April 1, 2008
Snow! Glen R: 8:40 p.m.: Heard Western Screech Owl by airstrip parking lot last night.
April 2, 2008
Julie L: Cowlitz dock: 8:00 1 loon fishing just at dock. Frost in the morning. Robins everywhere. Daffodils, pink-flowering currant, maples in bloom. In the early morning, heard the pigeons that live in the cedar grove behind our cabin for the first time this year.
Glen R: 12:50 p.m. Saw Red-tailed Hawk slightly higher than treetop level Mail Bay pasturelands.
13:00 - 17:30 pm.: Round trip walk Farm Bay landing to Point Hammond. Clear, temp=52. Wind variable 2-12 mph out of N.E. Low tide 9:45 am=4.9 ft. Hi tide 2:45 p.m=6.5 ft. Lo tide 9:10pm=1.0 ft. In Farm Bay, saw approx 18 buffleheads, 9 goldeneyes, 4 gulls, 9 Red-breasted Mergansers, 1 raven. At Point Hammond saw one eagle carrying something (could have been small stick bundle) to trees back from highest part of East bluff, and making a lot of screeching for some minutes. On shore: 9 harlequins in 2 groups, one of 4 at Little Hammond, occasional courtship displays, mostly resting on rocks. Other Harlequin group fishing nearby in Huntley lagoon. Also at Pt Hammond about 9 gulls on rocks and one curious unidentified shorebird sleeping on one leg on Annex rocks: slightly bigger than robin, long legs. Gray head and upper body, white midsection to tail. Belly bottom black. Long, 2 inch skinny curved bill. Closest description in Sibleys is of a Black Bellied Plover. I have good video. Also from Pt Hammond could see about 25 harbor seals hauled out on Bare Island.
Between about shoreline fronting Farm Bay produce processing area and where the shoreline rough walking rocks south side of Little Hammond. Estimated shoreline coverage was 800 lineal feet. Conservative guess is that I saw approx 5000 - 8,000 juvenile salmon. Counted various ways. Half of area had average density of 10 per lineal shoreline foot. Approximately half of area had no fish. School sizes varied from 50 to 300 fish, with some larger schools continuous 100 yards long and sometimes in densities of 300 fish in 3 lineal feet of shoreline. Most were in water about 5-10 feet from shore and 1-2 feet depth. They did not like larger solid cobbles, but occasional rocks okay. Mostly they liked gravel. Only saw fish on walk out before high tide. Saw none on walk back which was a couple hours after high tide. Wasn’t sure whether they were forage fish when first saw. Used long handled dipnet to catch. Out of approx 12-15 net swipes at various places along this stretch: 10% of swipes empty return. 40% of swipes 1-2 fish. 30% of swipes 3-8 fish. 20% of swipes caught 9 to 50 fish. Looked at them in a quart jar, using 2 keys to sort out. Have video of fish in jar. All were salmon, no forage fish. Unaware of any mortality. Approximately 50% of the swipes returned only Pink salmon from 30mm (1 1/4 inch) to 50 mm (2 inch). Approx 10 % of swipes returned only chum salmon from about 50-65 mm. Approx 40% of swipes returned mixed populations of both chum and pink, with pink usually slightly more numerous. Also some larger ones in the mixed swipe collections, approx 60- 70 mm, could be juvenile chinook. Parr marks about dissected by lateral line, much larger than vertical height of eye, etc. As far as could tell, all fish had adipose fins.
Glen R: 12:50 p.m. Saw Red-tailed Hawk slightly higher than treetop level Mail Bay pasturelands.
13:00 - 17:30 pm.: Round trip walk Farm Bay landing to Point Hammond. Clear, temp=52. Wind variable 2-12 mph out of N.E. Low tide 9:45 am=4.9 ft. Hi tide 2:45 p.m=6.5 ft. Lo tide 9:10pm=1.0 ft. In Farm Bay, saw approx 18 buffleheads, 9 goldeneyes, 4 gulls, 9 Red-breasted Mergansers, 1 raven. At Point Hammond saw one eagle carrying something (could have been small stick bundle) to trees back from highest part of East bluff, and making a lot of screeching for some minutes. On shore: 9 harlequins in 2 groups, one of 4 at Little Hammond, occasional courtship displays, mostly resting on rocks. Other Harlequin group fishing nearby in Huntley lagoon. Also at Pt Hammond about 9 gulls on rocks and one curious unidentified shorebird sleeping on one leg on Annex rocks: slightly bigger than robin, long legs. Gray head and upper body, white midsection to tail. Belly bottom black. Long, 2 inch skinny curved bill. Closest description in Sibleys is of a Black Bellied Plover. I have good video. Also from Pt Hammond could see about 25 harbor seals hauled out on Bare Island.
