Category Archives: Bird Notes

Spring is trying!

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Ecological Notes:

  • 2 Female Elephant Seals nursing their pups
  • 3 Elephant Seal pups. Pup #1 on his own again
  • Still no big Male Elephant Seals present
  • Although it looks chubby, a very small harbour seal pup(?) hauled out on the boat ramp next to the pier. This is only the second time I’ve ever seen any harbour seal in that location.

  • Signs of an early spring ….. the Geese, and the Black Oyster Catchers are pairing off and defending locations …… and the Early Crocus are sprouting

Visitors:

  • Cedric from Seafront Support kayaked out for a social visit.

Facility Work:

  • Cutting firewood
  • Started re-establishing the electric fencing on the pier, but had the high  winds bring a log over and took it back out
  • Made, and installed a replacement part for the toilet in the Student and science building

Noted Vessel Traffic:

  • A large sailboat motored through the reserve in front of the pier, but maintained proper distance and speed while enjoying the sights.

Weather Events:

  • Friday, February 03:
    • Sky: Cloudy with occasional sun peaking through, low haze to the south, visibility to about 10 miles
    • Wind:Morning winds E 10 – 20 kts, backing to NE 20 – 35 kts by noon
    • Sea: waves up to 1 meter
    • Temperature Low 6oC, High 9oC
  • Saturday, February 04:
    • Sky: High overcast, scattered low clouds to the south
    • Wind: N winds, veering to ENE,  12-18 kts
    • Sea:  light chop
    • Temperature Low  7oC, High  9oC
  • Sunday, February 05:
    • Sky: High overcast, scattered low clouds to the south
    • Wind:E winds, veering to W in the morning,  gradually rising from 2 kts to 30 kts by evening
    • Sea:  light chop
    • Temperature Low  7oC, High  9oC
  • Monday, February 6:
    • Sky: High overcast, occasional very light showers
    • Wind: S winds, backing to ESE,  5-15 kts
    • Sea:  light chop
    • Temperature Low 6oC, High 8oC

 

** 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?

Return of the Pigeon Guillemots

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Ecological Notes:

  • 3 Female Elephant Seals
  • 3 Elephant Seal pups. Pup #1 moved over the raised path and is associating with mom #1 again
  • Still no big Male Elephant Seals present, but I thought I may have heard one during the night, south of the reserve.
  • Heard the light peeps and coos I haven’t heard in at least a couple months…… a group of Pigeon Guillemots in the water off the end of the pier.

Shifting from winter plumage to summer plumage

Can’t take too many pictures of Black Turnstones

Visitors:

  • Diesel fuel delivery

Facility Work:

  • Battery system electrolyte top up
  • Battery system equalization charge
  • Desalinator has been working as expected
  • Checked oil, and ran up the gasoline backup generator, and both pressure washers
  • Firewood collecting and splitting
  • Month end records and reporting

Noted Vessel Traffic:

  • A group of vessels doing manoeuvres west of the reserve. Then more noted between the reserve and Victoria when we went in for fuel.

Weather Events:

  • Tuesday, January 31:
    • Sky: Overcast with some lower clouds
    • Wind: NNE to ENE 10-15 kts
    • Sea: calm and rippled
    • Temperature Low 2oC, High 6oC
  • Wednesday, February 01:
    • Sky:High overcast with sunny breaks
    • Wind: ENE 10-20 kts
    • Sea:  some SE swells early until the tide changed, then light chop
    • Temperature Low  2oC, High  7oC
  • Thursday, February 02:
    • Sky: High overcast with sunny breaks, lower clouds to the south on the Olympic Peninsula side
    • Wind: NE/NNE  10_15kts, veering to ENE in the afternoon
    • Sea:  light chop
    • Temperature Low  3oC, High  7oC

 

** 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?

Cold and Clear

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Ecological Notes:

 

  • 3 female Elephant Seals (mom #1 returned in the night)
  • 3 Elephant Seal pups. Pup #1, born Dec 26, 2022, is independent, not associating directly with mom #1

  • Relative rare sighting of a Sanderling

Black Oystercatchers feeding

Noted Vessel Traffic:

  • 3 Eco-Tourism Vessels

Weather Events:

