Tag Archives: sea lion

Halloween Mystery Berries

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Weather Today: 

  • Visibility 15+ NM
  • Sky clear with lots of sun in the later afternoon
  • Wind 0-5 knots N
  • Calm seas

Visitors and traffic: 

  • No visitors over the last couple of days.
  • A handful (3-6) of whale watching boats come through daily as well as a couple of private vessels.

Ecological Notes: 

  • Mara spotted and photographed a small amount of orange/red berries on the ground near the jetty. It would appear a bird regurgitated them – we aren’t exactly sure what they are and haven’t seen anything like this before.
  • The amount of sea lions seems to have stabilized. There are many hauled out, but thankfully this seems to be it! They are very determined to rest near and right up to the south side of our house and all around the lighthouse down to the desalinator building. The worst they do is dislodge some of the rocks that form unused raised beds and low walls around those areas.
  • We have been spotting whales frequently over the last week or two, and saw another humpback today.
  • Last night and the night before it rained heavily and the puddles that remain are being enjoyed by the seagulls and geese.

Some photos from the last couple of days:

Additional Notes: 

    • We have begun clearing out the firewood that was stored under the front deck/stairs. With the work on the guest house stairs nearing completion, the stairs on the main residence could be up next.
    • While moving the firewood we took a closer look at the remainders of a very old looking wrought iron bench (stored with the firewood). This looks like an interesting artifact! The company Innova it still around and selling similar goods.

 

Saturday Census

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Weather Today: 

  • Visibility 10-15 NM
  • Sky partly cloudy, some blue sky and sun
  • Wind 25-30 Knots NE
  • Sea state: swells breaking up to 4-5 ft

Census:

  • 1 Bald eagle
  • 6 Black turnstones
  • 1 Savannah sparrow
  • 3 Harlequin ducks
  • 345 Brandt’s cormorants
  • 800 California seagulls (approximate)
  • 65 Harbour seals
  • 13 Canada geese
  • 1117 California sea lions
  • 234 Stellar sea lions
  • 1 Sea otter (Ollie!)

Blustery Fall Winds

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Today’s Weather: 

  • Sky overcast, rainy
  • Visibility less than 5 NM
  • Wind 25-30 knots NE
  • Sea state: Swells up to 3-4 ft, fast moving

Visitors: 

  • Greg and contractors have visited a few times this week to complete work on the island.
  • Not many eco-tourism boats at this point in the season. One or two per day on average travelling through the reserve. Yesterday a sizeable group of kayaks passed through, as well as a handful of pleasure crafts.

Ecological Notes: 

  • This week we have been seeing an incredible number of humpback whales in the strait; Yesterday we counted at least six visible at once! We have seen them most often breaching and fishing west/south west of the reserve, although we were surprised by one very close to our jetty just this week. We have observed whale watching boats approaching the whales, and when this occurs their behavior seems to change. Instead of surfacing frequently and in a more leisurely fashion, they dive for long periods of time and cover larger distances during their dives, surfacing further from the boats each time. Consistently observed, if the vessels follow the whales they seem to dive longer and swim further away still.
  • The sea lion population is stable now, with a steady 1000-1200 present in the reserve. They seem to have settled in for the season, each having their favorite spot to rest. We have noticed that the sea lions that we are able to distinguish individually indeed do return to the same spot to rest for typically at least a few consecutive days. Although sea lions ingest upwards of 5% of their mass in fish each day on average, we have noticed that often they do not leave their resting spots for days at a time if they are not disturbed.
  • The bald eagle presence in the reserve has also suddenly jumped over the past week to two weeks, presumably due to spawning salmon returning to estuary’s at this time of year. A few days ago we spotted 8 in the reserve as the sun rose over the horizon. Early mornings are the most active part of the day for wildlife fishing: no human/vessel activity disruptions, but it also seems to be part of their natural routine. As the sun rises each day, the air is filled with the sound of eagles, sea lions, seals, and seagulls all looking for breakfast!
  • No elephant seals in the reserve this week. We hope that we might be joined by more juveniles through this fall season- they are a highlight of our daily routine when they are here.

Heavy Wind and Rain

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Weather Today: 

  • Sky partially overcast
  • Heavy rain intermittently
  • Wind 30-53 knots NW
  • Visibility 5-10 nm
  • Swells up to 4-5m

Visitors/Traffic: Very few vessels on the water today with the conditions. We spotted a fishing boat passing by near Bentinck island and took a picture of waves breaking over its bow.

Fishing vessel breaking through waves.

