Strawberry Isle Marine Research Society
PO Box 213 V0R 2Z0 Tofino, BC, Canada

This week's #WildlifeWednesday is about the gooseneck barnacle (Pollicipes polymerus)! Gooseneck barnacles are sessile crustaceans found in the intertidal zone along exposed, rocky shorelines. Unlike most other species of barnacles, gooseneck barnacles rely on water movement, rather than the movement of their cirri, for feeding. For this reason, the gooseneck barnacle is mainly found along exposed coastlines like the ones found around Tofino and Ucluelet. Gooseneck barnacles... are omnivores and feed mainly on copepods, amphipods, barnacle larvae, small clams, polychaete worms, hydrozoans, algae and detritus. When feeding, the barnacles extend their cirri (feather-like structures that function similar to tentacles) at a suitable angle to intercept moving water and form a net. The cirri are periodically drawn back into the barnacle's body, particles are scraped off, moved to the mouth and then sorted into edible and inedible items by chemoreceptors. Although they do not have brains, gooseneck barnacles have evolved a "clever" way of food collection that utilizes their environment to do most of the heavy lifting for them. Curiously, Pollicipes polymerus did not acquire its common name from its long neck-like stalk (the peduncle), but rather from medieval European naturalists who believed that these crustaceans were actually goose eggs. Yes, you read that correctly, goose eggs. At the time gooseneck barnacles were named, naturalists were not yet aware that many bird species migrate. Unable to observe the far away breeding grounds of the barnacle goose (Branta leucopsis), it was believed that gooseneck barnacles would fall from their substrate when they were ready to hatch and goslings would emerge. We hoped you liked this weeks #WildlifeWednesday - sometimes the most unassuming looking animals have the most interesting histories! Photo by Sydney Dixon

Join us tomorrow on Instagram for Trivia Tuesday! Follow us at simrs_tofino to play!

This week's #FlashBackFriday travels back to 1997 to when a now fully grown bull with a "killer" reputation was just a baby. T019B "Galiano" (b. 1995) has grown up to be an unmistakable and impressive animal. His massive dorsal fin has a wide base, leans to the left and has a characteristic notch on the trailing edge roughly three-quarters of the way up. He travels alongside his three family members T018 "Esperanza", T019 "Nootka/Mooyah", and his younger brother T019C "Spout...er" who is quickly growing to match Galiano's behemoth size. Although Galiano's family is well known along the along the Southern tip of Vancouver Island, the gang spends relatively little time in Clayoquot Sound. Over the past few years, Galiano's gang has only visited a handful of times and, each time, they have not been alone. In the early years of Rod Palm's research, the T018s were seen in Clayoquot Sound exclusively with the T010s but as time went on, their social circle expanded. In March of 2020 the T018s were spotted with the T109As "The Runaways" and made their presence well known as they passed though Tofino harbour. A few days later they were spotted from shore milling by the Amphitrite Point Light in Ucluelet. Check out Galiano's identification photo from 1997 when he was just two years old. As you can see, a lot has changed! What is your favourite encounter with T019B? Let us know in the comments! Photos by Gary Sutton, Kechura Palm and Rod Palm

Welcome to our first Photo ID Friday!! Today we are going to examine the importance of monitoring and photo identification in killer whales. The first photo is of T252 (b. 1972) taken in the Strait of Juan de Fuca on October 22, 2020. The second photo is T252’s port flank as pictured in the 2019 DFO Photo-identification Catalogue of Bigg’s Killer Whales in BC. Can you spot the difference? T252 has gained an additional (and sizeable!) knick in her dorsal fin since 2019. Chang...es like this illustrate the importance of monitoring. Continual monitoring and photography allow researchers to stay up to date on individual whales’ appearances and more accurately track their movements. Big shout out to Valerie Shore of Eagle Wing Tours for deducing this tricky ID on the water! Sydney Dixon

This week's #WildlifeWednesday is dedicated to a cult-classic favourite of fish fans - the Pacific spiny lumpsucker (Eumicrotremus orbis). These adorable, ping pong sized fish can be found along the Pacific northwest coast from Washington state to Alaska, as well as on coastlines from Japan to Russia. They are found in nearshore waters to a depth of 150 meters and inhabit a wide range of habitats including eelgrass beds, rocky reefs, kelp patches, shallow bays, and docks. Pa...cific spiny lumpsuckers have tiny fins and lack a swim bladder, making them nearly comically inefficient swimmers. Luckily for the lumpsucker, its pelvic fins have fused and adapted into a surprisingly strong suction cup-like disk that allows it to anchor itself on substrate. Masters of camouflage, the lumpsucker fish can change its colour based on its surroundings, allowing it to evade predators and go unnoticed by their own prey which include crustaceans , worms and mollusks. In addition to lacking a swim bladder like most fish, Pacific spiny lumpsuckers also lack scales. Instead their spherical bodies are covered in cone-shaped plates called tubercles which they use for protection from predators. When it comes to reproduction, childcare is done exclusively by the males. Females lay around 200 orange coloured eggs that the males then spend the next 4-8 weeks incubating. During this time he will guard them from predators and fan water over the eggs to keep them oxygenated. Once the eggs hatch, the male resumes a solitary lifestyle until the next spawning season. Have you ever seen a Pacific spiny lumpsucker fish while snorkelling or scuba diving around Tofino? Keep your eyes peeled for these amazing googly-eyed fish next time you're in the water! Photo by Derek Singer

