This gallery contains 9 photos.
Weather: the wind kept up most of the day and this evening is currently a gale (33 knots) from the west, clear until 6 pm and the fog bank has rolled in. I found ear plugs! Facility With a brief … Continue reading
Weather:
Visitors:
Ecological Observations:
Weather
Boats/Visitors/Sightings
Birds
Marine mammals
Weather
Boats/Visitors
Ecological
Notes
This blog covers three days, September 15, 16 and 17th; Thursday, Friday and Saturday. It will be replaced by a point form log for the rest of the stay.
Weather and Sea Conditions
Thursday was part of the last high pressure system with sunny afternoon westerlies of 10 – 15 knots. Friday was a transition day with heavy fog burning off by early afternoon and accompanied by westerlies of up to 25 knots. By dusk it had clouded over and showers continued overnight and into Saturday morning. This wet weather came with winds from the north. Morning fog patches continued Saturday and by early afternoon the wind switched from 10 – 15 knots north, to 25 -30 knots west partially cleared with sun between showers. The marine forecast for Central Juan de Fuca Strait includes a strong westerly wind warning. The wind is predicted to drop to westerly 10 to 15 early Sunday morning and showers are expected to end near midnight Saturday.
It appears that the Race Rocks Ecological Reserve weather station has not been operating since mid-June, so longer-term context is not possible other than anecdotal information recorded in recent logs.
Vessels in Ecological Reserve
Commercial whale-watching activity inside the Ecological Reserve boundaries is busy, with 20 commercial visits noted on the 16th and 14 visits on the 17th. The guidelines for vessel activity are not being observed by all operators and some of the commercial vessels are as close as 5 meters from the sea lions (and shore). Some very large vessels are going through shallow passages, making erratic turns in the current, travelling against the current and several vessels were seen speeding (> 7 knots within 400 m of Great Race). No other commercial activity was observed. Although several recreational vessels were seen passing through, there was no sports-fishing activity noted within the closed area.
Ecology
Seasonal shifts are apparent with the return of some ‘winter’ species and visits by fall migrants. There are only seven Glaucous-winged Gull chicks left on Great Race Island that are not fully fledged. The smallest, chick has a badly injured left leg. One other still has pinfeathers on its head and the rest are close to flying. There are notably fewer gull chick remains on the island this year perhaps indicating a lower mortality rate. There does not appear to be any data on the number of nests or their productivity this year so it may just reflect lower productivity. The logged death of the old River Otter may be related to the drop in chick carcass numbers.
Glaucous-winged Gulls are still the dominant gull species here on Great Race. California Gulls are abundant in the area but not roosting on Great Race yet. There are large (>1,000 birds), mixed species, feeding flocks adjacent to the Ecological Reserve in Race Passage and in the distance. California Gulls have been seen resting on thick mats of Bull Kelp in Middle Channel.
Black Turnstones and Surfbirds have returned from the Arctic where they nest in the summer. One Ruddy Turnstone was noted today feeding on flies, fuel for a migration that may extend as far south as South America. A single Sanderling was noted both Friday and Saturday and this is another species that nests in the Arctic and is widespread in the ‘winter’. Black Oystercatchers, which are much more site fidel, are roosting near the energy building in the evenings. At least one Kildeer was heard each evening just after dark.
Both Stellers (Northern) and California Sea Lions are moulting this time of year and are hauling out on Great Race, South Seal and South Islands as well as Middle Rocks and Turbine Rock. Photos were taken and processed, of branded, tagged and entangled sea lions.
Northern Elephant Seals are hauling on both Middle and Great Race and a total of six were noted Saturday. No big males. Harbour Seals are abundant and using these haul-out areas; West, Middle, Turbine, North and South Seal Rocks and South Islands.
A single Sea Otter was observed in the kelp just south of North Rocks Saturday morning.
One Humpback Whale was noted feeding near the Ecological Reserve.
Sustainability
Solar panels are maintaining power for the island in spite of intermittent cloud and showers. Without the weather station operational, sunlight levels are not being measured. The diesel generator is run for a couple of hours each evening to top up the batteries for the night.
Visitors
Kyle brought three visitors yesterday, two from Ocean Networks Canada and one from Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, for a site visit.
