I Heart Mirounga

Elephant Seals, E-seals, Mirounga: What's not to love about these guys.  They loaf all day in gulches and are the most appetizing prey to great white sharks.  They might be the best of the Pinnipeds on the Farallones.

Sure they appear slow and indolent, but they have a certain charm about them, perhaps due to their eccentricity.

They groan and grunt all day nipping at each other over a few extra inches of beach space.   Their fart-like vocalizations never fail to cause uncontrollable laughter.

They're always watching, helpless and confused from their place in the gulch.

Past Few Days in Farallonia

This Greater White-fronted Goose showed up today. Not sure what's wrong with its eye but it doesn't look good for this poor fella.

We had one great day in the past couple weeks (Arctic Warbler, 'nuff said), but the weather simply won't cooperate for another good wave.  We've been inundated with fog, and when that finally lifted we had sunny skies and 60 miles of visibility.  Any land bird that had any chance of landing on the island could easily see the luxuriant, sunny banks of Point Reyes and had no reason to stop in this granite wasteland.

Still, a few new arrivals over the past few days helped boost my Faralist (all species seen on the island).  My island list is up to 135 in less than a month on the island, but imagine what it could be with some overcast skies and light winds.  Good thing I have some more time.

Another new arrival today, House Wren.

Cassin's Auklet

Cassin's Auklets nest on the island and are quite common.  However, sometimes nests are abandoned or parents die, and juvenile birds (such as this one above) head out of their burrows in search of food.  They become a quick and easy meal for Western Gulls, which we've seen swallowing whole chicks on more than one occasion.  I don't know the fate of this bird, but I can't imagine it ended harmoniously.

California sea lions – they're still out here.

Hatch-year Rock Wren

No joke, we have been trying to catch a Rock Wren on this island since I arrived.  We have 3-4 on the island now and they have resisted all efforts to capture them.  Finally, we got one (above).  We've also been banding Burrowing Owls most nights this past week.  Today we have at least ten of these strange birds on the island.

Finally a re-sight on one of the banded ones.

Ah yes, A66, this is the one I banded.

As I mentioned, it has been too clear.  In fact it was so clear, that the Golden Gate Bridge was easily visible (above) from the lighthouse.  The benefit to the good visibility is that cetaceans can are also easy to spot.  In addition to our resident gray whales, yesterday, we had a pod of 50 short-beaked common dolphins, and a humpback whale.

Adult White-crowned Sparrow

Finally got a photo of a/the Vesper Sparrow

Nursing Steller's sea lion pups 

Whimbrel

Clay-colored Sparrow

Stay tuned for more, I swear we'll get something crazy soon...

Farallon Pinnipeds

Harbor Seal (Phoca vitulina).  Yes, they always look this frightened.

I was recently asked to put some photos up of the seals and sea lions (Pinnipeds) on the island, and, despite my predisposition to photographing animals with feathers and beaks, I have decided to embrace these furry and cute, though smelly, noisy, and peculiar marine mammals.  Afterall, I walk by them daily and rarely take the time to photograph or study them.  

Northern fur seals (Callorhinus ursinus) are difficult to view at close range on the island, however I commonly see the other species at close range on the island – California sea lions (Zalophus californianus), Steller's sea lion (Eumetopias jubatus), Harbor Seal (Phoca vitulina), and northern elephant seal (Mirounga angustirostrus).  All but the elephant seals are easily disturbed on the island, so we have to take special care not to flush them when doing bird surveys.  I have taken a particular liking to the immature male elephant seals which look like aliens, sound like crazy people, and smell horrible.

California sea lions and an elephant seal

Sleeping elephant seal

Elephant seals

Elephant seal

Harbor Seal

Steller's sea lion (the blonde one), with California sea lions

First Days on the Farallons

Northern Gannet.  This is the first Pacific ocean record has been present at Southeast Farallon Island since April.  Today it flew right by while I was white shark-watching from the lighthouse and allowed for some great photos.

My first few days on Southeast Farallon Island have been pretty amazing for me.  Although we haven't had any megas or big waves of migrants yet, it has been a real treat for me just to be here.  Some of the birds we've had just since Wednesday include Semipalmated Sandpiper, Least Flycatcher, Cape May Warbler, Blackpoll Warbler, Black-headed Grosbeak, Bobolink, Yellow-headed Blackbird, Painted Bunting, Western Wood-Pewee, Barn Owl, Chipping, Clay-colored, and Brewer's Sparrows, Lark Bunting, and Lark Sparrow among many others.  Here are some photos.

This Blackpoll Warbler has been around since before I got here, but somehow remained under the radar for the past three days.

One of the several Red-breasted Nuthatches that have been around the past few days.  This one paid no attention to me at all, while foraging in one of the three trees on the island.  It was eventually banded.

This Northern Pintail has been here for several days as well, spending most of its time in "Stinky Pond."

Pelagic Cormorants nest ont the island.

Common Murres nest on the island as well, although their breeding season is over.  This bird is oiled.

Birds aren't the only wildlife on the island.  This adult male elephant seal is one of five pinniped species that can be commonly found on the island.  The others are California and Steller's sea lions, northern fur seal, and...

Harbor seals are another pinniped species on the island.