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Lovely photo from Gerry Ambury's archives.
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In case you missed it, there is a great video showing a superpod of endangered southern residents in the Salish Sea near Seattle. This is a good sign, for this year at least!
'A slumber party for orcas': Incredible video shows endangered 'superpod' in Salish Sea
www.cheknews.ca
Steven Rice captured an incredible sight in the Salish Sea Wednesday afternoon as a large group of endangered southern resident killer whales stunned onlookers on shore near Seattle. Moments later, Ri...
Here is the Comox Valley Record coverage of the oil slick in Union Bay. According to the Canadian Coast Guard, the “source is land-based from a former vessel that is currently being pulled further up the shoreline to be deconstructed.” There is no mention of if it is ballast or bilge water release (or both), so that remains a mystery (at least to me!) at this point. The article includes an older video of MP Gord Johns challenging the government on the lack of regulations for shipbreaking.
Slick spotted at shipbreaking dock in Union Bay - Comox Valley RecordComox Valley Record
www.comoxvalleyrecord.com
MP Gord Johns says federal government is failing in its protection of the coastline
The recently published UBC study found that 70% of samples taken from fish farm salmon waste in B.C. and the U.S. showed genetic traces of a virus that can harm wild salmon. ![]()
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Despite finding such as this one, it does not appear that the federal government has any intention to ramp up its efforts to protect wild salmon. As it stands today, the federal government has pledged to phase out open-net pen farms by 2025 and we won't see a transition plan until June 2023.
Will B.C. be next to ban open-net fish farms after slew of U.S. states halt practice?
vancouversun.com
A UBC study found samples taken from salmon waste from fish farms showed genetic traces of a virus that can harm wild salmon.
An excellent article by Larry Pynn on the toxic legacies and current pollution problems of pulp and paper operations. It features the Crofton mill on Vancouver Island. While there have been some improvements in terms of pollutants released into the air and water, violations and problems persist and a key challenge is that the ageing facility uses older technology.
The Price of Paper | Hakai Magazine
hakaimagazine.com
Coastal communities around the world contend with the toxic legacies of pulp and paper mills.
Update: Thanks to everyone who signed!! CCOBS now have enough signatures to have MP Gord Johns raise this issue in the House. Denman Islanders (and some from Hornby who were able to stop by the bookstore) helped make this happen! ![]()
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There are many good reasons to visit Abraxas, but for those wanting to sign this petition, it will only be available until ~ 3:30 pm tomorrow (Wednesday).
There is a worrisome development at the shipbreaking site in Union Bay. Drone video of Deep Water Recovery activities reveals an oily film on the water where ballast or bilge water from the Miller Freeman was released. You can view the drone footage on youtube:![]()
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1. Evidence of the spill - Nov 22 www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDSLJV9re6s![]()
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2. The release of bilge or ballast water from the Miller Freeman into Baynes Sound - Nov 20 www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kc_P2ocBsf0 ![]()
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3. Torchwork on the Miller Freeman and equipment on the intertidal area – Nov 11 www.youtube.com/watch?v=v16iftVcBOA![]()
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Shipbreaking should be happening with full containment on a dry dock. There should also be a regulatory framework and oversight. This is not what we observe in Baynes Sound, which is not an appropriate location for shipbreaking activity to begin with. Here is some background info on shipbreaking activity in Union Bay:![]()
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www.cbc.ca/news/canada/shipbreaking-deep-water-recovery-union-bay-1.6559597![]()
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thetyee.ca/News/2022/08/04/BC-Shipbreaking-Firm-Lands-Court/
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Gorgeous photo of a Belted Kingfisher by Gerry Ambury.
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Denman's Christmas bird count is Dec 16 and Dec 18. If you want to participate, see the contact details below.
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Styrofoam can take 500 years to decompose and is a problem for both terrestrial and marine ecosystems. This promising looking biofoam project involves a collaboration between UBC scientists and Wet’suwet’en First Nation.![]()
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B.C. scientists and First Nation create decomposing ‘biofoam’ packaging from wood
www.theglobeandmail.com
A possible replacement for Styrofoam called ‘biofoam’ uses wood waste from B.C. wildfires and infestations of mountain pine beetles
This is great to see!
US approves largest dam removal in history to save endangered salmon
www.theguardian.com
Four dams on California-Oregon border to be decommissioned on Klamath River, which fish use to reach spawning grounds
So wonderful!
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This should be excellent! Comox Valley Nature is hosting an online lecture by Alexandra Morton on Sunday, Nov 20, 7-9 pm. The lecture will focus on what needs to be done to prevent further decline of wild salmon.
www.comoxvalleyrecord.com
Comox Valley Nature is hosting an online lecture by Alexandra Morton. The lecture entitled “What we need to do to rescue wild salmon from further decline” is on Sunday, Nov. 20, 7–9 p.m.
Two of the four humpback whales (possibly only three) show signs of blunt force trauma. ![]()
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There is also growing concern over the potential downgrading of protection for another baleen whale - fin whales. This downgrading is being considered despite the threat of increased shipping traffic near Kitimat, BC when LNG Canada's terminal comes online in 2025. DFO is asking for public feedback until Dec. 2. See the link below for more details on the issue.