Please help us in welcoming our new Science Communications Director, Greg Potter! Greg is a former Geologist who pursued a career as a naturalist on the West Coast after being inspired by wildlife watching in his home of the UK. Greg has been sharing Clayoquot Sound with enthralled tourists for 3 years, balancing identifying whales with adamantly explaining why nudibranchs are fantastic. He joined SIMRS in 2020 and is eager to find new ways to share our coastline with as many people as we can possibly reach. The sedentary life of rocks firmly in his past! Welcome to the team Greg, we are thrilled to have you!

Looking for a fun, spooky, socially distant Halloween activity? Join Surf Rider's Halloween Cleanup Competition. Plastic pollution is scary but we can help fight it together! https://www.facebook.com/surfriderpacificrim/posts/2192522290881803

Happy #Halloween from O120 and the staff Strawberry Isle Marine Research Society ! This has been a spooky year for all of us and we have been working hard at SIMRS to ensure that we can continue to conduct our research, monitoring and educational programs in a safe and socially distant manner. After a necessary hiatus, we are proud to announce the return of Build-A-Whale! We take the health and safety of students and staff VERY seriously and have modified our Build-A-Whal...e program into three different booking options to suit your needs. All three options adhere to our strict COVID-19 protocols which have been made in reference to the Provincial COVID-19 Health & Safety Guidelines for K-12 Settings. These options include: 1. Virtual Build-A-Whale* 2. Build-A-Whale Presentations 3. Special Events * Available January 2021 During the last 20 years, O120 has been an ambassador for killer whales across the country, inspiring and educating thousands of children and adults. We are proud to be able to continue sharing her story, and our knowledge with you! For more information on the Build-A-Whale Program and for bookings, please visit our website at https://www.simrstofino.org/build-a-whale or email us at [email protected]

In honor of #OrcaRecoveryDay and the salmon run, this week's #FlashBackFriday will briefly examine the history Pacific salmon and our relationship to these iconic fish. There are five species of salmon that should thrive in the North Pacific waters of Canada: chinook, coho, pink, sockeye, and chum. Pacific salmon are anadromous, beginning their lives in freshwater streams and rivers, migrating to the ocean as smolts, spending their adult life at sea, and finally returning bac...Continue reading

Here is the Spring and Summer 2020 Bigg's Killer Whale Population update! Three new calves have been accounted for, including T069D3 who was spotted for the first time in Tofino by John Forde and Mark Sawyer of The Whale Centre . The T069D gang was spotted on June 13, 2020 around Dunlap Island where Forde and Sawyer were able to document the calf for the first time! We are proud of the fleet of whale watchers, fishermen, boaters and orca-holics who contribute to monitoring t...he killer whale population in Clayoquot Sound. Without passionate researchers and citizen scientists on the water it would be a great challenge to monitor this culturally and ecologically important species. If you spot a killer whale around Clayoquot Sound you can help us by becoming a citizen scientist and reporting your sighting! To efficiently report a killer whale sighting follow these steps: 1. Report to SIMRS over VHF radio on channel 18A. 2. Fill out a sightings report form at https://www.simrstofino.org/killer-whale-monitoring 3. Call/text (250) 266-9090 or email [email protected]. Please include the time, location details, estimated number of individuals, and their behaviour in your report - try to take pictures if possible!

This weeks #WildlifeWedesday is about a truly incredible animal: the sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus). The sperm whale is the largest of the toothed whales and the largest extant toothed predator. Male sperm whales average 16 m in length but can reach a total length of 20.7 m when fully grown. Sperm whales are among the deepest diving animals in the world, descending to depths of over 1000m for up to 90 minutes in search of prey. The sperm whale's diet is mainly composed ...Continue reading

Over the last few weeks our staff and volunteers have been working hard to showcase our Sea Star Stewardship Program in video form! We are proud to enhance the conservation of intertidal ecosystems in Clayoquot and Barkley Sound by monitoring the health and populations of sea stars with the help of our volunteer citizen scientists. We hope our contribution to the data being collected by MARINe can help protect these vital animals along the coast of North America for many years to come. Thank you to West Coast NEST , Raincoast Education Society and Clayoquot Biosphere Trust for their collaboration on this project.

