Tag Archives: Steller Sea lion

Farewell! (For Now)

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Well, just like that it’s been 6 weeks and it’s time for me to return to the mainland. The wind is gusting 65km/hour right now, giving me one final storm before my departure. The animals are all hidden away, protecting themselves from the weather. All except the male elephant seal who is still harassing the gulls.

I thought I’d wrap up my final blog post with my favourite photos and moments from this trip. I hope you enjoy as much as I did!

Pinnipeds:

Cetaceans:

Ollie the Sea Otter: 

Birds:

Northern Lights:

Sunsets:

That’s all from me for now, but I’ll be back! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

** All wildlife photos taken at the furthest distance possible, and may be cropped to improve detail! **

A Steller Saturday

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Today was a relatively calm Saturday (aside from the wind). The website that we use to check solar/batteries has been offline since yesterday so I’ve been working on trying to fix that. Thankfully the panel in the generator building has been working as it should so I can still check on things, I’m sure getting my steps in with lots of trips over there!

One of the tiniest Steller sea lions thats been hanging around the island decided to haul out on the end of the jetty today. I managed to get a couple photos of him before he took off. I find that the Stellers are very skiddish, which is often helpful when I need to remove them from the jetty.

I’ve included a few photos below to show the size difference in the young Steller versus a full grown male Steller.

Facility Work:

  • Inside house cleaning
  • Chopped wood

Ecotourism Boats: 4

Weather:

  • Sky: Cloudy, sun and clouds in afternoon
  • Wind: Low of 13 knots, High of 19 knots
  • Sea: Small whitecaps
  • Temperature: Low 7•C, High  13•C

** All wildlife photos taken at the furthest distance possible, and may be cropped to improve detail! **

Sunday Update

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This morning’s sunrise made up for yesterday’s gloom. All 3 elephant seals are still on the island. I’ve nicknamed the smaller female “Petal” because every time I find her she is squashing a different bed of flowers. Tonight she settled on the largest patch of grape hyacinth behind the house, but not before flattening the majority of the remaining daffodils. 

The darker of the new sea otters spent the morning around the South Island snacking on bright red urchins. It amazes me how they can make their way through the sharp spines and remain completely un-phased. I have not seen the little blonde one or Ollie this week. 

This afternoon I counted 26 California sea lions on the rocks near the jetty. I know this number may seem low for anyone whose here at busier times of the year but until today the most I’ve seen is 10! There was also one large Steller who snuggled himself in amongst the significantly smaller California boys. 

Lots of eagles around lately too!

** All wildlife photos taken at the furthest distance possible, and may be cropped to improve detail! **

 

A Steller Monday

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What started out as a very foggy morning turned into a blue sky and sunshine kind of day with an unbelievable sunset!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today’s Animal Notes:

 

 

A large male Steller sea lion has been hauled out on the rocks near the jetty all day and he make the makes the California sea lions look tiny in comparison! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A female elephant seal spent the morning sunbathing in the water behind the student house. I think this may be the same one that’s been hauling out on the South Island. She’s yet to come ashore here though. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I spotted 3 harbour porpoises just outside the reserve this morning, I see so many back home in Vancouver so I’m surprised that this was the first time I’ve seen them here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I came across a giant pacific octopus at low tide (deceased unfortunately) but it made a great meal for a young gull and an even better learning opportunity for the students that are currently on the island!

 

 

 

 

Finished the night off by watching the sunset with the blonder of the two new otters as it floated off the rocks behind the student house. (No photos, just enjoyed the moment).

Facility Work:

  • Filled the cistern 

Noted Vessel Traffic:

  • One ecotourism vessel
  • Two private vessels

Weather Events:

  • Monday, March 18:
    • Sky: Foggy morning, clear blue sky until sunset
    • Wind: High of ESE 11 knots, Low of SE 1 knot
    • Sea: Glassy all day long
    • Temperature: Low 7oC, High  13oC

** All wildlife photos taken at the furthest distance possible, and may be cropped to improve detail! **

 

Weather – Current:

http://www.victoriaweather.ca/current.php?id=72

Weather – Past:

http://www.victoriaweather.ca/station.php?