Fourth dead humpback whale in a month turns up on BC shoreline
www.cheknews.ca
Ryder Bell was riding his ATV on a remote Haida Gwaii beach at 10:30 p.m. Sunday when he came across an unfortunate sight — a dead humpback whale washed up on the sand.
A nice article on the cultural importance of herring and their return to Howe Sound. Despite their resilience and the important and worthwhile efforts of caring people to restore them, the status of herring in this area still seems precarious given the development pressures and observed/projected climate change impacts (warmer, more acidic, and lower oxygen waters).![]()
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Closer to home, we are privileged to have the last remaining large herring stock on the Pacific coast of Canada in Baynes Sound/Lambert Channel, but here too herring are threatened by human pressures, which include overfishing, aquaculture expansion, and climate change.
Welcoming Herring Home | Hakai Magazine
hakaimagazine.com
In Howe Sound, British Columbia, a new generation of stewards is keeping careful tabs on the comeback efforts of a tiny fish with big cultural value.
Great photos and commentary on the Common Loon in our local waters by Dennis Forsyth.Common Loon and Sculpin![]()
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Dennis Forsyth writes: The Common Loon appears on the Canadian one-dollar coin probably because it is one bird that can be found nearly everywhere in the country, at least during the summer breeding season. Winter is another story however, and at this time of year they are pretty much restricted to our coastal areas. Although they are called ‘Common’, they aren’t our most numerous loons here. The Pacific Loon outnumbers them by quite a large margin. Still, we certainly have enough of them too be able to count on being regularly serenaded by their eerie yodels.![]()
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These are, of course, serious divers. Almost all of their feeding relies on their ability to capture live fish in the water. They are so adapted to this kind of hunting that they have nearly lost the ability to walk on land. They are able to lumber short distances on shore when they are nesting to get back and forth to incubate eggs, but that is about it. When not nesting they spend nearly all of their time on and under the water. They move underwater powered entirely by their powerful and specially adapted legs and webbed feet. And they are surprising agile while doing that. Certainly, well capable of out-swimming a variety of live fish. They will occasionally feed on small crustaceans and other bottom dwelling creatures, but mostly it’s live fish for these birds.![]()
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These are big birds. They weigh up to 10 pounds and adults are over 30 inches long and have wing-spans approaching 4 feet. Getting that weight off the water and into the air is a serious chore. It can take up to two hundred feet of runway to get one into the air.![]()
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They share an ability that I find wonderful with all other loons. They can adjust their buoyancy quickly and apparently with ease. So, a loon has air sacs in its body which it can fill or empty at will. Sometimes they dive by turning their body head down and driving themselves down with their feet. At other times it simply empties its air sacs and compresses its feathers to expel air until it achieves neutral or negative buoyancy at which point it simply sinks. Usually dives last only a minute or so, but they have been recorded staying down for well over five minutes.![]()
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This particular loon was photographed at Gravelly Bay in relatively shallow water where it had captured a bottom dwelling Staghorn Sculpin. Notice that at this time of year the loon is in non-breeding plumage. The sculpin is brightly coloured though. Sculpins in salt water can attain a good size and this one is probably about average. They are bottom dwellers and bottom feeders. I would guess that in that particular bay this guy would have blended in nicely with the weed and rocks on the bottom. Just not well enough to escape the sharp eye of the loon.![]()
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It took the loon a couple of minutes to actually manage to swallow the fish. The sculpin’s final desperate defense here is to extend its gill covers and its pectoral fins as rigidly and widely as possible in an attempt to make itself un-swallowable. Unfortunately for this sculpin, loons have wide mouths and special backward facing toothlike structures inside those mouths that make the prey’s fate certain. Once the bird gets a start at swallowing it’s pretty much all over but the digesting. Dennis
www.theguardian.com/world/2022/nov/09/canada-octopus-video-andrea-humphreys![]()
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In case you missed it, see what happens when a Campbell River teacher encounters a giant Pacific octopus in the Salish Sea.
‘It was giving me a hug’: video captures rare giant octopus encounter
www.theguardian.com
Canadian diver captures footage of the cephalopod drawing closer and closer until it fully embraces her
There are many reasons to protect the ocean and the capacity of blue carbon ecosystems to retain carbon is one of them. One thing not mentioned in the article is the fact that the ocean has a long memory and there is a lag in its response to global heating due to thermal inertia. In addition to protecting these important ecosystems, we really need to get serious about sharply reducing emissions or we're going to end up with an unrecognizable planet.
Canadian delegation set to tell COP27 about oceans’ role in fighting climate change
www.thestar.com
Lying in plain sight and lapping against our shores is what scientists describe as an unsung hero that has been quietly absorbing heat and keeping the...
This is remarkable work by a dedicated team. Thankfully, it's a joyful ending for this lucky Steller Sea Lion. The full video (~ 10 min ) can be viewed at: Youtube.com/seadocsociety It's engaging and worth watching!