#murres

did anyone ever realise that i didnt quite leave, and i didnt quite stay?

Photo: Eric Ellingson

"A strange, mysterious little seabird. Although it is fairly common off the northern Pacific Coast, its nesting behavior was essentially unknown until the 1970s. In the Pacific Northwest, now known to nest high in trees in old-growth forest several miles inland from coast. Even where numerous, it is usually seen on the water in pairs or aggregations of pairs, not in large flocks; pairs flush from the water in front of approaching boats, fly away low with very rapid wingbeats."

Bird enthusiasts and watchers flock to Greater Farallones National Marine Sanctuary for the diverse seabird populations and help support recreational businesses along the coast.

We have just released a new report on the oil spill that took place in Newfoundland back in November.  This is an important issue that unfortunately has not received the coverage it should, especially in the US. Many species, including North Atlantic right whales, are at risk from this spill and action must be taken to prevent these types of disasters from happening in the first place.

A group of thick-billed murres on a ledge in Scandinavia. Thick-billed murres have been affected by the spill and continue to be at risk. credit: Ron Knight via Wikimedia. full album available on Flickr

The largest oil spill in the history of the province of Newfoundland occurred 217 miles off the southeast coast of Saint John's, the capital of Newfoundland, on November 16, 2018. It happened at the SeaRose offshore oil rig owned by Husky Energy in the White Rose oilfield as they attempted to restart production during a brutal storm. Production had been shut down the day before on the 15th due to the storm, which was noted as being the most intense storm on the planet at that time, but the company recklessly and irresponsibly tried to start it back up even though there were still 28 foot high waves. 

Think your spring cleaning is tough? Try scrubbing the rocks with a pair of murres supervising. Better not wing it!

Article by Brent Lawrence / Public Affairs Officer with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Pacific Region in Portland, Oregon

Some people’s stomachs turn at the thought of another day on the job. Stephanie Loredo is one of those people.

Stephanie, a graduate student in the Fisheries and Wildlife Department at Oregon State University, is finishing her master’s thesis on common murres. That thesis requires her to capture and tag murres off Yaquina Head on the Oregon Coast. How do you capture and tag these birds?

At night. On the Pacific Ocean. In a small boat. … And between bouts of wave-induced vomiting.

“I always get seasick, but have to do it for my thesis,” Stephanie said after the latest round of captures in August. “My advisor told me I don’t have to go every time, but I want to go. Every time I think it isn’t going to be as bad, but it’s been the worst the last two times. I always want to make sure everyone else on the boat knows what they’re doing before I go completely sick. I did get through 2½ birds this time before I lost it.”

Stephanie’s thesis is “Three-Dimensional Habitat-Use of Common Murres Off the Northern California Current.” It focuses on habitat use and diving activity of non-breeding murres under various ocean conditions.

The birds she is studying at Yaquina Head are nesting on offshore rocks that are part of Oregon Islands National Wildlife Refuge, which is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. There are 1,854 rocks, reefs, and islands along the Oregon coast that comprise the refuge, which was established on May 6, 1935, as a breeding ground for seabirds and marine mammals.

Most of Oregon’s estimated 1.2 million nesting seabirds use Oregon Islands Refuge as a place to raise their young, and Oregon’s seals and sea lions use the islands as a place to haul out and rest or to give birth to their pups.