  • Yesterday (Sunday January 29):
    • Sky: Sunny and clear
    • Wind: NNE 15kts shifting to NE later in the day
    • Sea: Rippled, no swell or waves
    • Temperature Low 1oC, High 6oC
  • Today (Monday January 30):
    • Sky: Mostly clear with some clouds, very slight overall haze, full light overcast by afternoon
    • Wind: NNE 10 kts , veering to SSE in the afternoon
    • Sea: Rippled, no swell or waves
    • Temperature Low 0oC, High 3oC – although wind speed is low, there is definitely a wind chill factor
    • Standing “fresh” water pools are all frozen

 

** 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?

Birds and Ellies

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Ecological Notes:

  • 3 Female Elephant Seals, 2 nursing pups, one still expecting
  • 2 Elephant Seal pups, sometimes struggling to move around with mom when she changes terrain
  • Although the Eagles have been actively hunting gulls out here, I was puzzled but the remains of Turnstones as well. This morning I witnessed the successful hunt of a Turnstone by one of the 2 Ravens here

Facility Work:

  • Covered the broken window on the crane shed
  • Collected and bucked more firewood logs

Noted Vessel Traffic:

  • 3 Ecotourism Vessels

Weather Events:

  • Yesterday (Saturday January 21):
    • Sky: Overcast with very occasional rain sprinkles
    • Wind:NE 15-20 kts
    • Sea: rippled to 2′ chop
    • Temperature Low 6oC, High 9oC
  • Today (Sunday January 22):
    • Sky: Overcast with sunny breaks in the morning, light haze by afternoon
    • Wind: N/NE 0-5kts, shifting to SE in the afternoon
    • Sea:  light chop
    • Temperature Low  5oC, High  7oC

** 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?

Christmas Bird Count

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Thank you Ann Nightingale for providing the species break down for us.

CHECKLIST S125327057

Main details

Tue 27 Dec 202210:00 AM
LocationRace Rocks
View with Google Maps

Additional details

People

OwnerCBC5 BCSO

Other participating eBirders

Effort

Protocol: Traveling
  • Observers: 1
  • Distance: 0.5 km

Totals

12
Species observed
+2 other taxa
619 individuals

Observations

  1. Canada Goose

    Number observed: 8

  2. Black Oystercatcher

    Number observed: 132

    Details

    several large groupings on known refuge for this species- exact count

  3. Black Turnstone

    Number observed: 95

  4. Surfbird

    Number observed: 28

  5. Rock Sandpiper

    Number observed: 6

    Details

    Photos to follow

  6. Iceland Gull

    Number observed: 28

  7. Glaucous-winged Gull

    Number observed: 4

  8. gull sp.

    Number observed: 100

  9. Brandt’s Cormorant

    Number observed: 40

  10. Pelagic Cormorant

    Number observed: 46

  11. Double-crested Cormorant

    Number observed: 50

  12. cormorant sp.

    Number observed: 60

  13. Bald Eagle

    Number observed: 18

    AGE & SEX:

    Age Juvenile Immature Adult Age Unknown
    Male
    Female
    Sex Unknown 10 8

  14. Common Raven

    Number observed: 4

Waves and wood

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Ecological Notes:

  • Female Elephant Seal and pup
  • Juvenile Male Elephant Seal just napping.
  • For the past couple months, there have been a daily morning “crew” of eagles actively hunting gulls on the main island. Normally there are between 8 and 12, mostly immature, but  a couple of adults too. There have been less lately as they have pretty much taken/scared away most of the gulls. I was finding up to 2 or 3 carcasses a day in the central area.

Facility Work:

  • Replaced motherboard on the desalinator unit.
  • Quick-fixed some of the siding that was peeling off the buildings.
  • Far from good, but good from afar!
  • Due to king tides, predominately high N/NE winds, and sheer amount of logs and debris in the water, made the long overdue decision to just pack up the pier electric fencing until spring. It’s easier to just move the Sealions off often when the tide is higher.

