July 19 and 20 – Weekly Census

Posted on Wednesday,July 20, 2022 by Nick Townley

Ecological Notes:

An elephant seal swam up to the boat ramp at some point yesterday late afternoon or evening. When I went to do the seawater sample at 19:30, I spotted her sleeping at the water’s edge. As far as I can tell, she has been there ever since.
See the photo gallery below for more ecological happenings from the past two days.

Weekly Census recorded on Wednesday, July 20:

It was not an ideal day to record the census, as it was quite foggy. Although, I had a window of less fog at around noon, when I could see all the islets that comprise Race Rocks and the water in between, so I was able to count the species from the lantern room of the lighthouse. I counted other species throughout the day as I walked around.

Elephant Seal: 1
Steller/Northern sea lions: 15
Harbour seals: 125
Bald eagles: 2 (1 juvenile and 1 adult)
Canada geese: 9 (5 adults, 4 goslings)
Black oystercatchers: 11 (8 adults, 3 chicks)
Cormorants: 5
Glaucous-winged gulls nesting on the main island: 229
Glaucous-winged gull chicks: approximately 250 (It is hard to get an exact number due to their camouflage in the grass and hiding under their parents)
Gulls not nesting (some glaucous-winged and some other species) on the south end of the main island and outer islands: 96
Pigeon guillemots: 163
Black turnstones: 2
Western sandpiper: 3
Fox sparrow: 1

Weather:

Yesterday (July 19):
- Sky: Partly cloudy, fog in evening
- Wind: W 3-29 kts
- Sea: rippled, then up to 1′ chop in afternoon and evening
- Temperature Low 11^oC, High 15^oC
Today (July 20):
- Sky: Fog overnight, a mixture of partly cloudy and fog throughout the day and into the evening
- Wind: W 12-30 kts
- Sea: rippled, then up 2′ chop in afternoon and evening
- Temperature Low 11^oC, High 14^oC

Visitors:

2 visitors from Pearson College to deliver supplies.

Facility Work:

Scrubbed and squeegeed solar panels, routine tidying and checking infrastructure around the island.

Vessel Traffic:

Many Canadian and American ecotour boats have been nearby and heading through the waters of the ecological reserve.

Here are photo highlights from the past two days. Click on the photos for larger views and captions.

: Yesterday evening, when I went to sample the seawater salinity and temperature, I spotted the new elephant seal arrival on the island.

: Fog rolling in last evening. Normally there would be land over there.

: Look how big some of the gull chicks are getting!

: While other younger chicks are still little balls of fluff.

: A fog rainbow to the west this morning.

: A western sandpiper searches for food in the centre of the island.

: The elephant seal spent the day on the boat ramp, perhaps recovering from a long ocean journey.

: Pearson’s boat Second Nature disappears into the fog at 15:45, after delivering supplies. The elephant seal remained on the boat ramp unfazed while we used the jetty.

July 17 and 18

Posted on Monday,July 18, 2022 by Nick Townley

Ecological Notes:

A large pod of humpbacks has been around Race Rocks for at least the past few days, with many visible to the south. Today, I saw a few blows and dorsal fins near north of Turbine Rocks (north of the main island), then near West Rocks. Unfortunately, I did not get any photos.
I keep seeing a fast moving barn swallow and fox sparrow fluttering low around the island. I only see one at a time, so it is possible there are more of each species. Similar to the humpbacks, the little birds don’t stop in one place long enough for a photo opportunity.
See the photo gallery below for more ecological happenings from the past two days.

Weather:

Yesterday (July 17):
- Sky: Cloudy, heavy rain showers after sunset and overnight
- Wind: W 14-25 kts
- Sea: rippled, then up to 2′ chop in evening
- Temperature Low 12^oC, High 16^oC
Today (July 18):
- Sky: Partly Cloudy
- Wind: W 12-30 kts
- Sea: rippled, then 1′ chop in afternoon
- Temperature Low 13^oC, High 15^oC

Visitors:

No visitors

Facility Work:

Scrubbed and squeegeed solar panels, routine tidying and checking infrastructure around the island.

DND Events:

Between 10:20 and 13:20 today, there were three detonations on the nearby DND (Department of National Defence) training area on Bentinck Island, about 2km or 1NM from Great Race Rocks. The sudden explosions sent many birds into the air, as well as seals and sea lions into the water.

