Tag Archives: elephant seal

Elephant Seal Chase, Wind, Vessels

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The small female elephant seal had stayed up near the base of the tower until last night when the fog horn went off, she moved down to the path near the middle of the island.  Misery came back to Great Race this morning.

When he started approaching the female she moved away.   She made it back up to the base of the tower again where Misery doesn’t seem to like to go, maybe too much of an incline for the fat bugger.  Misery stayed by the engine room, likely in the females path if she tries to leave.

Yesterday there were three boats in the reserve: a dive boat in the morning and 2 eco tour boats in the afternoon.

The wind picked up today around noon reaching gusts of 60 knots from the west.  The wind has stayed around 30 knots most of the afternoon.

Elephant Seals

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This morning Misery and the small female elephant seal were back on Great Race.  The female was up in the grass near the base of the tower with a fresh looking injury to her left eye.

Pam reported an incident between Misery and another individual on Middle Rock  on the 18th where she could see Misery grab something in his jaws.  Maybe it was this elephant seal that she had witnessed getting a beating.  Misery has a history of aggressive, violent behaviour.  Pam has several image captures and a description of the incident on her flickr site:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/66339356@N00/6537477915/in/photostream/

The number of elephant seals on Middle Rock has been increasing, Pam has recently counted up to 8 elephant seals on Middle Rock.

Misery delays boat launch

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Julia and Jake cleaning solar panels

Yesterday I left the island around noon to go to campus and returned around 16:00 hrs with Jake.  Erik brought out Julia, Jeanie and Mark in Second Nature. I took Jeanie and Mark back to campus today around 15:00 hrs, it was great to have them out here for a visit. Julia and Jake will be staying out here for a few more days.  They did a great job scrubbing the solar panels today and carried several containers of deionized water across the island to the battery room.  I did some cleaning in the battery room this afternoon.

The eco tour vessel Five Star Fast Cat came into the reserve this morning around 10:30.

Misery left Great Race yesterday around noon, taking his time on the boat ramp while I waited to launch the whaler, and is back on Middle Rock with the ladies.  There were around 10 Sealions on South Rocks today and over 40 cormorants observed on South Rocks, Middle Rocks and the SW side of Great Race.

Misery taking his time on the boat ramp

Misery, Harbour Seals, Weather

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Misery has been on Middle Rock Tuesday and Wednesday but was back by the boat house this morning.

There were over 40 Harbour Seals observed on the south side of the island and South Rock this afternoon.

Have had 3 days of grey skies and a sustained lack of precipitation.  The wind peaked just over 20 knots on Tuesday and has stayed around 10 knots yesterday and today.  Atmospheric pressure reached its lowest point in the past two weeks on Tuesday around 1015 hPa and has been on the rise today.

Frosty

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Had a good frost last night out here.  Have heaters on tonight in the water tank and desalination buildings.

I went off island this morning to run errands, came back around sunset.

Misery had been by the boathouse this morning, he was on the N side of the Science Centre when I got back this afternoon.  A few minutes ago when I came out of the desalination building he had moved and was right there on the other side of the path,  bit of a surprise for both of us.

Bald Eagles

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Bald Eagles on Middle Rocks, image captured on tower webcam.

There were several bald eagles on the rocks and chasing seagulls this morning.  At around noon I counted a total of 8 bald eagles: 4 on Middle Rocks, 2 on North Rock and 2 on South Rocks.

Misery and female elephant seals have remained on Middle Rocks yesterday and today.

It has been a pretty calm, quiet, grey day. I worked on connecting a second roof downspout to the rainwater tank.  The whole South side of the roof is now hooked in, just need a good rain to test it out.

water line

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Misery has been on middle rocks along with 3 females today. The image above was captured from the remote webcam in the tower this morning.  There have been around 40 Pigeon Guillemots with winter plumage around the jetty the past couple days. The cormorants were mainly on Middle Rock today.

I laid the 1.5″ line in the trench from the blue tank to the cistern access and cemented the 3″ down pipe and clean-out to the blue tank inlet.  The trench follows a previously impacted route along-side the edge of the cistern.

At  around 13:15 hrs a Prince Of Whales whale watching boat was in the reserve.

Misery and Plumbing

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Misery next to diesel line box, in the background North profile of both blocks of tilted solar panels on roof of energy building.

Misery was next to the diesel line box mid morning. This box is 6′ wide and just over 4′ tall so the previous estimate of him being about 12′ long seems pretty accurate.  He moved over towards the fresh water tank in the afternoon and was lying behind a rock wall near where I was working on the rainwater plumbing. Around sunset he headed back to the pathway and down the boat ramp.  He crashed through a pile of logs that had been left by the receding tide.  Once in the water he spent about 20 mins blowing into the water and rolling around.  It would be interesting to hear him underwater.  He left the jetty and resurfaced on the West side of the island.  A few minutes later he was accompanied by the small female elephant seal, whom he proceeded to chase and bite until she hauled out on some rocks out of his reach.

There were about 10 black oyster catchers off the SW side of engine room and 6 Harlequin ducks in the water off the SE side, lots of cormorants on South rocks and on West side.

Worked on rainwater plumbing this afternoon.  Have got the tank inlet and down pipe clean-out hooked up.

Cormorants, Elephant Seals, Fuel Line, Plumbing Parts

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This morning I counted over 200 cormorants on the South Rocks and saw a pair of Harlequin ducks by the jetty.

The female elephant 6360 went  back in the water before noon.  Misery was near the centre of the island at sunset.

I went off island to campus around noon.   I brought some scientific instruments back to campus and went into Langford to pick up plumbing parts and other supplies.  Erik worked on the whaler’s fuel line over the afternoon and got it fixed up.  I got back out to the island as the sun was setting on the lowest tide I have ever landed on out here, the boat ramp was longer than usual.

 

 

Misery and 6360 back on Great Race

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From bed I watched Misery haul himself up the boat ramp around 7:30 this morning.  He had spent the last week lying on Middle Rocks along with two female elephant seals. Over the course of the morning he made his way past the boat house and along the North side of the Student Centre before coming to rest on the North side of the Solar/Engine room this afternoon.

The female with the green tag No. 6360 was also hauled this morning, she stayed on the rocks next to the jetty all day.

6360, taken from the crane deck above.

Pam has a image capture on her flickr page taken from the webcam in the tower on Saturday of 6360 and the other female elephant seal on Middle Rocks

I counted over 40 cormorants on the South Rocks this afternoon and I couldn’t even see how many were on the south side of that island.  Pam has a great photo here from a few days ago of Cormorants preening on the South Rocks.

The NE wind and falling tide left a lot of garbage around the jetty today. I wonder what it feels like when animals accidentally swallow this stuff.