 

Weather Events:

  • Thursday January 5
    • Sky: mix of cloud and clear skies in the morning. turning to overcast mid day. Visibility 20 – 25 kms, low clouds obscuring the Olympic Peninsula
    • Wind E 25 to 35 knots veering to SE 30 to 40 late in the afternoon …. gusts to 50knts ”” drop tp calm late in the evening
    • Sea: up to 2 meter waves on top of swells from the southeast. You DO NOT want to be taking a boat from here to Victoria in that!
    • Temperature Low 8 oC, High 13 oC
  • Friday January 6:
    • Overcast with a mix of sunny periods, clear skies after dark
    • Wind SE 5-10 knots in the day, then increasing to SE 25 to 35 knots early  evening.
    • Sea:  Flat calm in the morning (wind with tide),
    • Temperature Low 6oC, High  10oC

 

 

** 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?

August 24 and 25

Aside

On Wednesday, a Coast Guard Helicopter arrived with a repair crew to deal with the foghorn.  While the Glaucous-winged Gulls around the helipad were disrupted temporarily, and many California Gulls on the Middle Islands took to the air, most were back in their places within a few minutes. The marine mammals from harbour seals to elephant seals were relatively unaffected, with the exception of several Steller’s sea lions which briefly moved from the jetty area.  They returned within 10 minutes of the helicopter’s departure. Although the foghorn was given a clean bill of health in the good weather, it failed again on Thursday when the fog lasted several hours. The Coast Guard was notified.

Several branded sea lions are being seen.

A Common Raven (not common on Race Rocks) flew over the island around noon.

Census numbers show changes in the birds that have been breeding here. Most of the PIGU have moved on now that young have fledged. Likewise, GWGU numbers are dropping as young gulls take to the air.

Harbour seals and shorebirds have been adjusting to increasing presence of sea lions, with the former loafing more on the outer islets, and the shorebirds bunching up more against the rocks on the east of the island rather than on the beach.

This will be my last post as relief ecoguardian this year. It’s been a pleasure to be here again amongst the wildlife. I hope my personal project–renewal of the compost–will be appreciated by the ecoguardians who follow. For a more personal and detailed look at life as a relief ecoguardian, please check out my blog at http://nightingaleadventures.blogspot.ca

Ecological Notes:

  • The young elephant seals appear to have moved on. The alpha male continues and has started his molt, moving between the Science Building for resting and the jetty for relief.
  • Passerines seen in the last two days were Brown-headed Cowbird and Common Raven.
  • Branded Steller’s sea lions (882R, 998E, 431Y, and 486Y) and 1 branded California sea lion (V29) were seen during census on Wednesday.  882R and a new California sea lion (U958) were seen on Thursday. The latter also visited Race Rocks in 2020.
  • Bird action on the water over the last two days, with many birds feeding on the tide lines.
  • 2 California sea lions breached the fences on Thursday Both were escorted back to the other side of the fences.
  • See photos below for more ecological sightings.

Census (Wednesday, August 24):

Mammals

  • Elephant seal: 1 (1 adult male)
  • Steller sea lion: 210 (including branded (882R, 998E, 431Y, and 486Y)
  • California sea lion: 343 (including branded V27)
  • Harbour seal: 237
  • Sea Otter: 1
  • Harbour porpoise: 14 (to the west of the reserve)

Birds

  • Black oystercatcher: 5 (4 adults 1 chick )
  • Killdeer 1
  • Black Turnstone: 85
  • Surfbird: 10
  • Common Murre: 300, plus another 550 beyond the reserve
  • Pigeon Guillemot: 28
  • Rhinoceros Auklet: 8
  • Heermann’s Gull: 2
  • California Gulls: 800, plus another 500 beyond the reserve
  • Glaucous-winged Gulls: 343 adults 141 chicks
  • Pelagic Cormorant: 1
  • Brandt’s Cormorant: 11
  • Common Raven: 1
  • Brown-headed Cowbird: 1

Weather:

  • Yesterday (Wednesday, August 24):
    • Sky: Brief period of fog in the morning, then clear
    • Wind: Variable calm-25 kts
    • Sea: rippled to 2′ chop
    • Temperature Low 12oC, High 18oC
  • Today (Thursday, August 25):
    • Sky: Foggy until mid-afternoon, clear and sunny to overcast
    • Wind: W/WSW 16-37 kts
    • Sea:  light chop turning to high waves by evening
    • Temperature Low  12oC, High  20oC

Facility Work:

  • Solar panels cleaned daily. Windows washed.
  • Fence line visually inspected and several posts put back into place.

Vessel Traffic:

  • Many Canadian ecotour boats have been nearby and heading through the waters of the ecological reserve. Cruise ships are going through daily.

Here are photo highlights from the past two days. Click on the photos for larger views and captions.