Sea Otters at Sunrise

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An early morning alarm clock to watch the sunrise paid off when one of our new sea otters popped up just off the rocks beside me. No colourful urchins to munch on today, just some sleepy floating and grooming. The weather was warm in the morning and cooled off later in the day with the wind. Despite cooling down, the sun was strong and I was able to run the desalinator off pure solar all afternoon!

 

A moment of appreciation for our lone boy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Facility Work:

  • Topped up battery electrolytes
  • Topped up generator’s diesel
  • Cleaned inside keeper’s house and prepped rooms for next Ecoguardian

Noted Vessel Traffic:

  • Ecotourism vessels

Weather Events:

  • Sunday, March 17:
    • Sky: Clear, not a cloud in the sky
    • Wind: High of W 24 knots, Low of NE 2 knots
    • Sea: Glassy morning, whitecaps in the afternoon
    • Temperature: Low 8oC, High 11oC

** All wildlife photos taken at the furthest distance possible, and may be cropped to improve detail! **

 

Weather – Current:

http://www.victoriaweather.ca/current.php?id=72

Weather – Past:

http://www.victoriaweather.ca/station.php?

Sunny Saturday!

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Warmest day yet! Rather uneventful as far as animals go today (or so I thought), managed to get some facility work done – lots of cleaning. Just as I was watching the sunset a pod of transient killer whales passed by just outside the reserve. A beautiful and exciting day way to end a Saturday!

 

 

Facility Work:

  • Cleaned solar panels
  • Cleaned windows of both houses inside and out
  • Chopped wood

Noted Vessel Traffic:

  • Ecotourism vessels
  • One recreational vessel came to check out the sea lions, kept a good distance away.

Weather Events:

  • Saturday, March 16:
    • Sky: Clear, not a cloud in the sky
    • Wind: High of E 19 knots, Low of  SSW 3 knots
    • Sea: Flat calm
    • Temperature: Low 8oC, High 13oC

** All wildlife photos taken at the furthest distance possible, and may be cropped to improve detail! **

 

Weather – Current:

http://www.victoriaweather.ca/current.php?id=72

 

Weather – Past:

http://www.victoriaweather.ca/station.php?

It’s Sea Lion Season!!

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Hey, look who’s back!  I’ve been on Race Rocks since Saturday for a quick relief stint and will be heading back to the “Big Island” on Tuesday.  This is my first trip to Race in September, and it’s very different from trips earlier in the season.

We are just about at the peak of songbird migration on Vancouver Island, so I was optimistic that I might see or hear more birds going over.  The few birds on the ground have almost all been Savannah Sparrows. There was one raven here on Sunday, but other than that, no passerines seen or heard–yet.

Savannah Sparrow

Seabird activity has been off the charts outside of the marine protected area with reports of many jaegers, shearwaters, and of course, gulls of several species. Within the Race Rocks limits, it has been variable. Upon arrival on Saturday, I estimated more than 8,000 gulls in view, most of them California Gulls.  There have been good numbers of Heermann’s Gulls, especially youngsters. The number of Glaucous-winged Gulls–the ones that breed on Race Rocks–are lower now that most of the young have dispersed. Despite scouring the flocks, I was unable to detect any less common gulls or the terns that have been spotted nearby. However, eight Brown Pelicans were nearby. They must have blown out with the wind on Saturday night! Since the grand welcoming, the gulls have spread out more throughout the area, often following the Humpback Whales and Orca that are keeping the growing number of ecotourism boats in business.

Welcoming party

Brown Pelican in the kelp

Pigeon Guillemots, one of the most abundant species earlier in the year, have moved offshore.  They will spend the winter in their pale gray and white plumage, a startling contrast to the sharp black and white with bright red feet that we see here in the summer. The shorebirds that rested here each evening in July and August are largely gone, with just a few Black Turnstones, Surfbirds, and Black Oystercatchers onsite along with a few other stragglers. There was one species I missed in August that put in an appearance.  Two Wandering Tattlers were here on Sunday and one posed for photos on Monday.

