Angel In The Morning

Sand angels - photo by Junie Quiroga

The other morning as I passed the lifeguard chair in English Bay I noticed the Life Saving Society of BC & Yukon were engaged in a little publicity effort to highlight the need for folks to learn how to swim.  It's something they do every year as part of National Drowning Prevention Week.  To highlight this year's message 75 sand angels were being laid to rest on the beach, one for each person who drowned in B.C. waters last year.

Angels of the Water - photo by Junie Quiroga 

The Life Saving Society is the organization that has been training and certifying lifeguards for all public pools and beaches since 1911 (I got my National Lifeguard Service back in 1985) and they also offer a number of lifesaving and first aid courses.  But they wouldn't even need to exist if people just took swimming lessons, something the Red Cross has been offering for more than 60 years and who were the folks who taught me to swim and certify me as an instructor. There was no need for 75 people to drown in B.C. last year, it was all so preventable.

Learn To Swim 2011 "tombstones"

Every year they have a National Drowning Prevention Week that falls in the middle of summer when most people are near the water in either the ocean or a lake. In 2011 they put up 67 tombstones on the beach in English Bay to illustrate the number of people who drowned the previous year but unfortunately the trend is not improving. Many of these drownings were a result of boating accidents, again something that could easily have be prevented if the non-swimmers had simply worn a life-jacket.

Vancouver's first lifeguard Joe Fortes

With our proximity to the ocean it's no surprise that "learn to swim" programs have been around since Vancouver came into existence.  Having a lifeguard around is always nice but it's not really something you can always count on, especially if you go out early like I do. "An ounce of prevention is always worth a pound of cure" the old saying goes, and if people would just take the time to learn to swim they would not only make their life safer but also a lot more enjoyable as it is such a pleasant form of exercise. No need to meet the angels in the morning any sooner than necessary.

Click on the link below to check out my earlier blog post "Swim Don't Walk" for more information.

http://www.swimswithseals.com/2012/10/swim-dont-run.html

Empty lifeguard chair & slide - photo by Junie Quiroga

Rescue Me

Tin

As someone who spends part of every day swimming 2.5 km in the ocean (occasionally accompanied by seals) not to mention scuba diving and boating on most weekends, I have a tremendous interest in all things aquatic, particularly for those creatures who make it their home and I have the privilege to encounter. While I'm always fascinated with the colourful invertebrates and fish of the Pacific Northwest, there's nothing more stirring than being close to a marine mammal.  Warm blooded like ourselves, but still living in the ocean, their intelligence, grace in the water, and the way they interact with humans, seems to generate a special bond between us all.

Mercury

Unlike cats & dogs and other domesticated animals who can count on the local branch of the SPCA to come to their rescue when they get in harm's way, or the Wildlife Rescue Association for wild animals and birds, there's only one rescue facility for the entire B.C. coastline to care for any injured seal, sea lion, dolphin, whale, or other marine animal, such as sea turtles, that may be in distress, and that's the Marine Mammal Rescue Centre.  Founded in the late 1960's when a northern fur seal named Nippy, was brought to the attention of the Vancouver Aquarium after it was found tangled up in some fishing gear in Campbell River, and then later when an abandoned baby seal named Buster was brought to the back door, the Aquarium realized there was a need for a marine mammal rescue centre that could look after these delightful creatures.

Carbon

As part of the Aquarium, the Marine Mammal Rescue Centre now rescues and rehabilitates an average of 100 sea animals a year with the vast majority of them being harbour seals but, over the years, they've also been involved in the rescue of humpback whales, elephant seals, sea otters, green sea turtles, sea lions, dolphins, porpoises, and killer whales. Some, like the humpback whale that came ashore in White Rock in 2012, were too badly injured to survive but, others have been great success stories like; Flash Gordon, the Stellar sea lion, who had fishing gear removed from his esophagus, Levi, the harbour porpoise, with a massive lung infection that became the first harbour porpoise ever to be released in Canada and, Springer, the orphaned killer whale, who was re-united with her pod and was recently spotted with her own newborn calf.

Humpback in White Rock

Flash Gordon being released

Levi being released

Springer

Springer in the wild

The "Med" Shed

Rehabilitation is the primary goal of the rescue centre, and one of the things that makes the program so rewarding is the incredibly high success rate they have with harbour seals. Showing up dehydrated, malnourished, and suffering from maternal separation, they are quickly given a full medical, cleaned up, and then put on a nutritious milk replacement diet with a 52% fat content made up of liquid fish oil and other ingredients to get them up to their optimum weight. Within a month or so they are eating whole fish and have learned how to hunt and catch live fish for themselves.  After taking an exam with the Department of Fisheries & Oceans, who makes the final decision to release them, they are given their release papers and off they go.

Titanium with his umbilical cord still attached

Seal being released

Harbour seal pups have a natural advantage over other sea mammals in that within a month or so of being born they quickly become accustomed to surviving in their natural environment. Dolphins and porpoises on the other hand take 6 months to a year to learn the necessary survival skills, and whales take even longer, up to a year or two. This of course makes it much easier to release harbour seals once they are in good health, whereas other young sea mammals face a very uncertain chance of survival if they have no parental instruction. In the case of Jack, the harbour porpoise who was only 5 weeks old when he was rescued, and Daisy another harbour porpoise youngster, the Department of Fisheries & Oceans determined they were non-releasable and so they are now living in the Aquarium as permanent guests, the only two harbour seals in captivity in North America.

Jack in rehab

Jack and Daisy

There are those who think the Rescue Centre is a front for supplying the Aquarium itself with animals to put on display but that's simply not the case. The mission of the Rescue Centre is to rehabilitate the injured creatures and then release them back in the wild. Only in extreme cases is an animal kept at the Aquarium and they, in turn, become a valuable tool for researchers who are always trying to better understand them. 

Tag

For example Tag, the beloved Stellar sea lion who lived in the Aquarium for 15 years after being rescued at the age of 2 weeks, participated in many studies over his lifetime so researchers could try and explore some of the theories that have been proposed to explain the decline of the Stellar sea lion population.  He also provided Dr. Martin Haulena with the opportunity to learn how to administer the right amount of anasthetic when treating sea lions. This in turn has led to ground breaking on-site rescue techniques that allow for the removal of fishing lines and other entanglements on sea lions by being able to administer the right amount of drug to the animal while it is hauled out on log booms or rocks and not have it drown.

Dr. Haulena and Vancouver Aquarium rescue team with an injured sea lion in Barkley Sound

Treating another injured sea lion in Fanny Bay

Chromium

Each year there is a new naming convention for the seals brought into the Rescue Centre, one year it was types of candy, another celestial objects, and for 2014 it's the table of the elements. Giving each one a name helps personalize things and illustrate that every animal is unique and deserving of our love and attention. As heart-breaking as some of the rescue stories are it's even more heart-warming to witness the success stories the Rescue Centre can point to. On their website they have an amazing blog filled with videos and photos documenting their ongoing efforts.

http://www.vanaqua.org/act/direct-action/marine-mammal-rescue/blog

Clean up

The Marine Mammal Rescue Centre is a unique institution in the Pacific Northwest, with no comparable facilities in either Washington State or Alaska. While a certain percentage of the work done at the Rescue Centre is done by dedicated staff and veterinarians, there is a huge volunteer component of donated time that keeps the facility going.  Every day the animals have to be closely monitored, cleaned, exercised and of course fed. The Rescue Centre is a very expensive operation to maintain and it's in constant need of donations and support. Fortunately there are a number of organizations who recognize the contribution being made, and a special thanks goes out to Harbour Air and Pacific Coastal for providing free transport service whenever they are called upon to assist.

Preparing dinner

Injured Wally

While the Rescue Centre generates considerable publicity for its efforts, none has captured the hearts of so many as the recent rescue of Wally the sea otter.  Picked up off the beach in Tofino after suffering from shotgun wounds that had left him blinded, as well as shattering the bones in one of his flippers which had to be partially amputated, and leaving him with numerous broken teeth that also had to be removed in addition to enduring a root canal, Wally has since made a remarkable recovery and is now safe and being lovingly cared for in his permanent home at the Aquarium.

Wally at peace

Obviously non-releasable, Wally now serves as an ambassador for a species that was once hunted to extinction. Wally is another example of how one rescued animal can help us develop a better understanding of our environment and the interconnectedness of all things.  Sea otters are now recognized as a critical component in maintaining the health of our kelp forest ecosystems because they eat the voracious sea urchins that would otherwise destroy this natural sanctuary for all sorts of fish, invertebrates, and other marine creatures that depend on it for their survival. Traumatized, sometimes scarred for life, but nonetheless grateful, I'm sure, for the help they receive, you can't help but feel good inside for being part of an organization devoted to assisting our fellow aquatic citizens when they say, "Rescue Me."

For more information and to donate, please check out the following link;
http://www.vanaqua.org/act/direct-action/marine-mammal-rescue

Manager Lindsaye Akhurst in front of the big tank

Be Sure To Wear Some Flowers In Your Hair

English Bay on a cloudy day with a Japanese cherry tree  - photo by Junie Quiroga

While there's no doubt in anyone's mind that Vancouver is indeed paradise, even its biggest supporters will acknowledge the occasional grey skies and rain in winter can sometimes bring you down.  But thanks to a tradition that started in the 1930's, when we started planting Japanese cherry trees to honour Japanese Canadians who fought in the First World War, we now have thousands of these trees throughout the city (17,000 or so from the last official count) that start to display their beautiful blossoms in late February/early March and continue into early May. There are also 13,000 or so ornamental plum trees that flower at approximately the same time and look very similar.

Cherry blossom

Plum blossom

As beautiful as these blossoms are they only last for a week or two so it's fortunate there are more than one species in the City because each one blossoms at a different time and this spreads the cherry blossom season out for more than two months.  There are more than 20 varieties of these ornamental cherry trees planted in Vancouver with the earlier blossoming Yoshino and the later blossoming Kanzan species being the most popular.  Between all the various flowering cherry and plum trees Vancouver takes on a positively pink hue in early spring.

English Bay in the rain with daffodils - photo by Junie Quiroga

In addition to the cherry and plum blossoms we also have the stunning feature gardens of English Bay that showcase ever changing varieties of seasonal flowers.  Nestled in between the palm trees, magnolias, and other trees, these patches of incredible colour defy any grey skies or rain to ruin the day or the view. Spring always comes early to Vancouver while the rest of the country continues to struggle with snow.

English Bay in the rain with tulips - photo by Junie Quiroga

Rain is something that "washes the flowers faces" and makes puddles to jump in. Grey skies never last for long and between all the cherry & plum blossoms and flowers everywhere, the mood in Vancouver should always be bright and cheerful.  If you find yourself in our city at this time of year make sure you take a moment to enjoy the view and maybe find some flowers to wear in your hair.

Junie with some blossoms in her hair

Fun, Fun, Fun

Pacific White Sided Dolphin

I don't think there's anything more delightful than having a dolphin encounter.  The speed and grace of these fascinating and beautiful creatures is truly awe inspiring and, in combination with their friendly temperament, it's easy to see why they are many people's favourite wild animal. I've come across dolphins a few times on my ocean travels and every time it's been a magical experience but, when it happens on your own doorstep, like it did recently in English Bay when a pod of around 25 or so were just off the beach, then it's even more special.  I've never heard of dolphins coming into English Bay, and I've lived here my entire life.

Dophins in Georgia Strait

The Pacific white sided dolphins (easily recognized by their white undersides and curved dorsal fin) have been making something of a comeback in recent years in both Georgia Strait and Howe Sound and, while they are normally in smaller groups of under 100, there have also been many sightings of them in mega pods of a few hundred.  Given their estimated population is around 1 million and the fact they range all across the north Pacific, from the Mexican Baja to the Bering Sea and back down to the South China Sea, you would think we would see them more often but, because they tend to stay off shore rather than along the coastline, encounters with them are actually quite rare. What's changed recently, and brought them into contact with us, is the reappearance of the herring.

Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii)

As one of the most abundant fishes in our waters, Pacific herring (a species of the herring family) are the foundation of the marine food chain and one of the main sources of food for dolphins, not to mention seals, sea lions, humpback & grey whales, marine birds, and salmon. Sharing the identical distribution range of the dolphins they migrate in from offshore waters by the millions every year in late winter/early spring to spawn in sheltered bays and estuaries. Male herring release milt/sperm that colours miles of shoreline a chalky white and into this milky water the female herring release their eggs.  All those eggs and fish of course attract vast numbers of birds and animals, not to mention humans, to the feast.  Unlike salmon, however, herring don't die after they spawn and, those that escape, return to the deeper ocean where they repeat the cycle for another 5 - 8 years. 

Aerial view of herring spawn

Historically the herring fishery was many times larger than the salmon fishery, bringing in up to 250,000 tonnes annually in B.C. until it collapsed in the 1960's due to overfishing, and was closed. The same thing happened in the U.S. In those days herring were caught primarily for the "reduction fishery" an industry that reduces fish into fish meal and fish oil. Luckily the herring population was able to recover and, since then, under careful monitoring, the herring fishery has changed to the far more lucrative and less destructive herring roe fishery. Now only a fraction of the herring are being caught and they are being sold for a for much higher value. In 2012 for example only 13,200 tonnes of herring were harvested but generated a value of nearly $40 million dollars.