431Y remains at Race Rocks

486Y still on Race Rocks

882R branded at Rogue Reef, OR in 2011

998R still on site

Sea Otter is back in the kelp off the east side of Race Rocks.

Foghorn repair crew landing

Coast Guard crew cleaning their solar panels.

Alpha male elephant seal beginning his annual molt.

Steller’s sea lions

California Gulls circling during helicopter approach

Marine mammals were unperturbed by the helicopter.

Adult and some juvenile gulls departing as helicopter landed.

Youngsters gathered into creches when the adults left due to helicopter landing

It didn’t take long for the gulls to resume normal activities.

Alpha male elephant seal beginning his annual molt.

Alpha male elephant seal beginning his annual molt.

Alpha male elephant seal beginning his annual molt.

Brown-headed Cowbird

U958 was branded in Astoria, OR in 2015 and was previously seen at Race Rocks in 2020.

Surfbird molting from its breeding plumage.

Neck wound caused by entanglement.

Fence breach!

California sea lion branded at San Miguel Island, California in 2010.

August 22 and 23

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Both Monday and Tuesday were foggy for much of the day, as can be typical in August.  At about 11 am on Tuesday, the fog signal stopped sounding when the fog was at its most dense.  The Coast Guard and nearby marinas were notified.  Most boats have GPS and/or depth sounders so a grounding was unlikely but still a concern. It started up again at 1 pm, then off again an hour later. The Coast Guard hope to be able to come tomorrow to repair it, but in the meantime a navigation advisory has been issued.

Ecological Notes:

  • The alpha male elephant seal has been present both Monday and Tuesday, but the young female headed back to the water sometime late Monday or early Tuesday.
  • Steller’s sea lion (431Y) was seen again on Tuesday.
  • A Short-billed Dowitcher remained on East Beach on Monday.
  • An unofficial tally of sea lions during high tide on Tuesday evening produced a count of 456 (not separated by species).
  • A Common Murre was seen aground beside the jetty on Tuesday afternoon. This is an unusual behaviour for this species away from their nest site.
  • See photos below for more ecological sightings.

Weather:

  • Yesterday (Monday, August 22):
    • Sky: Foggy in the early morning becoming partly cloudy
    • Wind: W 10-31 kts
    • Sea: light chop to 3′ seas
    • Temperature Low 12oC, High 15oC
  • Today (Tuesday, August 23):
    • Sky: Foggy most of the day
    • Wind:   W 17-29 kts
    • Sea: moderate to heavy chop
    • Temperature Low 12 oC, High 15 oC

Facility Work:

  • Solar panels cleaned daily. Windows washed.
  • Batteries topped up on Monday.
  • Fences are being checked and downed posts reset daily.

Vessel Traffic:

  • Many Canadian ecotour boats have been nearby and heading through the waters of the ecological reserve. Cruise ships are going through daily.

Here are photo highlights from the past two days. Click on the photos for larger views and captions.

Alpha male elephant seal and young female come nose to nose

California sea lions swim with their tails up!

Glaucous-winged Gull chicks nestled in compost

Float seen east of Great Race

Standing waves in Race Passage

Common Murre

Seal lions moving closer to the fence line

Seal lions moving close to the fence line. Downed post was picked up and straightened without causing a stampede, although the sea lions were paying close attention.

Young Glaucous-winged Gull with a “toy”

Black Turnstones have been moved inland by sea lions on East Bay beach

Sea lions on East Bay beach

Alpha male elephant seal seen from the tower

Navigational warning issued when foghorn failed

August 20 and 21

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Compost project was completed on Saturday, with incorporation of a barrel of rain/fog water from the roof as the final touch. The rainwater was heavily contaminated with gull droppings, so not useful for much, but excellent to keep the compost moist and provide nutrients. The number and aroma of sea lions is increasing, but bird diversity remains low.

Ecological Notes:

  • Only the alpha male and one young female elephant seal were seen present in the last couple of days.  The male remained in his spot alongside the science house until mid-day Sunday. One of the young females made her way to that spot Sunday morning, and was still in place at sunset.
  • Only passerines seen in the last two days were Brown-headed Cowbird.
  • Another branded Steller’s sea lion (431Y) was seen. He was branded at Rogue Reef, Oregon in Jul 2013, and had not been reported since 2014. (Although some data is still pending.
  • Birders touring the area on Sunday found a single Common Tern, rare for this area.
  • A Short-billed Dowitcher was on East Beach on Sunday.
  • The aroma from the California sea lions and resulting flies are increasing. All  California sea lions have remained outside the fence–so far.
  • See photos below for more ecological sightings.

