‘2009-12-02’, ‘Elephant Seal’, 1, ‘Our long-time viewers will be happy to know that Slash has returned to Great Race Island. His other preferred haul out in the reserve -Middle Rocks) is still densely packed with Steller sea lions. Slash is looking hefty, having put on weight during his time away from Race Rocks in preparation for the breeding season due to start soon!’, ‘Ryan’, ’11:31:30 ,
Tag Archives: sealion
Injured Sea lion
Ryan took these images today. “I noticed this thin sea lion this morning, then that it had a brand, then that it’s front right flipper has been nearly cut through. I watched him long enough to see that he is having difficulty moving around and does not like to lie certain ways. I didn’t get the full brand in any one shot, but the last two show that is is branded C868.
Pat Gearin of Noaa added: this animal was captured and marked at Astoria, OR as an adult male so it’s not known how old it is or what it’s home rookery is.—
In regards to the injury on it’s flipper, again it’s difficult to say
what could have caused this without a closer exam. My guess is that
it was caused either by a shark, killer whale or possibly a boat
strike.
Seagull chicks starting to lift off ground
The baby elephant seal is present outside the concrete pad again today. Its back is covered in small wounds and every move it takes seems to be an effort. It spent all day sleeping beside the jetty. Wondering if it is sick or in poor health..The number of sea lions (both stellar and California) is growing daily. Most are hauled out on the NE corner of Gr. Race and on Middle Rock. Some are also on the southern rocks as well. A flock of four Canada Geese was present on the island for a few hours this morning. Seagull chicks are still growing, with many spreading their wings and starting to lift off from the ground. Carcasses in various stages of decomposition have been found scattered across the island this week, with two new ones beside the cistern spotted yesterday. Slash has not been seen for a week now. A number of infractions from recreational boats occurred today, including viewing animals from less than 100 metres, fishing and traveling at speeds greater than 7 kts. Recreational boaters are reminded that violation of the Marine Mammal Regulations (rev. 2006) may constitute a fine up to $100 000. Adam, 21:25:22
California Sea lions return
The seagull chicks are growing. I haven’t seen any new chicks in the last week or two, which leads me to believe that everyone has now hatched. None of the young have started to fly yet (as far as I have seen), but many of the chicks appear now to at least realise that the protrusions from their bodies may someday put them in the air. It is quite entertaining to watch the chicks hop up and down and flap their wings before falling on their heads! I haven’t seen our family of young geese now for a week or so. I suspect that they have outgrown the island and moved off. This week though we did have two stopovers from geese flocks. The first flock consisted of seven individuals while the second had twelve. Each flock landed for a few hours then left.Slash, as always, is still lazing around in the sun on the island. We did have Beatrice return a few weeks ago, but she only stayed for a day or two. I haven’t seen any more elephant seals these days. Four or five California sea lions have returned to the reserve. Several are currently hauled out on Middle Rock, and several more are hauled out on the northeast corner of Great Race Rock. Unfortunately, they appear to be quite the attraction for whale watching tourists.Many pigeon guillemots are still present across the island, as well as a number of black oystercatchers that can often be seen out on the jetty at night when I do the water sampling.Life underwater is also flourishing, as expected. Yesterday I did two dives off the north side of the island and saw the normal plethora of creatures. Many of my fellow divers also spotted a wolf eel lurking in the upper reef. I unfortunately, missed it.Pam has also reported seeing an otter skulking around too. I’ve been on and off the island in the last week quite a bit, so I guess I must have missed it. -Adam- ’21:27:09′,
Sea Lion Census
A visual census using the remote camera 5 focused on Middle Island.
The following panorama was taken of the “middle islands” at Race Rocks from 6 images taken consecutively with a small overlap and then spliced together with a “Photostitch” program which is usually available with the software for an electronic camera.
Educational Application: When we build up a set of these pictures, students can do mathematical projects by going on the camera and getting a live count and then running various statistical comparisons on these archived images. Just click on the image below for a version that is large enough to enable counting and identification.
Click for larger size to count sealions.
Marine mammal Census
‘Orca’, 5, ”, ‘Garry’, ’12:56:42 ,
‘Orca’, 2, ‘Swam north past west side of Great Rock, breaching several times.’, ‘ LBPC students
California Sea Lion’, 40, ”, ‘ LBPC’
Northern Sea Lion’, 20, ”, ‘ LBPC’
Harbour Seal’, 15, ”, ‘ LBPC’, ’17:27:37 ,
Marine mammal Census May-June 2008
May 4 2008: photo in census file showing at least 3 elephant seals on Middle rock.
June 3 2008 Three male elephant seals were observed on middle rock. Two California and 1 Northern sealion are all that are left on the islands.
June 10, 2008 No Sea lions were seen. Very few harbour seals are around today. Estimated 10.
Two elephant seals on middle island, old Slash and one juvenile male ( dark colored)
250 Northern Sea lions
2004-01-09′,’17:09:52′,’Over 250 Northern Sea Lions ( many juveniles) on middle rock only today- One large male elephant seal there also and one on Great Race – ( On the lawn near helipad- check on the robotic camera ) Several bald eagles on the rocks.
Mammal Census
Jan 9, 2004: Over 250 Northern Sea Lions ( many juveniles) on middle rock only today- One large male elephant seal there also and one on Great Race – ( On the lawn near helipad- check on the robotic camera ) Several bald eagles on the rocks.
Census birds and mammals
Dec 25, 2003: Pinniped census in the reserve: (Animals hauled out) —North Rock :0 Middle Rocks : Northern Sealions:65, California Sealions:1 —–Great Race Rocks : Northern Sealions: 8, California Sealions: 4 Harbour seals:7, Elephant seal :1(Male) West Race Rocks California Sealiion: 1 ( About one third of the animals observed were very young ) . Weather conditions: Wind West 32 , Sea 3′- Heavy Swell. Other noteworthy sightings : We estimated approximately 2500-3000 Herring Gulls on the island today.