Tag Archives: Steller Sea lion

Weekly Census of Race Rock’s Megafauna

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The wind blew about 10 knots from the north.  The barometer rose overnight from 1009 hPa to 1013 hPa as the sun set at 16:29, beginning to drop in the evening.  The sea was rippled.  The sky was mostly overcast with some breaks of sun and occasional light rain showers.  It hasn’t rained here during the day (possibly at all) in about two weeks.

There was one whale watching boat seen in the reserve today.  It spent a lot of time near the southern side Race Rocks, where the whale watching boats don’t usually go. Three small grey inflatable military boats sped around the edge of the reserve at 15:00, coming within less than a hundred meters of the islands.  After their circuit, they headed back towards the navy base.

Here are the results of the weekly census:

Steller Sea Lion: 263
California Sea Lion: 208
Harbour Seal: 7
Northern Elephant Seal: 5
Bald Eagle: 4 (2 adults, 2 juveniles)
Canada Goose: 9
Harlequin Duck: 3
Double Crested Cormorant: 44
Pelagic Cormorant: 147
Black Oystercatcher: 10
Gull: 396
Black Turnstone: 20
Rock Sandpiper: 3
Surfbird: 17
Fox Sparrow: 1

As always, there were variations in the numbers seen since last week.  There were fewer harbour seals.  I checked them throughout the day, the most I was able to see at one time were seven, scattered around the many small islands.  The tide was fairly high during the daylight hours, which tends to not be good hauling out conditions for the seals.  There were more smaller birds seen this week.  It was easier to spot smaller birds this week because of the lower wind speed.  I had a tough time distinguishing the rock sandpipers amongst the surfbirds.  While they look very similar, the surfbirds are a bit larger and have shorter bills.  See if you can tell the difference in the photos below.

 

Overcast with Calm Seas

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The barometer continued to drop slowly from 1023 to 1018 hPa.  The wind continued to blow between 8 and 18 knots from the northeast.  There was a difference in the weather today, compared to the clear sunny skies that have been the usual for the past week.  Low clouds hung over the Juan de Fuca Strait for most of the day.  There were occasional breaks of sun in the late morning and early afternoon.  The whitecaps this morning calmed right down in the afternoon, making the sea the calmest it’s been for the past few weeks.

There was one recreational boat seen this morning in the southern part of the reserve.

Pam Birley, from the UK, sent two photos of sea lions that she captured on Camera 1, located at the top of the lighthouse.  Pam’s photos show two branded sea lions that have never been spotted at Race Rocks, as far as I can tell.  See the photos below.  Thanks Pam!

The desalinator was run today to top up the fresh water cistern.  The solar panels aren’t soaking up as much energy, due to the clouds.  The generator was run longer today to help out the energy intensive desalinator.

Weekly Census of Race Rocks Fauna

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The wind was gusting up to 33 knots from ENE overnight.  In the late morning, the wind settled to around 15 knots from the ENE, and has maintained that throughout the afternoon.  The gale warning for the Juan de Fuca Strait was lifted mid morning.  The barometer dropped slightly from 1018 to 1015 hPa, between overnight to the afternoon.

Two whale watching boats were seen in the reserve at 16:00.

There were a few differences noticed while doing today’s census, compared to last week. There were not as many smaller birds seen today.  The elephant seals are not hanging out near the jetty, where they have been for the past few weeks.  They are now a few hundred metres west, on Middle Rocks.  The harbour seals were easier to spot because they were basking in the sun on the many small islands that make up the ecological reserve.

Here are the results of today’s census:
Steller Sea Lion: 430
California Sea Lion: 359
Harbour Seal: 36
Northern Elephant Seal: 6
Canada Goose: 37
Double Crested Cormorant: 12
Pelagic Cormorant: 41
Gull: 756
Black Turnstone: 1
Savannah Sparrow: 1

Jeff Spears is coming to the Rock to relieve me for a few days, as I head to a meeting in Calgary.

Ring-necked Steller Sea Lion

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The wind blew between 20 to 38 knots from the northeast for most of the day, switching to the east southeast in the evening.  A swell with 1m waves came in from the east.  The barometer climbed from 1023 to 1026 hPa.  The visibility was unlimited, with clear skies.

There weren’t any boats seen in the reserve today.

A ring-necked steller sea lion was seen on South Rock, the same place that another one was seen yesterday.  The sea lion has the brand 946R.  It has been seen at Race Rocks since August.  The Sea Lion Disentanglement Project is arranging a visit to rescue the two or three entangled sea lions that have been spotted recently on Race Rocks.