Vessel Traffic:

Many Canadian and American ecotour boats have been nearby and heading through the waters of the ecological reserve.

Here are photo highlights from the past two days. Click on the photos for larger views and captions.

: A bald eagle perched on North Rock. In the background is William Head Institution, a minimum security prison.

: The four goslings are beginning to look more grown up with more black and white feathers around on their heads, bellies, and tails.

: Two gull chicks in the grass in the centre of the island

: Yesterday’s colourful sunset

July 15 and 16 – A Scoop of Pelicans

Posted on Saturday,July 16, 2022 by Nick Townley

Ecological Notes:

12 brown pelicans flew around the island at 12:30 yesterday. They returned just before 14:00, flew by the South Islands, and landed on the South Seal Rocks. They moved to the east side of Race Rocks, where they remained for at least a couple hours. A group of pelicans is known as either a pod, pouch, scoop, squadron, or fleet.
The glaucous-winged gull chicks are growing quickly, with many meal deliveries happening throughout the day by their parents.
See the photo gallery below for more ecological happenings from the past two days.

Weather:

Yesterday (July 15):
- Sky: Part Cloudy
- Wind: mostly W, 0-28 kts
- Sea: rippled, then up to 2′ chop in afternoon
- Temperature Low 12^oC, High 16^oC
Today (July 16):
- Sky: Overcast
- Wind: W 15-25 kts
- Sea: rippled, then 1′ chop in afternoon
- Temperature Low 13^oC, High 15^oC

Visitors:

No visitors

Facility Work:

Scrubbed and squeegeed solar panels, routine tidying and checking infrastructure around the island.

DND Events:

Between 10:00 and 14:00 yesterday, there were five detonations on the nearby DND (Department of National Defence) training area on Bentinck Island, about 2km or 1NM from Great Race Rocks. The sudden explosions sent many birds into the air, as well as seals and sea lions into the water.

Vessel Traffic:

Many Canadian and American ecotour boats have been nearby and heading through the waters of the ecological reserve.

Here are photo highlights from the past two days. Click on the photos for larger views and captions.

: A scoop of 12 brown pelican flying near the south side of Race Rocks.

: Two brown pelicans flying near the South Islands.

: A brown pelican flying near the South Islands.

: A brown pelican flying near the South Islands.

: Brown pelicans on the east side of Race Rocks.

: Brown pelicans going for a dip on the east side of Race Rocks.

: A glaucous-winged gull family dinner.

: A very well protected gull nest carved out of a shrub in the centre of the island.

: DND personnel appear to be setting up detonations on the beach of Bentinck Island.

: The smoke can be seen from a detonation at 12:20. The boats on the left is to warn passing boats about the blasting. The boat on the right is to monitor for marine mammals. The building with the red flag is where the personnel shelter during the detonations.

: Two juvenile eagles on the north edge of Race Rocks.

July 13 and 14 – Weekly Census

Posted on Thursday,July 14, 2022 by Nick Townley

Ecological Notes:

The sea lion population is growing. For the past few days there have been 18 Steller sea lions hauled out on Middle Rocks. That is up from four sea lions one week ago. One of the sea lions has a brand. It appears to say 620R, although the researcher I contacted in Oregon mentioned it is what they call a bad brand and he was unable to determine the brand from the photos I sent. I will keep a look out for the sea lion and see if I can get a better view. The researcher will check his records to see if he can identify the sea lion and be able to record the resighting.
The super moon on Wednesday night rose in the southeast at 10:00pm. It was a big bright orange orb that looked more like the rising sun, than the moon.
Today’s extremely low tide of -0.2m or -0.7′ was at 10:13am. The overnight high tide at 00:55am was 3.0m or 9.8′. It is apparently the lowest tide in a decade. I was fascinated to see the extended edge of the water all around the many islands. I looked at the exposed intertidal zone from a distance and up on the jetty, so as not to disturb the many delicate species.
See the photo gallery below for more ecological happenings from the past two days.