Ecological: 

  • The animals seem to be taking shelter from the weather and moving around a little less than usual. The sea lions are staying hauled out in big ‘cuddle puddles’, the geese and seagulls have been looking for places to sit out of the wind.
  • The younger seagulls especially have been looking a little tired, it seems like something about their feathers means they don’t repel water as well as the mature birds – they look waterlogged!

Saturday Census, Storm Brewing

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Weather Today: 

  • Sky intermittently foggy, clear (dark clouds blowing in from W)
  • Visibility 10-15 NM
  • Wind 25-35 Knots NW
  • Sea state: white caps, 2-3 foot chop

No visitors today. A few eco-tourism boats , 1 pleasure craft, and a large group of kayakers in the mid afternoon passed through the reserve.

Yesterday we glanced a humpback whale outside the reserve in the early morning. We have seen far fewer whales inside of the reserve as compared to last year’s fall (none!).

Census: 

  • 1 Elephant seal (GE103)
  • 16 Canada geese
  • 127 Glaucous-winged gulls
  • 633 California gulls
  • 3 Savannah sparrows
  • 2 Black turnstones
  • 1 Black oystercatcher (spotted amongst a group of gulls!)
  • 49 Brandt’s cormorants
  • 1 Sea otter
  • 19 Harbour seals
  • 511 California sea lions
  • 128 Stellar Sea lions

Sun Before the Storm

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Weather: 

  • Sky clear, blue
  • Visibility 15+ miles
  • Wind 0-15 knots W, NW
  • Sea state: calm
  • We are preparing for a large amount of rain over the next few days. Every year the “first big rain” on the west coast is quite an event!

Visitors: 

  • Today Greg visited with supplies for the island and contractors
  • Few whale watching boats now that school in Canada is back in session.

Ecological Observations: 

  • There have been quite a few more stellar sea lions this week. We will be completing our census tomorrow, weather permitting- we’ll see what the numbers show! (last week the fog delayed our census significantly)
  • The bird life has continued to change daily, with many sparrows and gulls migrating with the seasons. The pelican spotted previously stayed in the reserve for a couple of days but we did not see it today.
  • We observed a small pod of orcas passing outside of reserve yesterday evening. We have been seeing fewer humpback whales in the strait this week.
  • Elephant seal E103, or “Erica” has been enjoying the jetty with the sea lions. When we fence the island to prevent damage due to the sealions arriving we are mindful to leave space for the elephant seals to move through the island freely (the fence is high enough for them to pass underneath). Notably, Erica has chosen to remain with the sea lions nearer the jetty, as opposed to her preferred grassy areas at other times of the year. We wonder if she like the company, or if there may be a more survival based explanation for this behavior.

Other notes: 

  • As wet winter weather approaches we have been mindful to collect firewood and store it in the dry areas available to ensure dry heat throughout the winter. It is still necessary to use the diesel furnace as it distributes heat to all areas of the residence but the dry heat from the woodstove just can’t be beat! This wood is collected from the ocean as winds in the winter season push logs fallen from barges into the jetty waters.

 

Smoke And Fog Through The Week

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Weather:

  • Sky overcast, heavy fog and some smoke
  • Visibility 1 NM down to 100m
  • Wind 5-15 knots SW
  • Sea state: calm

Visitors/Boats:

  • A contractor came out to do a little work yesterday, and some supplies were brought over as well.
  • We have not had much other activity. Tour vessels are becoming less frequent, and the same for pleasure craft.

Observations: 

  • The fog and smoke cover has been extreme over the past four days or so – it is hard to discern the fog to smoke ratio. The fog horn has been sounding for the better part of those days. Probably an average of 16-18 hours per day and typically going through the night.
  • The sea lions are gradually taking over the shores of Race Rocks! Their numbers increase by the day – the areas around the ‘fuel shed’ and the crane are beginning to see a couple of curious creatures poking around. We’re planning on redesigning the fencing on the jetty for this season and for the rest of the island it looks to be high time for a parameter fence. We do need to keep the buildings protected and significant areas undisturbed, but it has been nice to see the sea lions lounge on the jetty.
  • There seems to be a bit of an increase in some birds. There have been shorebirds and others, perching all around the rock and often resting at night. If we need to move around outside at night we keep an eye out as they sleep in the grass and in the plants around the paths.
  • A census will come hopefully tomorrow – the visibility makes it into a game of opportunity.

Here are some pictures from around the rock over the past couple of days:

Students, Whales, Census, Seal!