The Sun is Shining

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The wind dissipated over night. After 8:00am, the wind was calm, only blowing 3 to 5 knots from the southwest. The barometer rose to a high of 1030 hPa at noon, then slowly fell to about 1027 hPa. The temperature reached a high of 12.6oC

There were five visitors that came from Pearson College, on the boat Second Nature. Courtney brought two folks from Cullen Water to install the repaired desalinator pump. Tristan and Robin, volunteers from Wales, helped carry the many boxes that contain the new composting toilets. Each house will have the toilets installed soon.

There were two whale watching boats in the reserve this afternoon. Four halibut fishing boats were spotted to the west of the reserve for most of the afternoon. Many large boats passed within a few kilometres of the southern boundary of the reserve, including a submarine, tankers and HMCS Edmonton.

The harbour seals were difficult to spot for the census yesterday. With the sun and warm weather today, they were hauled out on the rocks to catch some rays. 32 were seen today, compared with only 7 yesterday.

Three branded sea lions were seen on South Seal Rocks, just south of the engine room. I have let Pat Gearin at NOAA know about the sightings and he will let me know where else they have been.

There are updates about the two branded sea lions spotted yesterday.

Pat Gearin wrote to me with the details about the Steller that was branded 966R as a pup at Rogue Reef, Oregon in July 2011.  It is a male and so far we have 9 resights from this individual, all from BC.  In 2011, he was sighted at Pachena Point once, and in 2012 he was sighted at Carmanah 8 times.

Matthew Tennis wrote that U596 was branded on August 15, 2014 in Astoria. At that time he weighed ~193 kg. He was seen in Astoria for a few days following the branding and again in the middle of October. This is the first resight for this animal outside of Astoria. They have high site fidelity and being a relatively young animal, it is very possible he will be seen at Race Rocks for years to come.

Maintenance tasks were performed today: moving propane tanks, pressure washing the algae and bird poop off the exterior of the houses, dismantling the old toilets, picking up garbage that has washed ashore and running generator and new and improved desalinator.

A Mighty Wind’s a Blowin’ for Census Day

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The barometer dropped all last night from 1015 hPa to 1002 hPa this morning, before it began to climb again towards 1008 by the end of the day.   The wind started from the northeast, but then switched to blow strongly from the southwest from mid morning onwards. The gusts reached 47 knots in the evening.

There were two whale watching boats seen in the reserve.

Once the fog lifted, the census was a bit easier to do. Then the wind blew up and most of the birds hunkered down on the leeward side of the island. I wasn’t able to positively identify all of the individual species of gull. Next week, I will strive to get an accurate breakdown of the number of glaucous-winged, thayer’s, california, western and heerman’s. There are a lot fewer gulls compared to last week, only 14% of the 3224 that were on the reserve last Thursday.

See the photos below for some of the noteworthy species and sights seen during today’s census.

Here are the results of the census:

Steller Sea Lion: 211

California Sea Lion: 404

Harbour Seal: 7

Northern Elephant Seal: 11

Bald Eagle: 1

Canada Goose: 24

Double Crested Cormorant: 14

Pelagic Cormorant: 56

Gull: 450

Black Oystercatcher: 18

Black Turnstone: 26

Surfbirds: 15

Dunlin: 4

Killdeer: 2

Savannah Sparrow: 2

Fox Sparrow: 1

A rainbow appeared as the fog was burning off this morning. Turbine Rock is in the foreground. The pot of gold is Church Point.

A rainbow appeared as the fog was burning off this morning. West Rock is in the foreground. The pot of gold is Church Point.

A savannah sparrow near the burial mounds by the marine science centre

A savannah sparrow near the burial mounds by the marine science centre

Another view of a savannah sparrow near the burial mounds by the marine science centre

Another view of a savannah sparrow

Black turnstone

Black turnstone

Black turnstone on the boardwalk by the crane

Black turnstones on the boardwalk by the crane

A male elephant seal barks and floats beside the jetty.

A male elephant seal floats and barks beside the jetty.

Sandpiper-like birds: durlin, surfbird and black turnstone

Sandpiper-like birds: dunlin, surfbird and black turnstone. Can you identify them all?

A black turnstone and elephant seal share boat ramp

A black turnstone and elephant seal share the boat ramp

Black oystercatchers on the rocks by the surge channel

Black oystercatchers on the rocks by the surge channel

A steller sea lion with the brand "966R." The "R" signifies that it was branded in Rogue Reef, Oregon. I will add more information when I find out.

A steller sea lion with the brand “966R.” The “R” signifies that it was branded in Rogue Reef, Oregon. I will add more information when I find out.  [Updated information from Pat Gearin with the NOAA: The Steller was branded as a pup at Rogue Reef, Oregon in July 2011.  It is a male and so far we have 9 resights from this individual, all from BC.  In 2011, he was sighted at Pachena Point once, and in 2012 he was sighted at Carmanah 8 times.]

