Ring-necked Steller Sea Lion

Posted on Tuesday,November 11, 2014 by Nick Townley

The wind blew between 20 to 38 knots from the northeast for most of the day, switching to the east southeast in the evening. A swell with 1m waves came in from the east. The barometer climbed from 1023 to 1026 hPa. The visibility was unlimited, with clear skies.

There weren’t any boats seen in the reserve today.

A ring-necked steller sea lion was seen on South Rock, the same place that another one was seen yesterday. The sea lion has the brand 946R. It has been seen at Race Rocks since August. The Sea Lion Disentanglement Project is arranging a visit to rescue the two or three entangled sea lions that have been spotted recently on Race Rocks.

: Wind and waves battering the jetty.

: Branded steller sea lion 946R has been seen here since August. It has something cutting into it’s neck, possibly a plastic strap.

: A view of the right side of the ring-necked steller sea lion 946R.

: A large group of steller and california sea lions lounging on Middle Rock, in the late afternoon.

: The sun setting over the entrance to the Juan de Fuca Strait, to the west of Race Rocks.

Great Visibility

Gallery

Posted on Monday,November 10, 2014 by Nick Townley

This gallery contains 5 photos.

The barometer climbed overnight from 1007 hPa and leveled out to 1020 hPa, as the sun rose at 7:14. The wind blew from the north to northeast, around 10 knots for most of the day, with gusts up to 23 knots in … Continue reading →

The Sun is Shining

Posted on Friday,November 7, 2014 by Nick Townley

The wind dissipated over night. After 8:00am, the wind was calm, only blowing 3 to 5 knots from the southwest. The barometer rose to a high of 1030 hPa at noon, then slowly fell to about 1027 hPa. The temperature reached a high of 12.6^oC

There were five visitors that came from Pearson College, on the boat Second Nature. Courtney brought two folks from Cullen Water to install the repaired desalinator pump. Tristan and Robin, volunteers from Wales, helped carry the many boxes that contain the new composting toilets. Each house will have the toilets installed soon.

There were two whale watching boats in the reserve this afternoon. Four halibut fishing boats were spotted to the west of the reserve for most of the afternoon. Many large boats passed within a few kilometres of the southern boundary of the reserve, including a submarine, tankers and HMCS Edmonton.

The harbour seals were difficult to spot for the census yesterday. With the sun and warm weather today, they were hauled out on the rocks to catch some rays. 32 were seen today, compared with only 7 yesterday.

Three branded sea lions were seen on South Seal Rocks, just south of the engine room. I have let Pat Gearin at NOAA know about the sightings and he will let me know where else they have been.

There are updates about the two branded sea lions spotted yesterday.

Pat Gearin wrote to me with the details about the Steller that was branded 966R as a pup at Rogue Reef, Oregon in July 2011. It is a male and so far we have 9 resights from this individual, all from BC. In 2011, he was sighted at Pachena Point once, and in 2012 he was sighted at Carmanah 8 times.

Matthew Tennis wrote that U596 was branded on August 15, 2014 in Astoria. At that time he weighed ~193 kg. He was seen in Astoria for a few days following the branding and again in the middle of October. This is the first resight for this animal outside of Astoria. They have high site fidelity and being a relatively young animal, it is very possible he will be seen at Race Rocks for years to come.

Maintenance tasks were performed today: moving propane tanks, pressure washing the algae and bird poop off the exterior of the houses, dismantling the old toilets, picking up garbage that has washed ashore and running generator and new and improved desalinator.

: A submarine motors to the south of Race Rocks. Nov. 7, 2014. Photo by Nick Townley

: A gull that was killed and eaten recently by a bird of prey, maybe an eagle.

: A scapula of a sea lion found in a mud puddle on the northeast side of the Race Rocks. This is probably from a sea lion carcass that washed up there in the winter.

: The harbour seals are easy to spot today, as they sun themselves on West Rocks, with an eagle on the high point of the rock.

: HMCS Edmonton, a coastal defence vessel from the Canadian Navy, passes just south of the bouy marking Rosedale Rock. Nov. 7, 2014. Photo by Nick Townley

: A steller sea lion with the brand 833R. It was branded at Rogue Reef, Oregon.

: A california sea lion with the brand U_00. The first number couldn’t be seen.

: The desalinator sea lion returned last night to his favourite spot by the desalinator bunker, just in time for the delivery of the new pump. The sea lion appears to be moulting, maybe that’s why it wants some privacy.

: A beautiful sunset to cap off the day.

: A california sea lion with the brand U488. It was captured in the Columbia River Area and branded in Astoria, Oregon.

A Mighty Wind’s a Blowin’ for Census Day

Posted on Thursday,November 6, 2014 by Nick Townley

The barometer dropped all last night from 1015 hPa to 1002 hPa this morning, before it began to climb again towards 1008 by the end of the day. The wind started from the northeast, but then switched to blow strongly from the southwest from mid morning onwards. The gusts reached 47 knots in the evening.

There were two whale watching boats seen in the reserve.

Once the fog lifted, the census was a bit easier to do. Then the wind blew up and most of the birds hunkered down on the leeward side of the island. I wasn’t able to positively identify all of the individual species of gull. Next week, I will strive to get an accurate breakdown of the number of glaucous-winged, thayer’s, california, western and heerman’s. There are a lot fewer gulls compared to last week, only 14% of the 3224 that were on the reserve last Thursday.

See the photos below for some of the noteworthy species and sights seen during today’s census.

Here are the results of the census:

Steller Sea Lion: 211

California Sea Lion: 404

Harbour Seal: 7

Northern Elephant Seal: 11

Bald Eagle: 1

Canada Goose: 24

Double Crested Cormorant: 14

Pelagic Cormorant: 56

Gull: 450

Black Oystercatcher: 18

Black Turnstone: 26

Surfbirds: 15

Dunlin: 4

Killdeer: 2

Savannah Sparrow: 2

Fox Sparrow: 1

A rainbow appeared as the fog was burning off this morning. Turbine Rock is in the foreground. The pot of gold is Church Point.

A rainbow appeared as the fog was burning off this morning. West Rock is in the foreground. The pot of gold is Church Point.

A savannah sparrow near the burial mounds by the marine science centre

Another view of a savannah sparrow

Black turnstone

Black turnstones on the boardwalk by the crane

A male elephant seal barks and floats beside the jetty.

A male elephant seal floats and barks beside the jetty.

Sandpiper-like birds: durlin, surfbird and black turnstone

Sandpiper-like birds: dunlin, surfbird and black turnstone. Can you identify them all?

A black turnstone and elephant seal share boat ramp

A black turnstone and elephant seal share the boat ramp

Black oystercatchers on the rocks by the surge channel

A steller sea lion with the brand “966R.” The “R” signifies that it was branded in Rogue Reef, Oregon. I will add more information when I find out. [Updated information from Pat Gearin with the NOAA: The Steller was branded as a pup at Rogue Reef, Oregon in July 2011. It is a male and so far we have 9 resights from this individual, all from BC. In 2011, he was sighted at Pachena Point once, and in 2012 he was sighted at Carmanah 8 times.]

Another view of 966R

A branded california sea lion with the brand “U596.” The “U” or “C” depending on which way you look at it, means that the sea lion was captured in the Columbia River Area. It was branded in Astoria, Oregon. [Updated information from Matthew Tennis: U596 was branded on August 15, 2014 in Astoria. At that time he weighed ~193 kg. He was seen in Astoria for a few days following the branding and again in the middle of October. This is the first resight for this animal outside of Astoria. They have high site fidelity and being a relatively young animal, it is very possible he will be seen at Race Rocks for years to come.]

A group of steller and california sea lions get bashed by the waves on the south islands.

A group of steller and california sea lions get bashed by the wind and waves on the south islands.

The wind gusted to 47 knots from the south west during the late afternoon, whipping up big waves. The buoy that marks Rosedale Reef can be seen getting tossed around in the background.

The wind gusts reached 47 knots from the southwest during the late afternoon, whipping up big waves. The buoy that marks Rosedale Rock can be seen getting tossed around in the background.

The lighthouse with the moon rising behind

Sealions from west of 140W at Race Rocks.

Posted on Tuesday,October 21, 2014 by Anne Stewart

It was another day of mixed weather at Race Rocks. Gentle breezes less than five knots, tended north to northeast all day. While the sea surface appeared calm, there was a big sea running that caused spectacular waves on the west side of the islands. The barometer rose until noon and then started to slip back down. Although it looks like rain coming on the horizon now, it was a fairly dry day while apparently pouring down over on the American side.