Wandering Tattler

The population that has exploded since I was last here are the sea lions. California and Steller’s stacked like cordwood all around the outskirts of Great Race and the surrounding islands. It is quite clear that they would be at the door if it weren’t for a perimeter fence that (mostly) keeps them to the outer portion of the island. The work of a September ecoguardian is largely to keep the buildings and equipment zone sea lion free!

Sea lions aplenty!

The days are getting shorter, and it feels like the winds are getting stronger. Winter is coming!

More photos from the last few days:

A Quick Week on the Rocks

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A week goes by quickly out here!  First, an update:

The branded Steller’s sea lion I reported in my last post has a history that includes a previous trip to Race Rocks. 746R was branded at Rogue Reef (Southern Oregon) on July 12, 2009.  He has been all over Carroll Isl WA, Graves Rock SE AK, Castle Rock CA, Barkley Sound BC, Race Rocks in 2016, Sucia Island WA, Ewing Isl WA and Cape Arago OR as recently as July 7 this year. This and other marked sea lions are being studied by Susan Riemer of the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. If you see marked sea lions, she really appreciates hearing about your sightings.

The last few days have had all of the weather possibilities for this time of year except hot. Foggy much of the time, windy most of the rest, and sometimes foggy and windy just to change things up. No rain, but humidity in the high 90s.  I’m always struck by how different the temperatures can be just a couple of kilometres away. The wind yesterday actually broke the electric fencing tape on the jetty, which I fixed this morning.

Despite the wind, it’s been a good week for shorebirds.  Another new one for me here (but not for Race Rocks) was a Sanderling. Normally seen chasing and being chased by incoming waves on a sandy beach, they do spend some time in more rocky environments.

The thick stubby bill and “spangled” back pattern are characteristics of Sanderling

The red colouring on the neck had me hoping it might be a MEGA rarity, but it was not.

The predominant gull at Race Rocks this time of year is the Glaucous-winged Gull. They are the regular breeders in this area.  But gulls don’t necessarily stick to their own kind. When they hybridize with Western Gulls, the offspring are known as Olympic gulls.  When they hybridize with Herring Gulls, the offspring are known as Cook Inlet Gulls. There is a gull that I’ve been watching that I think may be one of the latter.

Note the white “window” in the outer primary feather

The orbital ring is orange-yellow like both the Western and Herring gulls. The iris is darker than a Herring gull and lighter than most Glaucous-winged Gulls.

I’ll be passing these and other photos on to someone more “gullible” than I am!

The Second Nature from Pearson College has been making the rounds with alumni and friends of the school. Some of them had to look hard to find us through the fog!

Thanks to Greg Dickinson and Pearson College for providing this opportunity to me again.

Visitors:

  • No visitors ashore, but several from Pearson College on boat tours around the rocks
  • Ecotourism traffic has been picking up, despite the fog.

Facility Work: 

  • Cleaned windows and solar panels daily
  • Cleaned outbuilding windows inside and out
  • Swabbed the decks at the Ecoguardian residence
  • Fixed a shock-inducing break of the electric fence on the jetty
  • Visually checked the entire run of the fence and reconnected tape blown out by high winds

More photos:

 

Aug 2 – Census surprises

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One of the reasons for doing a weekly census is to put down in writing the numbers of mammals and birds that are actually in the reserve. This gives us the opportunity to compare the results, not simply rely on memory. And that’s a good thing!  My impression on my return to Race Rocks is that there were a lot fewer gulls here than last year.  A check of a census at a similar date in 2022 shows that not to be true. The numbers are actually very similar, but down about 15% from the same period in 2021. Census records the high counts of each species observed during the day. The marine mammals, for instance are best counted at low tide when most are hauled out. The adult gulls are at their highest numbers first thing in the morning and shorebirds gather on the east beach in late afternoon. Gull chicks can be counted anytime, but are usually undercounted because of their great hiding skills. In between, the census person watches for any other birds and animals that might show themselves.

