Tag Archives: census

Sunny Monday, Census

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Today’s Weather:

  • Sky clear, blue
  • Visibility 15+ NM
  • Wind 15-20 knots W
  • Sea state: rippled, whitecaps

Marine Traffic/Visitors:

  • Today Greg visited for maintenance tasks
  • Quite a few pleasure crafts out today, but only a few passing through the reserve with no issues.
  • A steady trickle of whale watching boats today, especially just outside of the reserve where we spotted a humpback whale midday. We have been observing quite a few vessels cutting the paths of whales moving through the area, or driving over the location where the whales last surfaced.

Ecological Observations: 

  • Many shorebirds migrating this week. Today we counted 150 black turnstones! There are a handful of surfbirds mixed into the flock, which has been resting on the rocky beach area on the east side of the island.
  • The seagull chicks are growing quickly! They are starting to develop flight feathers and strengthening their wings by flapping them as if they are trying to fly. The last of the eggs seem to have hatched now. We noticed that one egg did not hatch in a nest where the eggs were stolen and the seagull had to re-lay later than usual. As the little ones become more adventurous their parents become more protective, diving at our heads and sometimes attacking each other if another gull gets too close.
  • We have been observing the pigeon guillemots pairing behaviors and wondering if they will nest here this year. We have spotted them carrying fish into crevices in the rocks, but we haven’t seen any nests inside the rocky areas (yet!).

Census:

  • 150 Black turnstones
  • 50 Pigeon guillemots
  • 10 surfbirds
  • 1 Bald eagle
  • 1 Cormorant
  • 11 Stellar sea lions
  • 760 Adult gulls
  • 56 Harbour seals
  • 2 Male elephant seals
  • 12 Canadian geese

Bird observations and census

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Weather:

  • Visibility 8 NM
  • Sky clear changing to some cloud cover later in the day
  • Wind 10-20 knots W
  • Sea state: waves up to .5 m
  • We had an interesting ‘burst’ of fog around 1700hrs: while outside we noticed the wind picking up quickly and a fog front moved over us such that we could see the edge of it pass overhead – the fog horn went off for maybe 5 minutes, and then the fog disappeared as fast as it came!

Marine Traffic/Island Visitors:

  • Greg visited today
  • There have been some eco-tourism boats, about 5 so far day.
  • Some private vessels: mostly staying outside of the area and fishing, a couple of them came through and looked around.

Ecological Observations: 

  • We noticed a pair of pigeon guillemots mating on the rocks above the jetty today, this is the first time we have observed this.
  • Also near the jetty, the oyster catcher chick living in and above the intertidal area is growing quickly – it moves fast and sometimes strays away from its parents but cannot fly yet. It is still relying on the adults for food.

Census:

  • 13 geese
  • 12 oyster catchers
  • 3 oyster catcher chicks
  • 142 harbour seals
  • 2 elephant seals
  • 442 seagulls
  • 2 sea lions
  • Roughly 40-50 pigeon guillemots – these are hard to count!

Busy Bird Life, Census

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Today’s Weather: 

  • Partially overcast
  • Visibility 10 -15NM
  • Wind 20-25 knots W
  • Waves up to 0.5 metres

Marine Traffic/Visitors: 

  • We’ve had a variety of vessels in the reserve over the past few days; we’ve seen a jet ski, large whale watching catamarans and RIBs, all the way to old wooden cabin cruisers.
  • Greg delivered water today

Ecological Observations:

  • As we sat to watch fourth of July fireworks in Port Angeles we observed a humpback whale pass outside of the reserve around 11 pm and spray a few times before moving on.
  • This morning there were 5 bald eagles in the reserve! There were a few young ones that looked to be practicing hunting for food. They aren’t much of a match for the seagull, who chase them and sometimes strand them on the ground.
  • We have been seeing the otters under our fuel shed running across the jetty
  • The seagull chicks are getting bigger already! They are almost too big to stay in the nest under their moms

Census:

  • 515 seagulls
  • 2 male elephant seals
  • 3 bald eagles
  • 1 ruddy turnstone
  • 1 cormorant
  • 12 oyster catchers
  • 3 oyster catcher chicks
  • 16 geese
  • 3 goslings
  • 25 pigeon guillemots

What a Windy Weekend! (seagull chicks, census)

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Today’s Weather: 

  • Sky partly cloudy (thick fog until late afternoon)
  • Visibility 10 NM (less than 200 m until late afternoon)
  • Wind 30-35 knots W
  • Sea state: swells up to .5 m, whitecaps

Marine Traffic/Visitors: 

  • Not many pleasure crafts this weekend as it was very windy (up to 40 knots!).
  • Greg visited today to deliver supplies
  • More whale watching boats this weekend than we have been seeing, around 5 per day.

Ecological Observations:

  • The seagull chicks have started hatching! Only a few nests have hatched so far. We have observed the chicks asking for food and the parent not feeding them. We wonder if there is enough food available to support them all through this nesting season.
  • One of the first nests to hatch had 3 chicks, but now they are nowhere to be seen. We are observing with an investigative eye as nesting season progresses, as we observed many instances of adult birds cannibalizing each other’s chicks last year.
  • One of the four goslings was eaten by seagulls on Saturday afternoon. The remaining three seem healthy and strong.
  • Not many visiting birds this past few days, perhaps due to the high winds.
  • Many harbour seals hauled out on outcroppings during the notably low tides over the past couple of weeks. The young seal pups are still keeping close to their mothers but we have not seen any still nursing.
  • The oyster catcher chicks are growing at an impressive rate! They seem to be doubling in size almost every week. They are now old enough to venture away from the protection of the rocky areas and explore the intertidal with their parents.

Census: 

  • 2 Male elephant seals moulting
  • 500 Seagulls, handful of chicks
  • 16 Adult geese
  • 3 Goslings
  • 10 Adult black oystercatchers
  • 3 Black oystercatcher chicks
  • 56 Harbour seals

Throughout the week we also observed pigeon guillemots, eagles, and a pair of swallows. The sea lion who was here alone over the past weeks seems to have moved along.

Sunday Census

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Weather: 

  • Sky partly cloudy
  • Visibility 10 NM
  • Wind 20-25 knots W
  • Sea State: white caps, chop less than 1/2 m

Visitors/Marine Traffic: No visitors

Ecological: 

  • The last elephant seal seems to have departed since yesterday.

Census: 

  • 46 Sea lions
  • 8 Oystercatchers
  • 16 Canada Geese
  • 116 Harbor Seals
  • 1 Bald Eagle
  • 1 Elephant Seal
  • 470 Seagulls

Returning Sun, Census

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Weather: 

  • Visibility 15-20 NM
  • Sky partly cloudy clearing to blue sky
  • Wind 15-20 Knots W
  • Sea state: calm, rippled

Visitors/Marine Traffic:

  • No visitors
  • Yesterday we spotted a group of kayakers who had emailed to let us know they were coming: We tried to wave, but you were too far away to see us- hope you had a good paddle!

Ecological: 

  • The seagull population has skyrocketed this week, but still no fully constructed nests
  • The elephant seals have left now, aside from one. We anticipate that we may see a few large males in a month or so.

Census: 

  • 16 Geese
  • 8 Oystercatchers
  • 39 Sea Lions
  • 40 Harbor Seals
  • 1 Elephant Seal
  • 1 Bald Eagle
  • 580 Seagulls
  • 42 Pigeon Guillemots

Many Seals, Census

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Weather:

  • Visibility 10 + NM
  • Sky partly cloudy
  • Wind 15-20 Knots SE
  • Sea state: calm, rippled

Marine Traffic/Visitors: One pleasure craft drifted through in the early afternoon. They did an amazing job of drifting with the current so the animals would not be disturbed, and were very careful of the kelp and shallow areas. Well done!

Ecological: 

  • The animals have been keeping to themselves and trying to stay out of the elements as yesterday there was quite a bit of rain and wind. When the weather is harsh, the elephant seals typically try to lay behind a rock or outbuilding to avoid the wind. The seagulls point themselves into the wind and sit close to the ground. The sea lions don’t seem to mind at all, but the geese love the rainy days! They like to drink from puddles and clean their feathers in the fresh water.
  • Yesterday we were visited by a flock of pigeon guillemots, who prefer the jetty or rocks immediately surrounding.
  • Comments in photos refer to pineapple weed..check it out here in the Taxonomy File

Census:

  • 7 Elephant Seals
  • 8 Oyster Catchers
  • 32 Sea Lions
  • 101 Harbor Seals
  • 22 Geese (one active nest)
  • 285 Seagulls

 

Sun, Census, Sea Lions!

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Weather: 

  • Visibility 15+ NM
  • Sky partly cloudy
  • Wind 5-10 knots N (yesterday was very windy, 35+ knots)
  • Sea state: calm

Marine Traffic/Visitors:

  • This morning we observed 3 kayakers in the reserve when we heard the hullaballoo of  sea lions rushing into the water. They stayed for roughly 20 minutes before crossing back towards Pedder Bay.
  • A few fishing vessels outside of the reserve
  • One large commercial fishing vessel from Vancouver passed by quite close to the reserve yesterday evening
  • Today we saw the large “Cable Innovator” crossing towards Port Angeles. This article state that it’s the largest of its kind (2017)!