Between about shoreline fronting Farm Bay produce processing area and where the shoreline rough walking rocks south side of Little Hammond. Estimated shoreline coverage was 800 lineal feet. Conservative guess is that I saw approx 5000 - 8,000 juvenile salmon. Counted various ways. Half of area had average density of 10 per lineal shoreline foot. Approximately half of area had no fish. School sizes varied from 50 to 300 fish, with some larger schools continuous 100 yards long and sometimes in densities of 300 fish in 3 lineal feet of shoreline. Most were in water about 5-10 feet from shore and 1-2 feet depth. They did not like larger solid cobbles, but occasional rocks okay. Mostly they liked gravel. Only saw fish on walk out before high tide. Saw none on walk back which was a couple hours after high tide. Wasn’t sure whether they were forage fish when first saw. Used long handled dipnet to catch. Out of approx 12-15 net swipes at various places along this stretch: 10% of swipes empty return. 40% of swipes 1-2 fish. 30% of swipes 3-8 fish. 20% of swipes caught 9 to 50 fish. Looked at them in a quart jar, using 2 keys to sort out. Have video of fish in jar. All were salmon, no forage fish. Unaware of any mortality. Approximately 50% of the swipes returned only Pink salmon from 30mm (1 1/4 inch) to 50 mm (2 inch). Approx 10 % of swipes returned only chum salmon from about 50-65 mm. Approx 40% of swipes returned mixed populations of both chum and pink, with pink usually slightly more numerous. Also some larger ones in the mixed swipe collections, approx 60- 70 mm, could be juvenile chinook. Parr marks about dissected by lateral line, much larger than vertical height of eye, etc. As far as could tell, all fish had adipose fins.
April 3, 2008
Julie L: Heavy frost this morning. Sunny afternoon. Camilla found a miniature caterpillar at the school. Hummingbirds at Isa’s.
David L, Cowlitz dock: 14:45 Hundreds of small salmonids between dock and ramp, 1’ - 3’ deep. See plankton tow notes for further observation.
Glen R: Mid Severson Bay, 17:30 -19:30 overcast, wind <10 mph temp mid 40s. High tide at 15:30. (Barry reported over 100 Bonaparte Gulls in area earlier in day here. DeeDee reported some (3) 10-12" salmon jumping about 30 feet offshore at about high tide.) Upon my arrival until departure saw 2 Common Loons, 6 Red-breasted Mergansers, 1 Great Blue Heron , 1 River Otter. Looked but saw no juvenile salmon or other forage fish along shore
David L, Cowlitz dock: 14:45 Hundreds of small salmonids between dock and ramp, 1’ - 3’ deep. See plankton tow notes for further observation.
Glen R: Mid Severson Bay, 17:30 -19:30 overcast, wind <10 mph temp mid 40s. High tide at 15:30. (Barry reported over 100 Bonaparte Gulls in area earlier in day here. DeeDee reported some (3) 10-12" salmon jumping about 30 feet offshore at about high tide.) Upon my arrival until departure saw 2 Common Loons, 6 Red-breasted Mergansers, 1 Great Blue Heron , 1 River Otter. Looked but saw no juvenile salmon or other forage fish along shore
April 4, 2008
Glen R: 15:30 p.m about high tide. DD says seeing 1-12 inch salmon jumping in Severson Bay at B's. This is the 4th winter in a row that this size salmon are there in Severson in March/April time period. I really think they are Coho, as I have caught coho like this before when seeing 'shaker' salmon jumping. Severson Bay and Cowlitz Bay have had these sub-adult salmon the last 5 winters at least. I went to place at 5-7pm, in outgoing tide. Saw no jumping salmon. Did see a pair of Common Murres come by about 100 feet from shore, also a pair of Common Loons ranging 30 -300 feet from shore. 3 pairs of Red-breasted Mergansers came by shallows, heads down butts in air as they swam by back and forth about 30 feet from shore.
April 5, 2008
Glen R: Mid Severson Bay, 16:30 - 18:45. High tide at 18:00. Cloudy, wind <8 mph. Temps low 40s. Saw no forage or juvenile salmon along 400 yard walk of shore edge. Did see (3 times) a 10-12 inch salmon jumping about 30 feet offshore, near where a freshwater pipe exits at beach from freshwater lagoons behind. Also saw 3 Red-breasted Mergansers, 1 Common Murre, 5 gulls, 2 Common Loons, 1 Pigeon Guillemot.