Gull chick hidden in the marigolds.

Today’s census had several surprises apart from the number of gulls. While on the jetty, I thought I caught the flash of a bird in the corner of my eye.  It was more than one. At least 3 swallows were feeding on insects in the small bay beside the jetty. I managed to get some bad photos, but good enough to identify two different Barn Swallows and one Violet-green Swallow. Later in the day, a Lesser Yellowlegs was resting with the other shorebirds, and a Parasitic Jaeger (also identified by bad photos) headed west not far off Great Race. An adult and juvenile Glaucous-winged Gull were out for a little swim.  It always amazes me to see these youngsters in the water!

Lesser Yellowlegs, possibly the first documented for Race Rocks.  First on eBird for the Race Rocks hotspot.

Out for a swim

Among the sea lions today, I found one entangled with a fishing lure. This poor animal has been her for several weeks. Another had been branded for a research study. I’ll report this number to get its history.

tagged 746R

Sea lion entangled with sports fishing tackle.

More photos below!

Census, 2 August 2023

Birds

  • Harlequin Duck                              1
  • Black Oystercatcher                       23
  • Ruddy Turnstone                            1
  • Black Turnstone                              93
  • Surfbird                                           24
  • Western Sandpiper                         2
  • Short-billed Dowitcher                     2
  • Lesser Yellowlegs                           1
  • Parasitic Jaeger                              1
  • Pigeon Guillemot                            83
  • Heermann’s Gull                             2
  • Western Gull                                   1
  • California Gull                                 120
  • Glaucous winged Gulls                 332 adults, 237 juvenile
  • “Olympic” Gull                                3 adults 3 juvenile
  • Brandt’s Cormorant                        7
  • Pelagic Cormorant                         2
  • Violet-green Swallow                     1
  • Barn Swallow                                 2
  • Brown-headed Cowbird                 2

Mammals

  • Harbour seal                                195
  • Northern (Steller’s) sea lion         79
  • California sea lion                        7
  • Sea otter                                      1

Visitors:

  • No visitors
  • Ecotourism traffic has been slow.  Several boats a day, but rarely more than one in the area at a time

Facility Work: 

  • Cleaned windows and solar panels
  • Replaced batteries in smoke, CO alarm in Student House

More photos:

** All wildlife photos taken at safe distances with high-powered zoom, and may be cropped to improve detail! **

July 22 and 23 – End of Shift

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Weather for July 22:
Wind: W 11 to 34 knots
Visibility: <1-15 NM
Sky: Foggy in morning, Partly Cloudy after 09:00
Sea: rippled in morning, up to 2′ chop in afternoon
Air temperature: 12-18 C

Weather for July 23:
Wind: W 12 to 32 knots
Visibility: <1-15 NM
Sky: Fog patches in the morning, Partly Cloudy after noon
Sea: up to 1′ chop in morning, up to 3′ chop in afternoon
Air temperature: 12-16 C

Maintenance:
I did the routine tasks of cleaning the solar panels and house windows, topping up the water in the 24 deep cycle batteries, fixing the electric fence, sampling the salinity and temperature of the seawater, and running the desalinator with solar power to produce freshwater.

End of Shift:
I have enjoyed reacquainting myself with Race Rocks over the past two and a half weeks. The solar power was a sufficient source of energy each day to charge the batteries, power the island, and produce freshwater from the desalinator. I got out in the station boat, which is always a highlight to see the island from the perspective of a sea lion. Most importantly, for the second summer in a row I learned to live harmoniously with the very territorial nesting gulls.

This is my sixth shift I have done as Ecoguardian over the past nine years, for a total of almost nine months. My shifts have ranged from two weeks to four months. I have visited here in ten months of the year, with the exception of June and September.

Tomorrow I am heading home to Vancouver to get ready for two weeks in the Northwest Territories, where I will be canoeing in Nahanni National Park Reserve.

I look forward to returning to Race Rocks sometime soon to explore the familiar sights, sounds, and smells of this amazing place.

Photo highlights from the past two days: