The first snow is on the mountains, and you know what that means. The seasons are changing, and spring is coming , and then summer. We, you and I . need to plan ahead better to schedule our dates to get the accommodation of choice, and fit my schedule. That's not really a sales pitch so much as a fact to work with.
The following are several photos taken from the porch in Quathiaski Cove today. In the distance are the mountains of Vancouver Island , with the shore of the south end of the Tyee Pool of Campbell River lower on that opposite side, and in the near view the docks of some homes in Q Cove.
The birds are chasing herring into the shallows again this morning. I am interested in the birds, but my main interest is how they fit into the ecosystem with salmon, as shown by how they act on the herring. What showed again today is good news for the vitality of the ocean locally.
Today the cormorants came right into the shallows , whereas in other days they seemed to push the herring into shallow water but usually stayed themselves out in deeper water, while the mergansers chased the herring into merely inches of water. The mergansers make the most disciplined line , or at least the most obvious surface strategy, to push the herring ahead of them. The intense hunt lasts for about an hour and moves back and forth along this shoreline.
The boat at midday, the birds have dissipated, and then sunset over Vancouver Island.
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Beautiful photos!
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