Spring on the Slough

There are all sorts of nesting and breeding birds out on Elkhorn Slough this time of year. This mating American Avocet pair is no exception. It is easy to compare a defining characteristic between the male and female in the photo, the female is described as having a more pronouced upward curving beak. These elegant colored birds slide their bills through the soft mud and capture worms or small shrimp that they find by taste. Thanks to passenger Franz Carver for sharing his photo captured while out on Elkhorn Slough Safari this month.

Specialty Cruises

Each season we offer focused tours on topics of interest to our passengers. This Spring we are offering a tour on marine mammal babies, on birding, and photography. The birding cruise is good for beginners to professionals. Beginners will learn the difference between this Snowy egret and the Great egret, but professionals will sort out the confusing details of the peeps and gulls. The bird specialty tour will spend extra time with nesting species such as the egrets, gulls, and cormorants. Check out the website to get dates and time for these classes and for regular tours.

Nesting Birds

Late Spring and early Summer are great times to observe nesting birds and later their chicks on Elkhorn Slough. The most common nesters sighted while on the tour are gulls, egrets, herons and cormorants. The egret & heron rookery is up high in a grove of trees that overlooks the slough channel. The gulls seem to like manmade structures like broken docks, navigation signs, and buoys. The cormorants like to be surrounded by water and most nest near the entrance on abandoned pier pilings and decks. This photograph is of a Brandt's Cormorant sitting on its nest.

Swimming Lessons

We are excited to be watching harbor seal pups this spring. The first births were in March and there have been about three to four born per day. Births usually continue until the beginning of May. The wee ones call to their mothers with a soft bark that sounds like "mom", recognized by even human moms. This is a photo of a little one taking swimming lessons with its attentive mother by its side. It will be fun to watch them grow up over the next few months.

Pacific Flyway

The birds are starting to make their way North. All sorts of birds are stopping in to feed at the Elkhorn Slough "cafe" on route to return to nesting areas. The slough is packed with some very large flocks such as sandpipers, whimbrels, curlews, willets, godwits, and a variety of ducks. Other species are starting to grow fancy dress feathers for breeding time such as the fancy frilly crest feathers of the egrets. Grab your binoculars.

Giant Sea Hare

This month has nice low tides that expose the flats. The exposed eel grass and gracilaria seaweed beds shimmer in the sunshine. This habitat is home to many sea creatures including a very large sea slug. It is called a sea hare because it eats lots of plants and appears to have "ears". These interesting animals squirt a think purple ink when upset or disturbed.

Jellyfish

Our naturalist guide Kelly came in from her tour this week with quite a story. For as far as she could see there were jellyfish in the waters of Elkhorn Slough. The Captain reported that this does not happen very often, and the last he remembered seeing so many was about 7 years ago. Kelly was fasinated by their movements, by the several different types, and by the variety of sizes. Jellyfish are taken wherever the sea currents flow because jellyfish have little power of their own. The incoming tidal current brought them into the slough. They have continued to see the jellies all week. The photos here are of sea nettle jellies taken from the tour boat.

True Love on the Slough

.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Our naturalist guide, Chelsea, was recently surprized while on our tour. And it was not by a sea otter nor a harbor seal. Included on the tour were her family and her boyfriend. On the return route, her boyfriend went to the front of the boat where our guide was. He got down on his knee, told her a beautiful sea chantie love poem, and asked her to marry him! She said yes immediately and he quickly placed the ring on her finger. Her family cheered. We wish them just the very best life as to offer.

Majestic White Fishing Bird

There are many more American White pelicans this year than we have sighted in past years. We would have said they were rare in the summer, but not this year. These large birds are a pleasure to watch with their coordinated efforts and graceful dipping moves (they do not dive like brown pelicans). They have been getting all sorts of bait fish, top smelt and the like. The plate on its bill is the sign of a breeding bird, The plate is fiberous and is generally shed after eggs are laid.

First Time Ever - Sea Lion Pups

Captain Yohn Gideon has been leading Elkhorn Slough Safari's since 1994,and in all that time he has never seen a sea lion having pup. In fact, it's rare to even have a female sea lion in Northern California. Females usually stay South at the Channel Islands. The male sea lions dominate the Moss Landing area and Monterey Bay. Captain Yohn comments, "I know I have never seen a sea lion born in Moss Landing, not in all 16 years. I have never seen a sea lion pup in the slough." "We do enjoy seeing harbor seal pups being born in the slough each spring and right now we have three or four new sea otter pups and their moms up Elkhorn Slough," stated Captain Yohn, "But never a sea lion pup, until now." On the Elkhorn Slough Safari tour today passengers were treated to the birth of a California sea lion and even took home vdeo. The Captain reports there are 5 sea lion pups in all and we watched two of the births. The Captain wrapped up, "That is what is exciting about leading these tours. You never know what you are going to see!"
Photo of the first ever sea lion pup in Elkhorn Slough is by Captain Yohn Gideon and shows a mom cleaning the afterbirth from her newborn

Colors of Spring

This time of year the birds are getting all dressed up for the breeding and nesting seasons. For example, these Caspian Terns are showing off why they are named "Caspian". The intense red beaks are named after the Caspian red sea. Soon they will have nests and chicks at Elkhorn Slough.

Egret

These beautiful birds are sighted frequently on Elkhorn Slough. They stand very still watching for bait fish to capture and eat. It is challenge to see them in all the different behaviours while on a tour. Stalking, flying, preening, wading, nesting, and competing for territories.

Pelicans of Summer

One of the summer highlights is the large numbers of California Brown Pelicans at Elkhorn Slough. The slough is a major roosting and resting location for these birds which were nearly wiped out by the use of DDT pesticides in the past. We also see lots of the much larger White Pelicans who tend to organized together for fishing.

Sea Otter Photography

"I have traveled all over the world to photograph wildlife and Elkhorn Slough Safari's operation presents some of the best photo opportunities I have ever experienced. Between ESS's stable, flat bottom boat, Captain Yohn's expertise and the abundance and variety of wildlife, you just can't beat this. And for photographing sea otters in particular, this is quite simply, the best shooting in the world. " --Suzi, photo expert and guide, this is her photo of a mother sea otter with her pup in her arms

First Seal Puppy

This week we observed the first harbor seal pup of the season. All spring long, we see many slough babies such as this harbor seal pup. When new, they are cute wrinkly little guys yipping for their mama. It sure fun to watch them try to get their bearings and to nurse. Pups will continue to be born through mid-May.

Sea Lions

"This is a group of California Sea Lions, from the boat you can hear their characteristic barking sound", comments naturalist Rachel. These animals are quite common here and often put on a display that makes you laugh. While generally here most of the year, their numbers are particularly high just before and after big waves in the winter.

Candid Camera Sea Otter

I have been taking tours out on Elkhorn Slough for 15 years, and am amazed that there is always something new, but this has got to be one of the quirkiest observations yet. We just finished a week long set of cruises with a photography club. We had many wonderful wildlife shots including the baby otter. But this fellow seemed to be taking photos of us! A tourist must have dropped this video camera in the slough (been under a while as evidenced by the alga growth) and it was found by the otter. One of the photographers shared his photo with us and allowed us to post it. Photographer Enrique Aguirre stated, "OK, this is the funniest thing I have seen in the wild. I promise there is no Photoshop involved, this IS a REAL shot.". We wonder what the otter plans to use it for, maybe the sea otter is posting on u-tube right now.... Captain Yohn Gideon

Birds and Birding at Its Best

The Fall bird migration is well underway. The numbers and variety is up! The smaller shorebirds are in very high numbers, so high that the mudflats appear to be alive and walking about. These Western Sandpipers travel great distances from Northern tundra to South America - and our Elkhorn Slough is just a rest stop along the way. They feed and fuel up here for the next leg of the journey. --- Capt

Film on the Slough

Since I started working for the Elkhorn Slough Safari I’ve gained priceless knowledge about filming and photographing marine mammals in their natural state. For example, taking video in a moving environment using stabilizers, and that lighting in late afternoon gives spectacular footage. I hope the great information that I am learning on the Elkhorn Slough Safari will help me further my future career in creating nature documentaries as a filmmaker. ---Naturalist Cody

Elegant Terns

You can see the season turn with the rotation of the Terns. This photograph is of Elegant Terns that frequent Elkhorn Slough in late Summer and early Fall. Winter brings the Forster's tern, and Spring brings the Caspian Tern. Other occasional terns spotted on safari are the Least, Black, and Common terns plus the Black Skimmer. -- Capt. Yohn