Strawberry Isle Marine Research Society is proud to announce our Ocean Literacy Program! Ocean literacy is an understanding of the ocean's influence on you and your influence on the ocean. With this program, we hope to enhance ocean literacy and environmental stewardship in local children and youth and to inspire the next generation of ocean scientists. The program offers hands-on, place-based education to help create meaningful connections to our ocean and the marine life wi...thin it. We have designed the program to be extremely flexible in response to the challenges presented by Covid-19 for the convenience and comfort of educators, students and parents. Like to know more? Visit simrstofino.org/oceanliteracy or send us an email at [email protected]

Spotted near Tofino! Baird's Beaked Whales! Thanks MERS for the post and to Willie Mitchel and Jeremy Koreski for capturing such an awesome encounter!

This weeks #WildlifeWednesday focuses on one whale in particular, a female gray whale named CSG28 Blackjack. Blackjack has been documented in Clayoquot Sound since 1975 and is a favourite among local guides and skippers. A small population of gray whales, including Blackjack, return to the waters around Clayoquot Sound each year to feed in our nutrient rich waters. Each year the grays move throughout Clayoquot Sound, feeding where prey is most readily available. Sometimes t...hese feeding grounds overlap with areas of high vessel traffic. While feeding in a high traffic zone a few days ago, it appears that Blackjack may have been struck by a vessel. Other Clayoquot whales like CSG42 Marcus/Scarface and CSG34 Admiral bear scars from past vessel collisions. Large baleen whales can surface suddenly, be unaware of boats and exhibit random travel patterns. Therefore, it is the responsibility of boaters to practice caution when travelling around whales. There are several things you can do while on the water to help keep both whales and people safe: - Always be on the lookout for indications of whale presence such as blows and aggregations of birds - Watch for whale watching vessels and vessels flying the Whale Warning Flag - Increase vigilance in areas where whales are commonly seen - Slow down, and stay clear of where you suspect there may be animal(s). To learn more about how you can help keep whales safe, check out MERS See a Blow? Go Slow! campaign. If you have witnessed, or been part of, a collision please call the 24-Hour DFO marine mammal incident reporting hotline at 1-800-465-4336 by Mark Sawyer from the Tofino Whale Centre

This week's #WildlifeWednesday is about the Lewis's moon snail (Neverita lewisii), a species of operculated sea snail in the family Naticidae, the moon snails. The Lewis's moon snail is the largest living species of marine snail with a shell as large as 14 centimeters across. Moons snails evolved in the late Triassic or early Jurassic period and there are an estimated 260-270 species alive worldwide today. The Lewis's moon snail is most commonly found in silty or sandy sub an...d intertidal habitats and often burrow in substrate in search of prey. They are voracious predators and feed mainly on bivalve molluscs, like clams. When feeding they drill a small hole into their prey's shell using their radula and an acid secretion. Once they have bored inside the shell they use their foot like a siphon to consume the flesh of their prey. Lewis's moon snails breed in summer months and lay thousands of tiny eggs in an "egg collar". Eggs are pressed between particles of sand and sealed together by a sticky mucous. Once this mucous hardens it produces are rubbery sand collar in which the eggs develop. Some egg collars that become exposed by the low tide are disturbed or destroyed by human activity by those who do not recognize them as a living thing. If you see one leave it be! The next generation of moon snails is growing up inside! by Karyssa Arnett and Sydney Dixon

In 2018 the world watched with heavy hearts as J-35 (Tahlequah) carried her dead calf for 17 days, over 1,600 kilometers, throughout the Salish Sea. On September 4, 2020 Tahlequah became a mother again, giving birth to a "healthy and precocious" calf according to researchers at the Centre of Whale Research. This calf brings the critically endangered population of Southern Resident Killer Whales (SRKWs) up to 73 individuals. At least two other females in the population are kno...wn to be pregnant as well. Tahlequah's new calf is the first successful birth since J-56 (Tofino) was first spotted in Clayoquot Sound in the spring of 2019. This new calf, and the hope for two more in the near future, brings us a cautious new optimism for the SRKWs. Nutritional stress, resulting from the decline in chinook salmon availability, is one of the many factors that pose threat to the SRKWs. Because of this, a large percentage of pregnancies end in failure and calves face a 40% mortality rate. For Tahlequah, and the rest of the SRKWs, we hope this new calf is able to thrive. The conservation and restoration of chinook salmon runs is one of the best ways we can help safe guard the future of the SRKWs. This September, Strawberry Isle Marine Research Society will be joining Tofino Resort and Marina for Fish for the Future, a conservation initiative aimed at raising money to protect wild salmon and the ecosystems they rely on. 100% of the proceeds raised by Fish for the Future will be dedicated to various Clayoquot Sound watershed projects in order to safeguard salmon populations for the future. It is our goal to promote conservation through educational outreach and inspire people to make everyday choices that can help to protect the future of salmon and all those who rely on them. by Katie Jones, Centre for Whale Research #conservation #killerwhales #SRKW #marinebiology