April 9, 2008
Julie L: Very light frost this morning. Ilsa H found a Striped Nudibranch, or Armina Californica in the rocks by Cooks’ Cove. These molluscs lie buried on the sea bottom, (from the low intertidal zone to 250 feet deep) during the day and come out at night to feed on sea pens. Somewhere there is a video of the sea pens we have offshore from Severson Bay.
April 10, 2008
Julie L: JL: No frost this morning. Nuthatches calling.
April 12, 2008
Glen R: 65 degrees at 14:00, sunny, clear, first really warm day of the year. Saw 2 Morning Cloak butterflies at Mail Bay woodlands 11:00 am. Saw, photoed, ID-d a Satyr Angelwing Butterfly at Winnies, near nettle patch (caterpillar host plant).
April 14, 2008
Julie L: The schoolkids pointed out a single trillium on the taxiway.
April 15, 2008
Glen R: All day at Mail Bay Woodlands. Highs upper 50s, partial clouds. Saw another Satyr Anglewing Butterfly. On first day of appearance here, 3 Orange-crowned Warblers active all day in slight forest opening, mixed forest, seeming (according to Barry) to establish territories, flying points to points, confronting intruders, also establishing points. Barry also reports first White-Crowned Sparrow at farm, and I heard one for first time today in Mail Bay woodlands too.
Glen R: 4-15-08 12 noon to 3:30 high tide of 6.4 at 2:15 pm. Overcast temps mid 50s. Wind from south at <10 mph. By Farm Bay landing a group of Surf Scoters (1 male, 2 female) with pair of Buffleheads. About 17 Red-breasted Mergansers on South side of main rocks Pt Hammond. 15 gulls searching in wrack. 5 Harlequins in Huntley lagoon, 1 harbor seal in water, 1 hauled out on Bare Island. At Little Hammond 2 Red-necked Grebes 100 yds off shore. 1 Black Turnstone, 1 Harbor Seal out from Little Hammond on rocks. 1 Otter eating hand wide fish, sculpin I think, at Little Hammond. 1 Pigeon Guillemot off Little Hammond, also 18 Bufflehead.
Julie L: Chilly, overcast day with 10 mph wind from NW. 10:00 - 15;00, Beach seine with Anne Beaudreau, Russel Barsh, Kurt Fresh, and locals. We seined Cowlitz, Mail, Little Hammond, and North Bays. At the last three, we found juvenile chum and pink salmon, from about 35 to 50 mm long. Pinks are recognizable because they have no parr marks (the elongated spots on their sides), their tail fork is colored, and they have a head that bulges more than other juvenile salmon heads. At every site, we found sculpins ranging in size from a cute little hatch of squillions of them at Mail Bay, to a single monster one that Anne had to use two hands to hold at Cowlitz.
Some fish found at Cowlitz at 11:00: Silver-spotted Sculpin, Three-spined Stickleback, Penpoint gunnel, Pink Salmon. A mystery fish. We found many Starry Flounders at Mail Bay.
Glen R: 4-15-08 12 noon to 3:30 high tide of 6.4 at 2:15 pm. Overcast temps mid 50s. Wind from south at <10 mph. By Farm Bay landing a group of Surf Scoters (1 male, 2 female) with pair of Buffleheads. About 17 Red-breasted Mergansers on South side of main rocks Pt Hammond. 15 gulls searching in wrack. 5 Harlequins in Huntley lagoon, 1 harbor seal in water, 1 hauled out on Bare Island. At Little Hammond 2 Red-necked Grebes 100 yds off shore. 1 Black Turnstone, 1 Harbor Seal out from Little Hammond on rocks. 1 Otter eating hand wide fish, sculpin I think, at Little Hammond. 1 Pigeon Guillemot off Little Hammond, also 18 Bufflehead.
Julie L: Chilly, overcast day with 10 mph wind from NW. 10:00 - 15;00, Beach seine with Anne Beaudreau, Russel Barsh, Kurt Fresh, and locals. We seined Cowlitz, Mail, Little Hammond, and North Bays. At the last three, we found juvenile chum and pink salmon, from about 35 to 50 mm long. Pinks are recognizable because they have no parr marks (the elongated spots on their sides), their tail fork is colored, and they have a head that bulges more than other juvenile salmon heads. At every site, we found sculpins ranging in size from a cute little hatch of squillions of them at Mail Bay, to a single monster one that Anne had to use two hands to hold at Cowlitz.
Some fish found at Cowlitz at 11:00: Silver-spotted Sculpin, Three-spined Stickleback, Penpoint gunnel, Pink Salmon. A mystery fish. We found many Starry Flounders at Mail Bay.