Buffleheads (Bucephala albeola) making a splash during the herring spawn last week, on the east coast of Vancouver Island.
#birds #BirdPhotography #BirdsOfMastodon #HerringSpawn #HerringRun #VancouverIsland #BritishColumbia #VancouverIslandWildlife #wildlife #WildlifePhotography #photography
California sea lions very relaxed, some sleeping even, in the sea where herring has just spawned.
California sea lions have a darker coat than Steller sea lions and they also have a bump on their forehead.
#HerringSpawn #HerringRun #SeaLions #wildlife #WildlifePhotography #VancouverIslandWildlife #VancouverIsland #BritishColumbia #photography #nature
Food chain observable from the shoreline of Vancouver Island at this time of year:
Herring > seals & sea lions > orcas
If you are in the Qualicum Beach area, a large spawn has started there yesterday. You'll see plenty of fishing boats at sea too.
Well, well, well, look at what this gull has found! That's right, a tasty herring! Who doesn't like herring for breakfast, uh?
#HerringRun #HerringSpawn #herring #gull #birds #BirdPhotography #wildlife #WildlifePhotography #VancouverIsland #VancouverIslandWildlife #VancouverIslandPhotographer
Spawn observed yesterday at the south end of Cortes Island and at the south end of Hernando Island. No spawn observed between Campbell River and French Creek. Effective 14 hrs today, roe herring seine fishery is open in Subareas 14-1 to 14-13, and 14-15 in the Strait of Georgia. (photos from my archives)
Learn more about the herring spawn on the British Columbia coast: https://pacificwild.org/herring-spawn-a-springtime-spectacle/
Learn about 2023 herring spawn, a natural phenomenon that occurs every spring along the Pacific Northwest coast, and how overharvesting has left Pacific herring populations in a perilous state. Discover how the collapse of herring stocks has impacted First Nations culture and coastal economies, and how Pacific Wild advocates for a complete moratorium on commercial exploitation to protect our coast.
A juvenile bald eagle has found a herring. It looks perplex.
#HerringSpawn #HerringRun #BaldEagle #VancouverIsland #VancouverIslandWildlife #wildlife #photography
John
Catherine Babault