Weather:

  • Yesterday (Saturday, August 20):
    • Sky: Overcast in the early morning becoming clear and sunny
    • Wind: W/WNW 12-29 kts
    • Sea: light chop to 3′ chop
    • Temperature Low 13oC, High 17oC
  • Today (Sunday, August 21):
    • Sky: Overcast in the early morning becoming partly cloudy in the afternoon
    • Wind:   W/WSW 9-24 kts
    • Sea: rippled to 2′ chop
    • Temperature Low 14 oC, High 16 oC

Facility Work:

  • Solar panels cleaned daily. Windows washed.
  • Compost renewal project completed
  • Fences all checked and one west of lighthouse repaired

Vessel Traffic:

  • Many Canadian ecotour boats have been nearby and heading through the waters of the ecological reserve. Cruise ships are going through daily.

Here are photo highlights from the past two days. Click on the photos for larger views and captions.

Brown Pelicans

Short-billed-Dowitcher

Surfbirds

Short-billed Dowitcher with Black Turnstones

Birders checking out the shorebirds in East Bay

Young Glaucous-winged Gulls and young elephant seal

Young elephant seal beside the Science Building

Harbour seal and pup

Brown-headed Cowbirds

Bonaparte’s Gull

Steller’s sea lions

Steller’s sea lions

Branded Steller’s sea lion

Steller’s sea lions

Steller’s sea lions

Steller’s sea lions

Collected rainwater makes good compost moisture!

Boards all in place and ready for compost action

Compost project – Done!

 

August 18 and 19

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The compost rejuvenation project is almost complete! The first chamber was completely emptied with the compost spread to various locations, but mainly in the hollow along the main path to the Ecoguardian’s residence. The compost still in process from the second chamber was put into the first chamber, then topped with some completed compost which can be used to cover any new materials added.  Compost from the second chamber was used to fill some voids around both residences, although it was not all used up. There remains about 1/3 of the mature compost, piled up for future removal or to cover new compostable materials. The final steps are to reattach the boards and maybe one more little thing…

Ecological Notes:

  • All three elephant seals were seen on August 18. One of the young females followed the alpha male all the way to his usual place alongside the researcher residence.  She stayed with him for about 5 hours before returning on her own to the ramp.
  • Only passerines seen in the last two days were Brown-headed Cowbird.
  • The branded California sea lion (X759) seen Wednesday originates from Astoria, Oregon. He was branded in Feb 2017 and had not been reported away from that site after March 2017.
  • A Sooty Shearwater was seen south  of Race Rocks on Friday.
  • At least one Ruddy Turnstone remains.
  • Very quiet on the water over the last two days.
  • See photos below for more ecological sightings.

Weather:

  • Yesterday (Thursday, August 18):
    • Sky: Overcast in the early morning becoming clear and sunny
    • Wind: Variable 1-21 kts
    • Sea: calm to rippled
    • Temperature Low 15oC, High 27oC
  • Today (Friday, August 19):
    • Sky: Overcast with distant morning thunderstorms. Fog in the late morning, but mostly clear in the afternoon.
    • Wind:  mostly W 3-34 kts
    • Sea: calm to 3′ chop.
    • Temperature Low  13oC, High  21oC

Facility Work:

  • Solar panels cleaned daily. Windows washed.
  • Chimney at the ecoguardian house cleaned on Thursday
  • Fence east of lighthouse repaired
  • Compost renewal project continues and is near the end.

Vessel Traffic:

  • Many Canadian ecotour boats have been nearby and heading through the waters of the ecological reserve. Cruise ships are going through daily.

Here are photo highlights from the past two days. Click on the photos for larger views and captions.

Young elephant seal following adult male

Adult elephant seal and young female next to the researcher residence

Pigeon Guillemot

Brandt’s Cormorant

California Gull

Sunset from the researcher residence, with gull embellishment on the windows.

Compost being used to fill previous hoes and trenches.

Compost bin 1 ready for action

Compost bin 2 mostly emptied and remaining compost turned

Looking as good as new

Gulls are coming in with lots of bait fish for their young.