In spite of many Humpback Whales in sight from Great Race, the season must be winding down, as there were only five whale-watching boats observed within the Ecological Reserve and only one sports fisher stopped by for a look at the seals and sealions.

The interesting, new (to me), Steller’s Sealion brand of the day comes from almost as far away as yesterday’s George Island animal whose branding location was indicated by the ‘Y.’ Today’s ‘T’ stands for Marmot Island which is just off the southeast end of Kodiak Island. So both of these animals are from the western Alaskan Stellers Sealion population, west of 140 degrees west. The western population is considered to be endangered due to its inexplicably, declining numbers. How interesting that these guys are hanging out here, where there is a lots of food right now, far from home.

This branded Stellers Sealion was born on Marmot Island just off Kodiak Island, Alaska. He was branded as a pup, July 4, 2010.

Second Nature, with Courtney at the helm, brought out the chimney specialists who cleaned and inspected the chimneys in both houses. A young Frenchman from Lille who is volunteering at Pearson College came along as well. I did some more trouble-shooting with the desalinator and called an expert for help. I strung the fire-hoses and fired up the Briggs & Stratton and pumped seawater into the cistern. The hoses are getting a nice fresh water rinse over-night.

Spot the Mian.

Posted on Monday,October 20, 2014 by Anne Stewart

Weather was happening all around Race Rocks today but it was pretty nice here. There was a significant swell, which is nice to watch, unless you want to launch a boat. Across the Strait, on the American side, it was really pouring on the Olympic Peninsula especially in the Elwah Valley. Here, clouds came and went, it rained a little, it shone a bit and the barometer was actually up and steady after yesterday’s low. Forecast is for more of the same.

There were only two whale-watching boats observed in the Ecological Reserve today and one was a “new” catamaran vessel that I have not seen before, called “4-Ever Wild”.

Juan de Fuca Warrior spent the day with a crew diving in the Ecological Reserve most of the day again today. I forgot to mention that yesterday there were three happy kayakers enjoying a paddle in the Ecological Reserve and unwittingly getting a little too close to the sealions.

Some of the photos of sealions taken from the tower actually show Elephant Seals too. Can you spot the Elephant Seals in these two photos?

I spent quite a bit of time troubleshooting web-cams, “watertight boxes”, power and ethernet lines, not very successfully, but maybe tomorrow. I changed both of the cartridge filters on the desalinator today. I worked on further organization of the brand, tag and entanglement data for both species of sealion and got some new photos of brands.

The Steller Sealion in the background Euju 299Y was I believe, tagged on St. George Island in the Bering Sea. The Y refers to that location which is close to 5,000 kilometers away from Race Rocks. Looking for confirmation of this amazing voyage.

The Tie That Binds

Posted on Thursday,October 16, 2014 by Anne Stewart

It was another northeast day, with really not much happening weather wise. It blew NE about ten knots, was mostly overcast in the morning, with some sun in the afternoon. The barometer rose gradually all morning and then started to slowly slide after noon. It is expected that tomorrow’s southeast will bring rain, starting late tonight.

The whale watching boats were busy in the afternoon with Humpback Whales to the southeast of Race Rocks and more activity out to the west. A total of eight tour boats were seen in the Ecological Reserve.

Today was mega-fauna census day and these are the results:
Steller Sealion 298
California Sealion 508
Harbour Seal 79
Northern Elephant Seal 9
River Otter 2
Canada Goose 22
Greater White-fronted Goose 1
Harlequin Duck 5
Double-crested Cormorant 61
Pelagic Cormorant 15
Black Turnstone 9
Surfbird 5
Black Oystercatcher 38
Glaucous-winged Gull 145
Thayer’s Gull 1482
California Gull 3
Western Gull 7
Heermann’s Gull 35
Gull sp. 52
Common Murre 1
Common Raven 2
Fox Sparrow 2
Savannah Sparrow 15

Here are a couple of shots of Surfbirds, alone and with Black Turnstones.

Surfbirds resting in the Jetty Bay.

