Hornby Ground Observations that Aren't Eagle Related - 2017-2018

[mishikeenhquay]

Miigwetch for the information, and the photos!
EXTREME GRRrrrrrrrr

[gmadeb3]

Very sad,  humans need to be more careful or observant (if a person runs across something it would be nice if they would pick it up).  Nice videos that you shared, Booni

[winterwren]

Video 1 sounds like a lot of Pacific Loons out there. Sometimes they blend with the horizon line; they’re a large scattered flock, not always easy to see, and their voices carry wondrously.

Video 2, now that I can see it, shows, sure enough, the Pacific Loons mixed in with the Mergansers!
It's apparent now that they are the ones making those sounds.
In winter they look a lot like winter-plumaged Common Loons, but they're actually smaller. On the video we can see the silvery back of the neck on some of the adults.


A note about the Octopus narrative, from someone who has seen the other end.

Octopuses are caught for bait, yes. But they are immediately killed by severing their nerve cord at the base of the brain. The death is instant.

No fisher in his or her right mind would cut a couple of arms off an octopus and then throw it overboard - alive or dead. The post seems to imply that something like this has happened, and from what I’ve known so far, its extremely unlikely. The whole animal is used. They’re considered valuable, at least in the fishing community I worked in. Not killing it first would not only be cruel, it would also make it almost impossible to take any part of it; octopuses are really strong. So even the most unthinking bait-cutter you could imagine would have to kill it, and would not want to waste any part of it, if only to keep his or her job.

Halibut and lingcod prey on octopuses in the wild. Which is why they work so well as bait. Seals are their predators too. An octopus missing arms would have had encounters with a predator before it died, or with a scavenger after it died.

By the way, eagles occasionally tangle with octopuses - literally; trying to catch them in shallow water. It does not always go well for the eagle.

[jeavverhey]

Very interesting Wren and thank you so much for clearing that up. I was quite upset to think it was human cruelty. 

[boonibarb]

wren didn*t *clear up* anything.
The observation of how Octopus are treated came to me from a VERY reliable source.
So there are two sides to how Octopus are treated by people who fish.

Yesterday i was outside shaking out Otto*s bedding when i heard the honk of a Trumpeter Swan.
The call was close so i quickly looked up at the sky i could see through the Trees & spotted a V of Trumpeter Swans flying past to the east!

[jeavverhey]

  humans to be humane and free natural lives for all. 

[boonibarb]

 
On my way home i was looking at the calm water in the sunshine at Phipp*s Point when i noticed the lovely orange of Surf Scoters!
i had to park & walk back, then wait for the flock to come to the surface again, then try to find them between the Tree trunks before they dove or were hidden by Trees again.
 
december 12 2017 12:51 - male & female Surf Scoters
 

 

 

 


Look how they all line up behind each other!
 

 
link to my fotos page - 
 
https://www.flickr.com/photos/43214021@N08/

[boonibarb]

 
Look at the puddles where two or maybe three have dived!
The others quickly follow!
You can see a tail, just before it disappears.

december 12 2017 12:52 - male & female Surf Scoters
 


& in this one, check out the cool triangle shape of the splash where the tail just disappeared!


 
link to my fotos page - 
 
https://www.flickr.com/photos/43214021@N08/

[boonibarb]

 
Yesterday i got to go out on a lovely old wooden fish boat with a group of birders to do an off shore Bird count!
We*d had fog since forEVER, but the Sun came out for our trip.
The water was calm & flat, you couldn*t*ve asked for a better day in december!
We left Ford Cove & went north along Heron Rocks & Norris Rocks then out towards Helliwell & Flora Island.
It was somewhere out there that we started seeing Orca!
i was seeing with my eye but not having luck catching them in time with my camera.
So i tried video & had a bit of luck!
This video was probably my best catch of the day.
 
december 15 2017 11:41 - Orca
 
 
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lgdEd5dKBpY" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lgdEd5dKBpY</a>

There was a young Orca in there somewhere, perhaps this is them?


december 15 2017 12:24 - Orca

 
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zm1HufRyak" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zm1HufRyak</a>

There seemed to be a Mum & youngster here.

december 15 2017 12:26 - Orca
 
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AU3RcNF0ovA" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AU3RcNF0ovA</a>

december 15 2017 12:29 - Orca

Mum & youngster & perhaps a third or just one of this same pair?

 
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1DGuEPiFxmw" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1DGuEPiFxmw</a>
 

 
link to my fotos page -  
 
https://www.flickr.com/photos/43214021@N08/

[jeavverhey]

Lovely tantalizing glimpses Booni!    What a great day and opportunity for you. 

[Donnae]

How wonderful Booni..... Orcas and Dad or Em.... wow!!!!  I would have been so excited being that close to Orcas... well that was sure worth the trip!!!! 

[winterwren]

Still photos from the first orca sighting, the one shown in Booni's first video.
One of the biologists on board said she saw 3 males, and I'm pretty sure I glimpsed three, but only two of them show up in my photos. They both have very distinctive notches on their fins. In some of the photos we can also see a pattern of scratches on the grey saddle patch behind the fin.
I think that's Helliwell Park in the background. Or at least, I can't see what else it can be. I didn't think we were so close to it.

Offshore seabird count, December 15, 11:42 am















Diving in unison.

[winterwren]

Just two more...

Offshore bird survey, December 15, 11:43

[jeavverhey]

Your still photos are a great compliment to Boonis videos, allowing for closervobservation of details like those notches and markings.  Thank you for sharing them. 

[boonibarb]

 
i had to come up with five fotos for my camera club last evening so i scooted through the boat trip fotos looking for ones to use.
But first i wanted to report the two branded Sea Lions i*d spotted.
There*s a fella i send them to & he tells me a bit of history about them.
Sometimes they tangle with the fisheries & are rescued & branded but often they are branded as pups at their breeding colonies.
A friend sent me the NOAA database of brands which is really interesting.
Tells you where they were branded, whether they were male or female, what year they were branded, etc.
This first one is female, branded as a pup on july 13 2002 at St. George Reef/South Seal Rock which is in California!
 
december 15 2017 10:59 - branded Sea Lion on Norris Rocks
 


This second individual is out on Flora Island off Helliwell.
i hadn*t seen them at the time, but i took a video & it opens with this Sea Lion who has a brand!
i don*t see that number in the database, looks like 8493?
This is a still from the video.
Turns out that this Sea Lion is from the San Miguel Island rookery, in California, near the Channel Islands National Park.

december 15 2017 12:08 - branded Sea Lion on Flora Island
 


Here we are, on our way out to Flora Island.
We are looking back at Heron Rocks to the left, you can see the bare field of Olsen Farm, way off to the left are Norris Rocks, Mt. Geoffrey the highest point with its characteristic shape, Tribune Bay to the far right.
The water was so calm, & i love the colour & shape of the waves we are leaving behind.

december 15 2017 11:06 - Hornby
 


Here is a lovely group of California Sea Lions on Norris Rocks.

december 15 2017 10:52 - Sea Lions
 


This is back at Ford Cove.
The Captain has started up the boat & we are waiting for people from Denman who are crack birders to arrive.
These Horned Grebes were pretty used to people & boats & were coming up quite close!
i don*t know my Sea Birds at all so have my ears open as to who we are seeing.

december 15 2017 10:21 - Horned Grebe
 

 
link to my fotos page -  
 
https://www.flickr.com/photos/43214021@N08/

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