Another view of 966R

Another view of 966R

A branded california sea lion with the brand "U596." The "U" or "C" depending on which way you look at it, means that the sea lion was captured in the Columbia River Area. It was branded in Astoria, Oregon.

A branded california sea lion with the brand “U596.” The “U” or “C” depending on which way you look at it, means that the sea lion was captured in the Columbia River Area. It was branded in Astoria, Oregon.  [Updated information from Matthew Tennis: U596 was branded on August 15, 2014 in Astoria. At that time he weighed ~193 kg. He was seen in Astoria for a few days following the branding and again in the middle of October. This is the first resight for this animal outside of Astoria. They have high site fidelity and being a relatively young animal, it is very possible he will be seen at Race Rocks for years to come.]

A group of steller and california sea lions get bashed by the waves on the south islands.

A group of steller and california sea lions get bashed by the wind and waves on the south islands.

The wind gusted to 47 knots from the south west during the late afternoon, whipping up big waves. The buoy that marks Rosedale Reef can be seen getting tossed around in the background.

The wind gusts reached 47 knots from the southwest during the late afternoon, whipping up big waves. The buoy that marks Rosedale Rock can be seen getting tossed around in the background.

lighthouse moonrise

The lighthouse with the moon rising behind

Getting Ready for the Census

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The northeasterly wind picked up to 23 knots in the middle of day, producing a choppy swell with frequent whitecaps.  Mixed with the inflowing tide, the standing waves off the end of the jetty became quite large.  The barometer dropped steadily.  There was a low cloud cover with a few scattered showers.

The Juan De Fuca Warrior from Ogden Point visited twice with two groups of four divers.

I prepared for tomorrow’s census by practicing my species identification and counting.  The numbers will be double checked tomorrow and revealed on the log.  The sea lions are proving difficult to count, due to their large cuddle puddles.  Where does one sea lion begin and the other end?

I checked the underwater camera twice today.  Both times there was a sea lion swimming across the screen just as it loaded, but I wasn’t fast enough to click the button to save the image.

Up on land, the california sea lion that was camped out by the desalinator bunker for the past two and a half days decided to move this evening.  It must have got tired of waiting for the new desalinator pump.  Don’t worry, it should be here by Friday.  Just before sunset, the sea lion waddled on all four flippers eastward over the salt water cistern and down the rocks to the water.  Taking many breaks along the 50m overland journey, it collapsed and exhaled large lungfuls of steamy breath.

Desalinator lion

Desalinator sea lion

These steller and california sea lions don't make it easy to count them.

The steller and california sea lion cuddle puddles don’t make it easy to count them.

A self loading self dumping log barge is towed towards the west past the reserve. Where is this floating forest from? Where is it going?

A self loading self dumping log barge is towed towards the west past the reserve. Where is this floating forest from? Where is it going?

Sea Lion Thermoregulation

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The barometer rose steadily throughout the day as a moderate westerly breeze whipped across the reserve. The clouds parted mid morning to bring an afternoon of sun and a high of 13.1 oC.

The solar panels weren’t the only things soaking up the sun’s rays. Sea lions were floating in small groups with one or all four flippers exposed to the air, using thermoregulation to their advantage. The sun warms the seal’s flippers, which are poorly insulated, then the warmed blood is pumped throughout their body.

One whale watching boat was seen in the reserve, after they spotted humpback whales surfacing a few kilometres to the east of the Race Rocks.

Courtney visited on the Second Nature to give a quick lesson on some of the mechanical systems on the island.

Maintenance tasks were performed today: running the generator, cleaning the solar panels, tracking down equipment and parts, figuring out how to use the equipment, vacuuming, flag care, and sweeping the paths.

Sea lions thermoregulating by sticking a fin out of the water.

Sea lions sticking flippers out of the water for thermoregulation.

A Good Day for the Birds

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As the sun rose, the wind and sea were calm. The wind picked up throughout the morning to become a moderate breeze with light rain and choppy seas during the afternoon. The barometer rose during the morning and dropped slightly in the afternoon, levelling out at 1014 hPa in the evening.

Eight boats were seen visiting the ecological reserve: 4 whale watching boats, 1 pleasure craft, 2 visits from SCUBA divers at Ogden Point Dive Centre and one boat from Pearson College to pick up Rikka, a student who was visiting for the last four days.

Maintenance tasks were performed today: chopping driftwood for the fire, daily seawater salinity test, running the generator and cleaning the houses.

Two crows were making their rounds on the reserve throughout the day. A juvenile bald eagle flew around Great Race at 0800, landing on Turbine Rock. An adult bald eagle landed on the high point of the South Islands at 1345 and took watch for an hour.

A bald eagle and sea lions on South Islands

A bald eagle and sea lions on South Islands