Maintenance and Operations
Regular chores included the 06:15 daily weather report for Pedder Bay Marina, daily solar panel maintenance, walkway cleaning, repairing and electrifying fences. The outside of the fuel barrel (eco-four) house was scrubbed, tops of fuel barrels stored outside were drained of water, and windows in the energy building were washed. The “science” house was inspected, an open window closed in the basement, exterior electrical box was noted broken from wall and conduit open at bottom (photo). Science house furnace was full on and the upstairs temperature was 22.0o C. Thermostat turned down. It was noted that diesel had been spilled in basement. Spill pads on the fuel drum are saturated and there was diesel on the entry bootscrubber/doormat. Looked at derrick dock woodpile and noted creosoted and pressure treated wood in woodpile, probably a health hazard to burn. Inspected chainsaw chain…just needs filing. Took VHF, charger and manual to top of tower to replace the one missing from there. Wheelbarrows were deployed for rainwater catchment. The conductivity meter’s line was marked with yellow electrical tape so that seawater sampling could be done at measured depth. In the energy building an attempt was made to align the indicator lights on the three Xantrax controllers with the holes. Two out of three can now be seen and the middle one can be seen plainly with the lights out. The flashing rate of these lights indicate the controller’s stage of operation and approximate battery voltage which is helpful to knowing how long to run the generator. Weather station troubleshooting will continue tomorrow.
Weather & Sea Conditions
At dawn, the west wind was already blowing 30 knots and gusting. Although it dropped to 20 – 25 knots at times, the west wind continued to bring dramatic clouds and showers along with brief glimpses of sunshine and rainbows, throughout the day. The marine forecasters call for the wind to back to southwest and they estimate that the SW wind will diminish to 10 -15 knots, late overnight and drop to light, early Tuesday morning. Showers and the mix of sun and cloud are predicted to continue. Seas were rough today to the west and out in the Strait, while the entrance to Pedder Bay and the eastern horizon remained a little calmer in the lee.
Vessels
No vessels were observed in the protected area or passing nearby, today.
Ecological and General Observations
Canada Geese are more and more insistent that they belong on Great Race and two pairs are actively nesting now. Even if the eco-guardian were to spend 24/7 chasing off geese, it would be ineffective as they are incredibly persistent, very strong and have a certain goose cunning that harkens back beyond the etymology of ‘wild goose chase’. Without the large numbers of geese that were present last year and the crushing effects of dozens elephant seal dozers, the grass does appear to remain a little longer, but then it has been a wet spring.
Beulah, the large female Norther Elephant Seal staying in the garden, went for a dip this morning and on her return she seemed to enjoy ‘frolicking’ in the long grass, head down undulating through the greenery. She also found a clean place to sleep, next to an old, lighthouse heritage, rockery bed. After watching the elephant seals purposefully destroy the tulips last year, I picked a bouquet when she moved into that part of the garden and they are brightening my world on the little desk in the house.
More and more adult male California Sea Lions are hauling out on Great Race, This afternoon there were ~50 on the south side and a dozen more on the west side. Younger animals and Steller’s continue to haul on South Rocks. Yesterday evening, I discovered a new (to me) den for the old, male River Otter. I knew that there was an otter spot nearby due to the telltale ‘calling cards’ left outside the den area but it took a while to find it. He is barely visible and very protected, sleeping under one of the big boulders just northeast of the compost.
The Bald Eagles continue to spend the day in the Ecological Reserve; most active early and late, chasing gulls. There is a lot of evidence of piscivory on the island, but some of the remnants are hard to pin on any particular predator. The gulls here eat a lot of small forage fish like herring and marine invertebrates like chitons but there are also remains that look more like either River Otter or Bald Eagle leftovers (see images).
A Turkey Vulture stopped and rested near camera 5 today. I was hooked up to a staff meeting by conference call or I would have gone outside to photograph it. I did get a photo through the window, before it was swept away by the west wind. Black Turnstones continue to be present in high numbers, resting and fattening up before their northward migration.
Chores & Visitors
Chores today were routine and there were no visitors.
Conservation Message
If you are a commercial boater or if you use docks and harbours, you may be interested in two really excellent booklets on Green Boating and Displacement Hull Fuel Efficiency put together by the T. Buck Suzuki Environmental Foundation. Their Green Boating Guide covers good marine practices in seven main areas: wildlife protection, habitat protection, waste discharge, fluid handling, solid waste, fuel efficiency, and cleaners. The Fuel Efficiency Guide covers ways to reduce fuel consumption through both operational and design measures. Another way to look at savings on fuel is that it also reduces carbon dioxide pollution to the atmosphere. CO2 is not only a greenhouse gas, ~ 40% of it ends up in the ocean causing the shift in basic chemistry which is called ocean acidification, global warming’s evil twin.