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Weather:

  • Sky clear and blue. Much less smoke than yesterday (currently 13 wildfires burning in washington state).
  • Visibility 10 NM (visibility reduced due to smoke)
  • Wind 5-10 knots SE
  • Sea state: calm

Visitors:

  • As the students return to the Pearson College campus we are being joined by small groups of first year students to introduce them to race rocks. We have been enjoying showing them around and sharing about the ecology- they ask great questions!
  • Greg has been accompanying these trips as well as MJ
  • Few boats in the reserve now that the long weekend is over. Quite a few whale watching boats following the humpback whales that we have been seeing in the strait.

Ecological Observations: 

  • The sea lion numbers are climbing daily still. There are many more california sea lions than stellars right now.
  • We have been seeing the occasional small group of black turnstones (less than ten) but the large migrating groups have moved on.
  • Yesterday we spotted a short billed dowitcher!
  • Today we were joined by one young elephant seal on the jetty ramp. Unfortunately the sea lions are not the most friendly company and it seems that they have scared it away.
  • We have been seeing groups of cormorants in the reserve, mainly on the south islands and seal rocks.
  • We have been spotting at least 1 humpback per day in the juan de fuca strait

Census: 

  • 1 Elephant seal
  • 1 Sea otter
  • 155 Harbour seals
  • 213 California sea lions
  • 71 Stellar sea lions
  • 395 Gulls (California)
  • 1 Savannah Sparrow
  • 1 humpback whale (!)
  • 4 Canada geese
  • 6 Black turnstones
  • 6 Song sparrows

Successful Sea Lion Rescue!

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Weather:

  • Sky Clear and blue
  • Visibility 15+ NM
  • Wind 20-25 knots NE
  • Sea state: swells up to one meter
  • Temperature outside: 19.8 C
  • Pressure: 1021 hPa (decreasing)
  • We have been seeing consistent fog in the late evening, lasting for an average of 2 hrs. The fog banks seem to move over us from Port Angeles.

Visitors: 

  • Marine Mammal Rescue and DFO visited yesterday (more on this below).
  • Steady flow of pleasure crafts and whale watching vessels over the long weekend.

Sea Lion Disentanglement: 

  • Yesterday Marine Mammal Rescue along with the support of DFO vessels and staff came to help a sea lion with a plastic packing band stuck around his neck. They were able to successfully dart the sea lion with a tranquilizer injection, remove the band, give him tracking tags on his front flippers, and take a blood sample. When this was done they injected a reversal drug to wake him up and with a little scratch he was back on his way!

Ecological Notes:

  • The seagull chicks have officially flown the coop! Only a few remain and we are able to move around the island again without bothering the nesting birds.
  • This year we have noticed significantly less trash left behind by seagulls than last year. Our best guess is that they had more food available to them this summer, which would also align with observing them regurgitating much more fish that the previous season.
  • The sea lions have been increasing in numbers every day. The new fencing material that Nick and Greg used seems to be working much better than the wire that we tried last year, preventing them from damaging the island infrastructure. We have been letting them rest on the jetty this week but we will soon need to install more fencing in preparation for student visits.
  • Yesterday we found two turnstones which appeared to have been killed by the gulls while we were investigating the area near the codar antenna (SW Great Race Rock).

An Exciting Few Days- Orcas!

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Weather today: 

  • Blue skies with a few small clouds blowing by
  • Visibility 10-15 NM
  • Wind 10-25 knots SW
  • Sea state 0.5 m chop

Visitors: 

  • No visitors today, but over the last few days we have have been joined by Greg and a technician to service equipment and deliver supplies to the island. Environment Canada personnel came to update weather equipment on the lighthouse with new sensors and other hardware!
  • A handful (5-10) eco-tourism vessels have been though the reserve daily as well as the same for pleasure crafts.

Ecological Observations: 

  • Over the last few days it has been very interesting to note the development of the seagulls chicks during our two week absence. The majority of them can now fly, although many appear to spend time in their respective nesting areas. While the young ones spend time on the water and practice bobbing their heads under, they still beg for food from their parent(s).
  • There have been 2-5 explosions daily, except for today, at the Esquimalt Canadian Forces Base. They seem to be varying in intensity – sometimes only a sharp ‘thump’, while other times the whole house shakes! The animals in the reserve certainly notice the latter. We sometimes see the majority of the landed birds and hauled out pinnipeds in the area flee to the water or air on these occasions.
  • On Tuesday we observed a larger pod (5-6) of orca whales move through the reserve and the surrounding waters. We first spotted them to the inside of north rock and over roughly 20-30 minutes they moved around great rock to opposite side. It looked as though they may have been hunting (moving towards shore in a line formation) but we were not able to see their prey.