Weekly Census Results from July 13:

Steller/Northern sea lions: 18
Sea otter: 1
Harbour seals: 133
Bald eagles: 2 (1 juvenile and 1 adult)
Canada geese: 9 (5 adults, 4 goslings)
Black oystercatchers: 11 (8 adults, 3 chicks)
Cormorant: 4
Glaucous-winged gulls nesting on the main island: 247
Glaucous-winged gull chicks: approximately 200 (it is hard to get an exact number due to their camouflage in the grass and hiding under their parents)
Gulls not nesting (some glaucous-winged and some other species) on the south end of the main island and outer islands: 96
Pigeon guillemots: 142
Black turnstones: 2
Western sandpiper: 2

Weather:

Yesterday (July 13):
- Sky: Part Cloudy
- Wind: W 12-32 kts
- Sea: rippled, then up to 3′ waves in afternoon and evening
- Temperature Low 12^oC, High 16^oC
Today (July 14):
- Sky: Part Cloudy
- Wind: W 15-27 kts
- Sea: rippled, then up to 2′ chop in afternoon
- Temperature Low 11^oC, High 13^oC

Visitors:

No visitors

Facility Work:

Scrubbed and squeegeed solar panels, routine tidying and checking infrastructure around the island.

Vessel Traffic:

Many Canadian and American ecotour boats have been nearby and heading through the waters of the ecological reserve.

Here are photo highlights from the past two days. Click on the photos for larger views and captions.

: A gull brought back a meal for its chicks. The flounder was still alive, so the gull spent a while trying to kill it by stabbing the fish with its bill.

: The gull chick on the right appears to be practicing using their wings.

: Intertidal sights on Wednesday’s low tide. The mossy chiton in the centre of the photo is about 10cm long. There is also a lined chiton above and to the right of it. There are a variety of snails. Around the outside there is bull kelp, sea lettuce, and surf grass. Can you spot other species?

: Two black turnstones in the intertidal zone.

: Steller sea lions hauled out on Middle Rocks.

: Branded sea lion, which might read 620R. I submitted the sighting to a researcher in Oregon, who is looking into the hard to decipher brand.

: The oystercatcher chick near the jetty with one of its parents.

: The oystercatcher chick near the jetty eats a meal it just received from its parent.

: Harbour seals and non-nesting gulls on South Seal Rocks.

: Sea otter in the bull kelp east of the main island.

: Wednesday’s super buck moon rises in the southeast at 10:00pm. It was very large and orange near the horizon.

: A bald eagle perched on Turbine Rock. In the background on Bentinck Island, there is a red flag to signify active blasting at the Department of National Defence site. Although, I did not hear any blasting on Thursday.

: A very low tide view of the east bay, with lots of urchins near the surface.

: Thursday’s very low tide fully exposed the jetty.

: Another angle of the jetty which shows the boat tracks ending before the water’s edge in a big pile of bull kelp.

: A wide angle view from the lantern room of the lighthouse showing the exposed areas on the southeast side of the island created by the low tide. The rocky islands are the South Rocks.

: A wide angle view from the lantern room showing the exposed areas on the north side of the island created by the low tide.

July 11 and 12

Posted on Tuesday,July 12, 2022 by Nick Townley

Ecological Notes:

I believe most of the gulls eggs have hatched, based on the nests I can see with one to three chicks and discarded empty eggs nearby. The gull parents feed fish to their young. I am impressed how many whole little fish a gull catch then regurgitate for their chicks.
I am seeing more nursing harbour seals and pups around the south and east sides of the island. Today, I heard a pup communicating with its mother by little grunting sounds.
This afternoon, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a river otter scurry along a path by Tank Shed. I could not see if it was heading for the water or underneath the boardwalk, as they are elusive.
See the photo gallery below for more ecological happenings from the past two days.

Weather:

Yesterday (July 11):
- Sky: Clear
- Wind: W 1-33 kts
- Sea: rippled, then 2′ chop in evening
- Temperature Low 11^oC, High 20^oC
Today (July 12):
- Sky: Clear, fog between 08:45-09:30 with foghorn
- Wind: W 16-39 kts, gusts up to 44 kts (81 km/h)
- Sea: 1′ chop in morning, then up to 4′ waves in afternoon and evening
- Temperature Low 12^oC, High 15^oC

Visitors:

Yesterday, Greg came from the college to refill the diesel tank.

Facility Work:

Scrubbed and squeegeed solar panels, routine tidying and checking infrastructure around the island. With the clear days, the solar panels have been fully charging the batteries.

Vessel Traffic:

Many Canadian and American ecotour boats have been nearby and heading through the waters of the ecological reserve. There were much fewer boats today, with the high winds.

Here are photo highlights from the past two days. Click on the photos for larger views and captions.