There is a real shift in attitude happening amongst boaters of all types, as more and more people realize that we have to profoundly change our basic routines and behaviours in order to have a sustainable ‘blue’ future. I call it investing in green and keeping it clean for a blue economy. If you use social media please use the hashtag #green4blue to connect with other people going green for a blue future. Check out the booklets here for great ideas on how you can make a positive difference on the water.
http://www.bucksuzuki.org/images/uploads/docs/GBGweb2012.pdf
http://www.bucksuzuki.org/images/uploads/docs/FEGweb2012.pdf
Aussi disponible en français http://www.bucksuzuki.org/publications/
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The morning started with either low cloud or high cloud. The sun shone under the fog on the Victoria side and on the Sooke side it thickened and the ceiling lowered to become more fog-like. Port Angeles was obscured early. The fog lifted from east to west and resulted in a beautiful clear day with a west wind of 20 – 25 knots, constant throughout the day. Barometric pressure held fairly steady as well, at 1016 -1017 hPa. The marine forecast for the central Strait has a strong wind warning in effect, calling for west winds of 20 to 30 knots and there are showers in forecast.
No whale watching vessels were observed today. One ‘sports’ fishing vessel was observed inside the boundary today but no fishing activity was observed in the protected area.
Second Nature visited briefly with Kyle at the helm and a second person that was supposed to be measuring things.
Today was census day and the results are below. It should be noted that the Bald Eagles were hunting gulls all day on Great Race Island. Although no takes were seen, the gull population thinned significantly during the day and the gull numbers today may not reflect a representative sample of the true numbers seen this week.
Animal Census
| 2016 | 01-Apr |
| River Otter | 1 |
| Northern Elephant Seal | 8 |
| Harbour Seal | 176 |
| Northern Sea Lion (Steller’s) | 28 |
| California Sea Lion | 103 |
| Canada Goose | 5 |
| Brandt (flying through) | 75 |
| Harlequin Duck | 11 |
| Surf Scoter | 0 |
| Common Merganser | 2 |
| Brandt’s Cormorant | 2 |
| Double-crested Cormorant | 3 |
| Pelagic Cormorant | 3 |
| Cormorant (not ID’d to species) | 0 |
| Bald Eagle (juvenile) | 4 |
| Bald Eagle (adult) | 2 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 1 |
| Killdeer | 4 |
| Black Oystercatcher | 12 |
| Black Turnstone | 70 |
| Surfbird | 0 |
| Rock Sandpiper | 0 |
| Dunlin | 2 |
| Mew Gull | 0 |
| Glaucous-winged Gull (+ Xs in nesting area) | 210 |
| Glaucous-winged Gull (+ Xs outside of nesting area) | 98 |
| Thayers Gulls | 0 |
| Calfiornia Gulls | 3 |
| Western Gull | 1 |
| Common Murres | 12 |
| Rhinoceros Auklets | 2 |
| Pigeon Guillemot | 40 |
| Common Raven | 2 |
| Northwestern Crow | 2 |
| Fox Sparrow | 1 |
| Song Sparrow | 1 |
There was nothing remarkable about the leaden morning with light and languid, north-northeast winds. Partially overcast skies cast a silvery pall over the Strait but bits of blue sky held promise for better things to come. The barometer held overnight at just above 1010 hPA and by mid-afternoon had dropped to 1008 As evening falls the barometer is holding at 1007. In the afternoon there was some sunshine but it was really a day dominated by cloud.
Five commercial whale-watching vessels were observed working in the Ecological Reserve today. Three were seen working in behind (south side) South Rocks and they were travelling very slowly and cautiously. Sea conditions were calm. The sea lions did not appear too disturbed by their presence. A few younger animals close to the water went in but it would be difficult to determine cause. On that note, military blasting continued as planned, from late morning to mid afternoon. Interceptor vessels and red flags warned boaters off. The sea lions and birds did not seem to react.
The wild goose chase continued and progress is happening. By early afternoon, most of the geese had retreated to the military zone to graze on the large lawn there. One pair staking out an area by camera 5 were more persistent, but eventually left for greener pastures. A couple of pairs of gulls were seen doing some of the broody things they do when nest building but as it is early yet, they are probably just practicing for the big day when they actually start to build a nest. The Pigeon Guillemots continue to flock here in the morning and leave in the afternoon as noted by Riley. Many were practicing walking on land today and in the water they worked the ebb flow through the rocks taking a ride and then flyew back upstream for another one.
A partially decomposed Northern Elephant Seal pup and part of its skull was located not far from the octopus in the boulders beach east of the Ecoguardian’s house. From the size, it appeared to have been a very young pup, if not premature, at death. The octopus was bigger. The plentiful, rich food sources are starting to explain the large number of eagles here daily.
A branded Stellers Sea Lions was photographed today 319Y and 4332 was observed. A California Sea Lion with a number on its rump and an X anterior to that was observed but the number was not verified nor was a successful photo taken.
There were no visitors and chores were routine today.
Weather
Ecological
Maintenance
Other
Smoke from blasting.
Ecological Happenings
Marine Vessels
Two tour boats and one pleasure vessel.
Maintenance
No visitors today.