The census was challenging due to the numbers and species of gulls and the fact that both Steller Sealion and Harbour Seal numbers were lower than expected during the morning count, so they were re-counted in the early evening. I generally like to count Harbour Seals on the morning low tide but the tide wasn’t really doing much today. The evening counts were higher for both the Steller and the Harbour Seals. Two new Elephant Seals arrived today. They are both moulting, the smaller one hung out with the dual tagged three year-old, which appears to be staying on. The bigger animals may have gone back to Middle Rock as there were still six animals visible there.

Ring-necked animals as well as tagged and branded animals were also re-surveyed today. I am still working on the branding data from a month ago. Two of the ring-necked Steller Sealions that have been observed since August are still here and languishing as the plastic straps cut into the backs of their necks. I am putting out an appeal to the disentanglement crew again.

The second ring-necked animal ‘highlighted’ here is also branded on its’ left side 946R. I believe that it was branded at its’ natal colony which from the R should be Rogue Reef in southern Oregon. From the number it was branded after 2009 but I will find out more.

If it is not lying on its’ left side this ring-necked Steller’s Sealion is easy to tell apart from the others.

Like the other Steller it has plastic strapping, which is visible on the ventral surface.

This is a bit gory but I hope it will inspire the disentanglement team to come to Race Rocks.

The Atlin Post passed by Race Rocks today but did not slow. Must have been in a hurry.

Did not do much maintenance today other than the basic cleaning, making water with the desalinator and electricity with the generator.

Field trip for VNHS

Posted on Saturday,September 27, 2014 by Garry Fletcher

Members of the Victoria Natural History Society accompanied ER warden Garry Fletcher on a field trip to Race Rocks this morning. Most of the members were avid birdwatchers so this time of year was ideal to view some of the many species that stopover at Race Rocks in their fall migration. See the census records submitted by Daniel Donnecke

Some of the birds seen on the trip”

: A short-billed dowitcher and a Black Turnstone

: 4 white fronted geese are still in the areaa

: Brandt’s cormorants on middle rock

: A flock of American pipits were feeding in the area where the vegetation was flattened by the sealions

Also on a trip on a ecotourism vessel, Liam Singh took this image of this wandering tattler which we had missed.

One branded california sealion was hauled out near the docks. The number was not clear.

Last Blast of Summer

Posted on Sunday,September 21, 2014 by Anne Stewart

Tomorrow is the equinox and it was a glorious last day of summer today on Race Rocks. In the morning, outflow northeasterly winds soon gave way to westerlies, which gained momentum creating whitecaps and active seas in the afternoon. Both yesterday and today there was also an ocean swell, indicating a storm out at sea. Some of the surges created large, standing waves in the tidal flows. The barometer continued slide today and a change is on the way with showers forecast to start by tomorrow evening.

There were only a few whale-watching boats today, four observed in total. The Ogden Point Dive Centre’s charter boat ran a dive right off the jetty today. A few recreational boats stopped to watch the sea lions and three were speeding in the reserve, as they came into and left the area. A Pedder Bay, Oak Bay Marine Group rental boat didn’t bother to slow at all and sped through the area packed with sea lions.

After picking up calipers at the floating lab, I was able to almost complete meristic data collection for the Glaucous-wing Gull mortality study. Measurements were made of over 50 gulls in order to determine the age range and location at death. It has been so dry for so long, that the birds were basically mummified, not nearly as gross as standing up-wind of the living sea lions.

Several opportunistic brand photos were taken today and census photos were taken to validate against the more traditional census technique.

Sometimes the brands are easier to read with binoculars than in the photo. This one is 1032.

It seems that more Steller’s Sea Lions, Thayer’s Gulls and Double-crested Cormorants are arriving daily As you can see from this photograph of one the main California Sea Lion sleeping areas they are packed in tightly and not strictly segregated by species.

Sea lions pack into sleeping areas. This big Steller’s Sea Lion caused a ruckus by walking over the Californians.

The more mundane tasks of washing the solar panels, building up the compost, washing windows and mending the fences were done in the morning and it was actually hot, hmmm, just like summer. The seawater data was collected in the afternoon as the sunshine powered the solar panels which in turn powered the desalinator to make fresh water out of salt water. As the sun set south of Cape Flattery now, the classic Lister generator topped up the batteries for the overnight period.