: When I was taking the seawater sample at noon yesterday, I snapped this view off the end of the jetty with lots of bull kelp. If you look closely on the bottom there are anemones, sea urchins, stars, and all sorts of other species.

: A nursing mother harbour seal and pup on the east side of the island, lying on top of California mussels.

: The clear sky provided a wonderful view of Mt Baker, which I was not able to see for the previous 11 days.

: A zoomed in view of Mt Baker with today’s rougher water.

: A fluffy gull chick in the blowing grass on the centre of the island.

: View from the lantern room during today’s big currents, tides and winds. The Elwha Valley can be seen in the background, across the Strait in Washington.

July 9 and 10

Posted on Sunday,July 10, 2022 by Nick Townley

Ecological Notes:

On Saturday afternoon, a southern resident orca pod went through Race Passage, just north of the ecological reserve. Someone was warning boats over the VHF radio to reduce their speed, as they were “in the path of endangered southern resident killer whales.” All boats appeared to oblige. For a while, the very large pod was spread out from the Bentinck Island, at the west side of the mouth of Pedder Bay to well past William Head to the east, at least 4km or 2NM. I watched the pod for a while through binoculars and saw an orca fully breach out of the water. I did not get a photo of the breach, but it was spectacular. Then the pod travelled south to the east of Race Rocks, based on the group of ecotour boats I could see watching the pod from a safe distance.
The gull chicks are still popping out, with many nests having one to three chicks. There are still some gulls tending to eggs.
See the photo gallery below for more ecological happenings from the past two days.

Weather:

Yesterday (July 9):
- Sky: Overcast, then cloudy throughout rest of day
- Wind: W 15-30 kts
- Sea: rippled, 1′ chop in evening
- Temperature Low 13^oC, High 16^oC
Today (July 10):
- Sky: Part cloudy
- Wind: W 3-24 kts
- Sea: rippled, 1′ chop in afternoon
- Temperature Low 14^oC, High 17^oC

Visitors:

No visitors.

Facility Work:

Scrubbed and squeegeed solar panels, topped up water in battery bank, routine tidying and checking infrastructure around the island.

Vessel Traffic:

Many Canadian and American ecotour boats have been nearby and heading through the waters of the ecological reserve.

Here are photo highlights from the past two days. Click on the photos for larger views and captions.

: A few orcas from a pod of southern resident orcas between North Rocks and William Head.

: Southern resident orcas northeast of the ecological reserve.

: Three gull chicks venturing out of their nest.

: A fluffy gull chick blends in well on the rocks and dry grass.

: The five year old male elephant seal floated in the jetty bay for much of the day yesterday. He was nowhere to be seen today.

: Pigeon guillemots take flight near East Bay.

: I rarely see oystercatchers interact with water. This oystercatcher splashes in the shallow water by the jetty, perhaps to cool off on the hot afternoon.

: The goose family. One of the four goslings didn’t make the photo, but does still exist.

: A glaucous-winged gull with a well protected nest under the front porch of the Ecoguardian’s house. The gull has two chicks and one egg in the nest.

: Three gull chicks take shelter from the sun.

: A closer look at the three gull chicks nestled in a rocky ledge with English stonecrop and grass.

: The oystercatcher chick near the jetty seems to be growing fast.

: The sea lion population is growing. Now, there are six steller/northern sea lions hauled out on Middle Rock.

: Three kayakers paddling in Middle Channel. As they approached the ecological reserve, they hailed me on VHF channel 16 to warn they were doing rescue practices around Race Rocks. I appreciated the heads up.

: A black turnstone near the jetty.

: Harbour seals on South Seal Rocks.

: Sea otter napping in the bull kelp near the South Rocks.

July 7 and 8

Posted on Friday,July 8, 2022 by Nick Townley

Ecological Notes:

With the help of the visitors yesterday and some gathering ecotour boats, I spotted a sea otter hanging out in the kelp bed off the east side of the island.
This morning, as I was walking along the path from the house, I saw four large birds flying overhead. Their distinct shapes made me realize right away they were brown pelicans. They looped around and flew off to the east. Maybe they thought it was too crowded to land at Race Rocks with all the gulls nesting.
See the photo gallery and captions for more details on the ecological happenings over the past two days.