Ecological:

  • Yesterday we spotted the beginnings of the first seagull nest of the season. They have begun to hover overhead when we leave the house and have become much less afraid of us.
  • The sea lions have started to venture further onto the island. They wiggle under the fence on the jetty now to make space for more. The stinky days are on the horizon.
  • The last remaining pup is not present in the reserve today. We are wondering if she has finally left her birthplace to explore!
  • We spotted two wandering tattlers today. We suspect this is what we saw earlier in the week, and not a willet.

Census: 

  • 2 Adult Bald Eagles
  • 120 Seagulls
  • 63 Harbour Seals
  • 23 Sea Lions
  • 16 Canadian Geese
  • 8 Adult Oystercatchers
  • 9 Elephant Seals
  • 2 Wandering Tattlers

 

Sunny Day + Census

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Weather:

  • Visibility 15 NM
  • Sky partly cloudy
  • Wind 0-5 knots N
  • Sea state calm

Boats/Visitors: None

Ecological:

  • Yesterday we saw a humpback whale pass through the straight roughly 1 NM away. Notably, this is only the second time that we have spotted a whale from Race Rocks without tourism vessels following close behind.
  • Not seen today in our census, there have been many black turnstones in the reserve this week (at least 10 at once).
  • Early this week we spotted what looked like a non-breeding adult willet. It seems as if it would be unusual to see one here so we are unsure if this is the correct ID. Without a photo it’s hard to be sure!

Census:

  • 9 elephant seals
  • 180 seagulls
  • 134 harbor seals
  • 112 sea lions
  • 11 cormorants
  • 6 oyster catchers
  • 2 adult bald eagles
  • The last pup left has been moving around the island, here it rests near the generator building.
  • Sea lions resting on an outcropping rock
  • We’ve been seeing these eagles around nearly every day.
  • The goose count rises, and so does the time we spend cleaning up after them!
  • Geese aggressively protecting their nest area
  • The invasion begins, slowly at first…

April 11 and 12 – Weekly Census

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Wind: yesterday W-S 0-32 knots, today W-SE 2-17 knots
Sea State: both days calm
Visibility: yesterday 10-15 NM, today 15 NM
Sky: yesterday partly cloudy then clear from mid morning, today clear
Temperature: yesterday 8-14 °C, today 7-14 °C
Atmospheric CO2: 416.33 ppm (recorded by NOAA at Mauna Loa Observatory, Hawaii)

The lawn in front of the house got busier this morning with nine elephant seals, two more than yesterday. A tenth seal, the pup, was near the jetty. The two new arrivals have green tags on their tail flippers. One is a male tagged C887. The other is a juvenile tagged G512 on the right flipper and E779 on the right. I will update the information on age and past sightings when I hear back from the researchers. The green tags signify the elephant seals were tagged at Año Nuevo, south of San Francisco.

[UPDATED April 13: I heard back from Dr. Patrick Robinson, the researcher from Año Nuevo Reserve. The elephant seal with green tags E779 and G512 was tagged as a pup in February 2019, where he was born at Año Nuevo. This is the first time the male juvenile has been spotted outside of Año Nuevo, where he was last seen as a weaner in March, 2019. The elephant seal with the green tag C887 is a juvenile male that was born at Año Nuevo in February 2017. He has been seen at Race Rocks in the month of December in 2017, 2018 and 2019.]

There was one boat seen in the ecological reserve on each of the past two days, a pleasure boat yesterday and a sailboat today.

Census results observed this afternoon at low tide:
10 elephant seals (1 female pup, 1 female juvenile, 1 juvenile, 2 sub adult males, 5 female adults)
16 steller sea lions
91 california sea lions
1 sea otter
72 harbour seals
5 bald eagles (2 juveniles, 3 adults)
16 Canada geese
1 black brant goose
99 gulls (mostly thayer’s)
17 pelagic cormorants
4 brandt’s cormorants
5 double-crested cormorants
6 black oystercatchers
24 pigeon guillemots
7 harlequin ducks
2 surfbirds
5 black turnstones

  • Two eagles on Turbine Rock and a colourful sailboat passing through Race Passage.
  • Newly arrived juvenile elephant seal tagged G512 and E779
  • Green tags G512 and E779 on the juvenile elephant seal.
  • Newly arrived sub adult male elephant seal tagged C887
  • Green tag C887 on the sub adult male elephant seal
  • Black brant goose
  • Four elephant seals waiting for the water to come to them
  • Newly arrived juvenile seal exploring the boardwalk
  • A view from the top of the lighthouse this afternoon of the clear water of the east bay. A group of sea lions can be seen on the rocks.
  • These lucky gulls won of the goose egg hunt