Local Wild Life
The goal of this page is to point out some of the interesting characteristics of the animals and plants that we commonly see on cruises and around our marinas. This is not formal science, and no attempt is made to be complete. The page will grow as time permits.
Common Murre
We sometimes see Murres in the Bay, but they are much more abundant at sea. They're the common black and white bird floating on the water outside the Bay and along the coast. Murres are about the size of a small duck, black on top with a white underside, but they're not ducks. They have a pointed beak and they're related to the auks and puffins. Except when they breed, murres spend their entire life at sea, feeding on fish and other creatures.
They have small narrow wings that beat rapidly, and they fly close to the water at about 35kn on a calm day. They have webbed feet, but unlike ducks they "fly" underwater, and can regularly dive to depths of 300 feet. They hunt by sight and chase down their prey. When you approach them in a boat notice how they often duck their heads under water a few times, apparently looking to see what's there, and then quickly dive. If you watch closely you'll be able to see them using their wings.
Murres nest on ledges in steep cliffs and on isolated islands. They usually mate for life, but there are divorces and there is some hanky panky now and then. Pairs are only together during the breeding season and live separately the rest of the year. Murre eggs are unusually pointed, which makes them roll in a tight circle rather than off the ledge. Eggs are variously colored, apparently so parents can recognize theirs. Usually only one egg is laid, and both parents feed the chick for awhile. When it's about half grown, and long before it can fly, they leave the chick on the ledge. The father goes to sea nearby and calls the chick who reluctantly jumps off and clumsily flutters to the sea or rocks below. If all goes well the little chick scurries to its father who takes care of it for the next few months. The mother is no longer involved. In the summer you can often see fathers with their chicks nearby. They locate each other by calling, which is easy to hear. The chick makes a cheep-cheep sound; the father's call is more manly. They usually stay close together no matter what the weather.
Murres can live for 10 to 20 years; the oldest recorded age is 29 years.
Gulls
This is one of the few bird groups that has prospered because of people. That's mostly because roast gull tastes like you-know-what, they are not spooked by people, and they will eat almost anything they can swallow. If condos destroy their feeding grounds they simply eat the garbage the condos produce. There are about 50 species world wide and this is not true for all of them, but it is common.
About 10 species are seen in the Bay area. One of the most obvious is the large Western Gull. It's the one with wings that are almost black on top. This species' range extends along the west coast from Washington to Mexico. It breeds on cliffs and on isolated islands. A lot of the locals breed on the Farallons.
If you look closely at the their beak, and also the beak of some of the other large white gulls, you'll notice that there's an obvious red spot near the tip. The chicks peck at this spot to cause the parents to regurgitate food the chicks eat. Both parents feed the young.
Western Gulls take four years to mature. The feathers of the fledgling are dark brown for the first year. You can sometimes see a first year gull with its head low calling peep peep peep as it begs for food, usually unsuccessfully, from an adult gull. Over the next three years the brown is replaced by a mixture of whiter feathers until, as an adult, they are white with black or dark gray upper wing feathers. Survival is high, and adults can live for 20 years.
Watching a group of gulls for a while could make you feel a little uncomfortable. A lot of their behavior, even though it's gull behavior, will remind you of how people sometimes behave. Gulls certainly did not learn the Golden Rule along with their mother's regurgitated food.
Gulls are related to terns, which are also common in the Bay. Terns are the smaller and slimmer birds that we see diving for fish. A tern that we do not see here is the artic tern. It's mentioned because it's about the size of our local terns and has the longest migration of any bird—from the Arctic where it nests in the summer to the Antarctic where it feeds in our winter. The round trip each year is about 30,000 miles.
Phalaropes
The ph- in the
name is pronounced like an f. These are little birds with pointed beaks that are
sometimes called "sea snipes." They're related to sandpipers, and they look like
sandpipers. But unlike sandpipers they spend most of their life on the water—including
at sea. They're generally light brown and often swim together in small
groups. We frequently see them on ocean cruises.
Phalaropes feed on small creatures in the water. Sometimes they can be seen spinning almost like a top. The local swirl they make in the water helps bring food up to where they can reach it. Some individuals always spin to the right others always to the left.
They breed inland, and role of the sexes is, in some ways, reversed from most birds. The female is more brightly colored in the breeding season, tries to seduces males, defends the nest, and is generally in charge. The male is rather wimpy.
Grebes
Two
species of Grebes are common in the Bay—the Western
Grebe and the Pied-Billed Grebe. The Western Grebe is about the size of a duck but more sleek, with a long neck, red eyes, and a narrow pointed beak. The
body color is black or dark gray except for the white feathers on the underside
of the neck. It's seen, sometimes in large flocks on the water, both in the Bay
and on the ocean along the coast. This species has a distinct loud call that
sounds something like a raspy "kree." Western Grebes eat mostly small fish, and
they can take in about a pound a day.
The Pied-Bill Grebe is small and superficially looks like a
little duck, except it doesn't have a flat bill. It's not as common as the
Western
Grebe, but we do sometimes see it on the water in and around our marinas. Like
all grebes it dives for food and eats small fish, shrimp, and other creatures.
Grebes breed in lakes and ponds where they build floating nests that are hidden among water plants. At least in some species the embryo inside the egg is able to make peeping sounds that stimulate the parent to take extra care of the egg. Chicks are able to swim and dive as soon as they hatch and the nest is abandoned. After that they often ride on the parents' back nestled between the wings while the parent is swimming, but not flying.
A good source of information about
birds is The Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior. Parts of this
section is based on that book. It's available in book stores and on the Web.
Biologists divide what we commonly call seals into two groups, and if you look closely the two are easy to tell apart. One group has small external ears and they are able to use their hind flippers sort of like hind legs. They can of walk, more or less. This group includes the sea lions. The other group has no external ears and they cannot "walk" on land. Instead, they wriggle or inch worm their way. These are classified as true seals.
One of each group is commonly seen in the Bay and nearby outer waters. The California sea lion is the most common. That's the one at Fisherman's Wharf, the one we often see in the Bay and the one that incessantly barks. This is also the "seal" that's seen balancing balls on its nose in circuses and marine shows. Actually they cheat a little. They have large whiskers they use to keep the ball in place. This species ranges along the Pacific coast of North America and in the Galapagos Islands. There are even small numbers near Japan.
Our
representative of the true seals is the harbor seal. These are smaller than
the sea lions, and not as common, and we only see them in the water. They are
often gray colored with dark spots and seldom make a sound. Their behave in the
water is differently from sea lions. You will see their heads sticking out
of the water, and as you approach they sink vertically and then swim away.
In contrast, the sea lions usually dive forward. The harbor seal in this picture
is further out of the water than you will see in the Bay. Usually just the head
and neck show.
4th of july in the Delta
The Delta on 4th of July at Mandeville Tip brings out all sorts of Human wild life that you must experience at least once to qualify as a true "river rat"