Herring roe, called kazunoko, is a traditional Japanese delicacy that sells for up to $150.00 per kilogram. However it must be harvested before the herring actually spawn so it means the herring have to be caught in large seine nets and then brought to processing plants where the female fish are stripped of their eggs. The remaining parts of the female fish, along with all the males, are reduced to fish meal and fish oil for use in fertilizers and fish food.  Any herring that aren't caught by these seiners will then spawn and try to return to the offshore waters.

Kazunoko sushi

Owing to weather, and other conditions, the fishery collapsed again in 1993 and since then 3 of the 5 major spawning areas for the Pacific herring in B.C. have for the most part remained closed to the commercial fishery. Only the Prince Rupert and Strait of Georgia areas have sufficient herring stocks to allow for a harvest and perhaps this explains why the dolphins are in the Vancouver area.  But an even more intriguing notion is that herring have returned to spawn in Howe Sound where, thanks to the efforts of a group called the "Squamish Streamkeepers" who discovered that by covering up creosote and concrete pilings with black landscaping fabric, the herring eggs can now survive and hatch.  Howe Sound now has a herring population of its own, and one that is increasing each year.

While the herring stocks may be making a comeback clearly something has happened to the sardines which saw a total collapse of the fishery this summer off the west coast of Vancouver Island, with not a single one being caught. This, in turn, forced the humpback whales far offshore to search for herring to eat instead and spoiled things for the west coast whale watching industry.  Between the humpbacks, dolphins, and the salmon, who depend on herring for up to 70% of their diet, perhaps that's another reason why herring stocks are down in some areas. There certainly are more questions than answers when it comes to understanding fish but clearly something has changed in this area and, with the arrival of dolphins, it can only be for the better. For now both us and the dolphins will have fun, fun, fun till someone takes the herring away.

School of Pacific herring

Where Have All The Fishes Gone?

Atlantic Dawn

Ever since mankind discovered fish were good eating we've been harvesting them from the sea. Going from primitive spears and nets in dugout canoes to massive factory fishing trawlers capable of on board fish processing, we've also become increasingly sophisticated and efficient in our fishing techniques.  In fact we've become so efficient we're now in danger of completely wiping out most of the commercially valuable species that exist.

Take, for example, The Atlantic Dawn, the largest and most technologically advanced fishing trawler in the world. This Irish ship is more than 470 feet long with a crew of 63 and two 10,000 horsepower engines that can propel it up to 18 knots and pull nets hundreds of metres wide through the ocean. Also referred to as a midwater trawler, where the nets are pulled through free water, as opposed to a bottom or demersal trawler, where the nets are towed along the sea floor. When operating at full capacity it can catch, process, and freeze 400 tons of fish a day, store 7,000 tons of frozen fish in its hold, and stay out at sea for 5 weeks at a time.  

Midwater trawling catches pelagic fish such as anchovies, tuna, and mackerel, whereas bottom trawling targets both bottom living groundfish such as flounder, halibut, and sole, and semi-pelagic species such as cod, squid, shrimp, and rockfish. However, while trawling has been around since the 15th century the main problem with this method hasn't changed; namely lack of selectivity.  Marketable fish of both legal and illegal size get caught, along with non-target fish, and animals such as dolphins, sea turtles, and sharks. And, with bottom trawling, there is unbelievable damage to the environment as a result of gear being dragged over the seabed.

Yet another type of net is the gill net that traps fish as they try to swim through a seemingly invisible mesh that has been set up either on the ground or allowed to float freely in the water. These set nets or drift nets can be up to 50 kilometers in length and, while they have little or no impact on the ocean floor, they still catch plenty of non-target fish and, if they get lost or abandoned, they drift through the water as ghost nets catching anything in their path. Whales, seals, and dolphins are the most susceptible, and the piteous images of them caught up in the netting is truly heartbreaking.

Sea lion caught in net

An even more alarming development however is the Russian factory ship Lafayette. A fishing vessel with no ability to actually do any fishing, it serves as the mother ship fish factory for a fleet of massive trawlers. It takes their catches, processes them, and then sends them off to market on other transport vessels. Measuring the size of an aircraft carrier at over 1,000 feet in length, this is the world's largest fishing vessel and, it's capable of processing and freezing 1,500 tons of fish a day and can store up to 14,000 tons on board, which is the equivalent of 33 million standard 425 gram tins.

