Where Have All the Seagulls Gone?

About six weeks ago I noticed some unusual behaviour amongst seagulls while I was taking my morning walk along the West Bay Walkway. Several mornings in a row I saw four seagulls floating in a small circle, all facing one another and uttering a regular (and rather monotonous) squawking. They would sit there in the water doing this for ten or fifteen minutes at a time then wander off. Some weeks later I noticed there was a distinct drop in the local gull population. They weren't totally absent but there were fewer. Where I would see forty gulls before I now saw ten or fifteen. Around the same time I was chatting with my caricaturist friend Dean Lewis on the Inner Harbour Causeway and listening to his enthusiastic report of seagulls nesting near the webcam on Race Rocks. Suddenly it all came together: the gulls' initial weird behaviour was probably some form of mating ritual. And the later drop in the shoreline population was because many of the gulls had moved to small offshore islands to nest and rear their young in relative safety. One gull chick (photographed through the Race Rocks webcam, courtesy of Dean Lewis) is pictured to the left.

Race Rocks Webcam

I didn't take the striking photos above. They were kindly sent to me by Dean Lewis and were taken using the Race Rocks Webcam. Thanks, Dean, for sharing these with us. Above on the left is a juvenile Bald Eagle. These can be seen in other places locally - even on my morning walks. On the right, however, is an animal I have never seen before, an Elephant Seal (Mirounga angustirostris). Race Rocks (just off the tip of Vancouver Island in the Strait of Juan de Fuca) is their most northerly location. They are quite extraordinary animals - they can dive up to 1,500 meters or more and hold their breath for over an hour and a half. They are BIG and can weigh a couple of tons. Anyone can use the webcams on Race Rocks - http://www.racerocks.com/racerock/video1.htm - it takes a bit of practice but if you have some time and patience you can see some wonderful things.

Sanderling (Calidris alba)

I joined causeway artist Dean Lewis for a walk along the Ogden Point Breakwater this morning and we were happy to spy these two little shorebirds having breakfast amongst the barnacles and limpets on the lower edges of the breakwater. I have identified these as Sanderling (Calidris alba) though I'm not 100% certain since there are many small sandpiper-like birds that are very similar. Any birders out there who can confirm or correct this identification are invited to make a comment. After we watched these birds a bit Dean and I took the hint and went and had breakfast ourselves at the nearby Ogden Point Cafe. Dean had the barnacles on toast and I satisfied myself with some fried kelp and a side of limpets.

On the Causeway

For me one of the surest signs that winter is over is when the Inner Harbour Causeway blossoms with the artists and entertainers that give it so much life and interest. Saturday was a bright sunny day and brought out many Victorians and visitors to enjoy the scene. Above is caricature artist Dean Lewis concentrating on young Emilie from Estonia.

Youth and Age

On the left is me, last Sunday, as seen by caricature artist, Dean Lewis, on the Inner Harbour Causeway. On the right is me 52 years ago as seen by an unknown artist at the Pacific National Exhibition in Vancouver. Although I'm a photographer I don't like photographs of myself because I always seem to have a gloomy, even grim, expression on my face and I don't generally feel like that inside. I like Dean's caricature because for once I actually look a little bit more like I usually feel. Below is a shot of Dean at work on my physiognomy, always an interesting enough process to capture a few curious spectators. If you're down on the Inner Harbour in Victoria, stop and say Hello to Dean and if you want an interesting portrait, sit down and let him draw you. You won't regret it. Thanks, Dean.

Inner Harbour - Spring 2009

Easter weekend saw the unofficial opening of Victoria's Inner Harbour Causeway, and there were lots of Victorians and a few tourists out enjoying it whenever the sun came out for awhile. This Good Friday also included the first causeway performance of the year by one-man-band bluesman, Dave Harris. Dave's been busking on the causeway for over 30 years and has entertained hundreds of thousands of visitors to the city. That's him surrounded by his instruments in the lower left of the above photo. Above him towards the center, under the large white umbrella, is another Causeway veteran, artist/caricaturist Dean Lewis. As the weather warms up they'll be joined by the many other artists and entertainers that make a visit to Victoria a memorable experience. To find out more about the Causeway artists and entertainers, visit their website by clicking HERE. If you visit Victoria make sure you stop by and say hello to Dave and Dean and tell them I sent you. Below is a photo of Dave Harris doing what he does so well, making music.Dave Harris has a MySpace page:http://www.myspace.com/daveharrisonemanband and a YouTube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/DslimHarris where you can see him on many different videos.

Causeway Artist #1 - Dean Lewis

Victoria's Inner Harbor Causeway is home to a wide variety of artists and one of the most talented is caricaturist Dean Lewis. Here he is capturing the expression on a wonderfully impish small boy. It's fascinating to watch Dean work as you can see by the spectators that inevitably gather to see his drawings take shape, as in the photo below.If you're in Victoria and walking along the Inner Harbor, stop and chat with Dean. Like the other causeway artists I've met recently, he's friendly as well as talented. Get him to draw a caricature of you or your family and you will have a souvenir you will treasure for years. It's always so interesting to see what Dean is drawing I usually end up with a lot of shots of the back of his head because of looking over his shoulder while he creates. So, here is a photo of his face so that you can recognize him when you visit Victoria.

Dean introduced me to the Causeway Artists Society and I expect to feature some of the other talented artist members soon.

Impeccable Tourist Observing Tatty Photographer

Here we are on the Inner Harbour causeway once again. As well as musicians it hosts artists and craftsmen. When I took this photo I was so focussed on getting the artist, Dean Lewis (back to camera), his caricature in progress, and his subjects in the frame that I didn't really notice this tourist observing me taking the photo. Dean Lewis is a talented artist who does caricatures. Click here to visit his website. I'm sorry I don't know the name of the lovely lady in white and gold but I hope she enjoyed her visit to Victoria.