South West 5 Knots  Sea 1 Foot Chop
posted by at 5:42 AM

Webcasting Crew at Race Rocks for the Johan Ashvud RR’02 Project

Posted on by

MEET THE CREW:

kiptower

Michael Kiprop Kenya (PC-2003)

joe

Joe Downham UK (PC-2003)

ben

Ben Dougall Australia (PC-2003)

ryan

Ryan Murphy Newfoundland & Labrador (PC-2001)

 —

“We had a great time webcasting live from Race Rocks on Camera 4 during the first two weeks of June for the Johan Ashuvud Race Rocks02 Project”
Three current first year students from Pearson College and Ryan Murphy, who graduated last year stayed at the Marine Science Centre. Ryan is returning to Race Rocks this month to do research for Mt.Allison Univ. on the macroalgal community.

See one video on Pterygophora which was one part of his project here: They conducted daily live and prerecorded webcasts with Garry Fletcher from the intertidal and from underwater using camera 4.

Garry

Garry Fletcher Biology/Diving faculty

For one of the webcasts we were joined by Sean LeRoy, Graduate Researcher, Georgia Basin Futures Project Sustainable Development Research Institute, University of British Columbia and Dr.James Tansey also of UBC. They came to participate in the webcast with Garry and Ryan on Marine Protected Areas in new Zealand and Canada with Tim Langlois, Leigh Marine Laboratory University of Auckland, and Anne Saloman, University of Washington, Zoology Department.

On three days we hosted small groups of students from local elementary schools who served as proxies in webcasts done for their classmates.

Support for the Race Rocks 02 Project came from the Johan Ashuvud Race Rocks Memorial Fund
Below are some of the Videos produced by the crew during the week.

benframes kids octopuss
Ben’s movie put together during the week. June 2002 field trip: for a live webcast with the crew, of the grade six students from West-Mont school . One morning we found the body of an octopus washed up in the intertidal zone. An impromptu dissection led to this video.

A large pod of Orcas passed straight through the reserve

Posted on by
Monday, June 03, 2002
Good Evening
TEMPERATURE: Max. 12.0 C Min. 8.8 C Reset 11.0
MARINE LIFE: Some fabulous marine events today, despite an early fog that reduced visibility to less than a quarter of a mile. A large pod of Orcas passed straight through the reserve late this afternoon, perhaps 6 in total. The whales seemed to be on the hunt however no Seals or Sea lions were taken. A Bald Eagle was also seen flying across west Race this afternoon, taking either a Oystercatcher, Crow or Pigeon Guillemot with it.
HUMAN IMPACT: A total of twelve eco-tourism boats were about the reserve today, most adhering to the reserve guidleines. However, one boat in particular was wthin the reserve directly following the Orcas. Despite an agreement to stay out of the reserve when whales are present in order to allow the whales some space. Hyaku and Zodiac also docked bringing equipment and supplies.
posted by at 10:22 PM
Good Morning
WEATHER: Sky Cloudy  Vis 8 Miles  Wind West 15 Knots  Sea 1 Foot Chop
posted by at 7:25 AM