Weather:

Yesterday (July 7):
- Sky: Part Cloudy
- Wind: W 8-23 kts
- Sea: rippled in morning, 1′ chop in afternoon
- Temperature Low 12^oC, High 15^oC
Today (July 8):
- Sky: Part Cloudy
- Wind: W 12-21 kts
- Sea: rippled in morning, 1′ chop in afternoon
- Temperature Low 12^oC, High 15^oC

Visitors:

On July 7, Greg, Lawrence and Gretchen visited from the college to help transport supplies and do maintenance tasks on the island.

Facility Work:

Scrubbed and squeegeed solar panels, tidied around island, desalinator maintenance, and detached old generator exhaust pipe.

Vessel Traffic:

Many Canadian and American ecotour boats have been nearby and heading through the waters of the ecological reserve.

Here are photo highlights from the past two days. Click on the photos for larger views and captions.

: A pigeon guillemot with a small fish, possibly to deliver to its young hidden away in a rock crevasse.

: Sea otter in the kelp bed off the east side of the island.

: Four brown pelicans flying over the island.

: Napping elephant seal with the ecoguardian’s house and lighthouse in the background.

: Glaucous-winged gull and two chicks.

: Glaucous-winged gull chicks

Census July 6

Posted on Wednesday,July 6, 2022 by Nick Townley

Ecological Notes:

I am seeing more gull chicks everyday. Many gull parents are frequently feeding their two or three chicks.
I seem to have come to an understanding with some gulls. If I approach near them on the path at a slow speed, we both ignore each other. There are other gulls who freak out if I even look in their direction. As I do necessary work, I limit my movements around the island and avoid certain paths that have nearby nests and chicks.
See photo gallery and captions for more details on the ecological happenings over the past two days.

Weekly Census Results:

Elephant seal (juvenile male): 1
Steller/Northern sea lions: 4
Harbour seals: 113
Bald eagles: 6 (4 juveniles and 2 adults)
Canada geese: 11 (7 adults, 4 goslings)
Black oystercatchers: 10 (8 adults, 2 chicks – probably more that are camouflaged)
Cormorant: 2
Glaucous-winged gulls nesting: 172
Glaucous-winged gull chicks: approximately 50 (also hard to spot in the grass and under their parents)
Gulls not nesting (some glaucous-winged and some other species) on the south end of the island and outer islands: 97
Pigeon guillemots: 123
Surfbirds: 3
Killdeers: 2
Western sandpiper: 1

Weather:

Yesterday (July 5):
- Sky: Fog in morning, Part Cloudy in afternoon
- Wind: W 0-12 kts
- Sea: calm
- Temperature Low 11^oC, High 17^oC
Today (July 6):
- Sky: Overcast in morning, Part Cloudy in afternoon
- Wind: W 8-22 kts
- Sea: rippled in morning, 1′ chop in afternoon
- Temperature Low 12^oC, High 15^oC

Visitors:

No visitors over the past two days

Facility Work:

Installed bird deterrents on new solar panels, scrubbed and squeegeed solar panels, emptied composting toilet, fixed screen door at basement entrance.

Vessel Traffic:

Many Canadian and American ecotour boats have been nearby and heading through the waters of the ecological reserve.

Here are photo highlights from the past two days. Click on the photos for larger views and captions.

: My view out the south side of the house yesterday morning. I saw an ecotour boat do a 180 on the other side of the Rosedale Reef bouy, which tipped me off to the presence of orcas.

: Orcas on the south side yesterday

: Orcas on the south side yesterday

: The stealthy elephant seal watches from the water near the jetty, as I head out to collect the sea water data last evening.

: A backlit juvenile bald eagle this morning on the east side of the island. I heard lots of commotion in the gull community, so looked around to see three bald eagles perched on the east side and two on the South Rocks.

: Clean solar panels! Even on cloudy days, they can absorb enough kilowatts to power the load of the island. The sunny days are a treat to top up the batteries to 100%.

: The centre of the island where all the paths meet is home to lots of calendula and a very territorial gull.

: Pigeon guillemots in the South Channel

: Harbour seals looking like sea sausages on the South Rocks.

: A gull standing guard as one of their chicks ducks into the calendula and thistles at the edge of the path down from the lighthouse. I don’t take this path because there are a few sets of chicks nearby.

: A gull and chick sharing a meal where the elephant seals often like to lie. In the centre of the photo is a rolled up piece of seal fur that was moulted at some point this spring.