Lafayette

The Lafayette and other similar style factory ships cruise the world's major fisheries harvesting, amongst other things, pollack in Alaska, sardines off the Namibia & South African coastline, and mackerel in the waters of Chile & Peru. At one time these fisheries were thought to be limitless but, like the collapsed cod fishery of Atlantic Canada, they are slowly but surely getting wiped out.  Overfishing and poor regulation are the main culprits and now 3/4 of all the world's fisheries are near to or have already exceeded their maximum sustainable yield.

As the world population increases and the benefits of eating fish became more widely appreciated, the demand for fish also increases.  However, since the 1980's the amount of fish caught in the wild has peaked and has since stabilized at around 80 million tons a year.  To make up the difference between demand and supply, the fish farming/aquaculture industry has been rapidly expanding at an annual growth rate of more than 8%, and has now exceeded the production of fish caught in the wild. 

Worldwide, the most important fish species used in fish farming are carp, salmon, tilapia, and catfish, also known as basa. While fish farming has the potential to take some of the pressure off wild fish stocks it can also aggravate it in other ways.  On the one hand there are fast growing fish like tilapia which can feed on algae or any plant-based food making them less costly to raise and thus become the preferred fish of the industry. The drawback, however, is that tilapia, carp & catfish don't have the high levels of omega-3 fatty acids that are the reason dieticians recommend eating fish. Salmon, on the other hand, have very high levels of omega-3 but, because they are carnivorous, they also require large amounts of protein and, it takes several pounds of fish food/meal to produce one pound of farmed salmon. 

400 tons of Chilean mackerel

One of the main ingredients used in fish meal is mackerel and in the 1990's there were nearly 10 million tons caught worldwide with 5 million tons caught by Chile alone. While some of it is used for human consumption, the majority of it is used to produce fish meal & oil, the main ingredients of food for farmed salmon. Worldwide mackerel production is now down to 5 million tons and the Chile fishery is rapidly collapsing with less than 1/2 million tons being caught in recent years. Peruvian & Chilean anchovies now make up the majority of fish meal & oil being fed to farmed salmon in Canada. But most disturbing of all is the fact that one-third of the combined global wild fish harvest is used for making fish meal & oil, in other words fish food.

Atlantic salmon

Strangely enough, while the wild Atlantic salmon fishery is commercially dead due to overfishing and habitat destruction, it is by far the most popular species used for salmon farming, and makes up more than 1/2 of all wild and farmed salmon produced worldwide.  Raising Atlantic salmon in pens on the Pacific coast has generated a lot of ecological controversy, but little scientific proof, with the real issue being a fight for market share between the Alaskan commercial fishermen and the salmon farming industry. Owing to a very successful fish hatchery program also referred to as "ocean ranching" Alaska salmon are allowed to market their catch as wild, but the fact remains that wild salmon need to eat 10 kg of fish to produce 1 kg of salmon, and farmed salmon only need to eat 2 kg of fish to produce 1 kg of salmon.  This is because, unlike wild salmon, farmed salmon don't have to spend as much energy looking for their food.  So if you want to talk about reducing the pressure on other fish stocks, farmed salmon are obviously the better choice.

West coast salmon farm

Even still, it's easy to see these fish feed to salmon ratios are not sustainable, especially with the demand for salmon increasing every year. Work continues on substituting vegetable proteins such as soybean for fish meal though salmon don't tolerate or properly metabolize plant based carbohydrates. Other substitutions that have been identified are ragworms, algae oils, and by-products from seafood processing along with different diets at different stages of the salmon's life such as using vegetable oil in the growing diet and only using fish oil towards just before harvesting. Another option might be genetically modified salmon such as the new AquAdvantage salmon, an Atlantic salmon with Chinook salmon genes that allow it to grow twice as fast.

Bait ball and dolphins

Of course we aren't the only ones who like to eat fish, even if we think they're only there for us. The great sardine run of southern Africa occurs every year from May - July when billions of sardines/pilchards spawn and move along the coast in shoals of 7 km or more in length and 1.5 km wide. Dolphins round them up into bait balls and, along with sharks, birds, and other game fish, quickly take advantage of the feast. It's a reminder of the abundance the ocean is capable of producing, and that we need to think carefully about how we harvest it and what we use it for, before we wonder where it's all gone.