Impacts of the Russian RiverSandbar on Wildlife

Copyright © 2002-2008 Kenneth & Gabrielle Adelman, California Coastal Records Projectwww.Californiacoastline.org

Harbor Seals

Jamie Hall Photo

Jenner Is a Major North Coast Harbor Seal Haulout

• At molt, it is the largest between Drake’s

Estero and the mouth of the Eel River

• State seal census shows it has been important

California haulout since the 1980s

Jenner Is Sonoma County’s Major Haulout

Regional Census Sites

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Jenner is also one of the most intensively studied haulouts on

the West Coast• State summer census began in 1982

• Monthly counts begin in 1988

• Elinor Twohy’s Daily Counts since Linda Hansen’s study of harbor ecology, completed in 1993

• Regional Census since 1998

• So we know trends over years and seasons

Elinor Twohy’s Daily Seal Census RevealsTwo Types of Seasonal Patterns

Joe Mortenson Photo

Haulout With Winter Maximum in 1994Original Pattern Observed in 1990s

1994 Winter Haulout

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12/9/93 1/28/94 3/19/94 5/8/94 6/27/94 8/16/94 10/5/94 11/24/94 1/13/95 3/4/95

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WinterStorm

ShelterPupping Molting Dispersal,

River Often Barred

Original Seal Annual Cycle Components

1995 Haulout, Winter MaximumShowing Similar Pattern

1995 Haulout

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11/23/1990 1/12/1991 3/3/1991 4/22/1991 6/11/1991 7/31/1991 9/19/1991 11/8/1991 12/28/1991 2/16/1992

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Jenner Seals Came to Avoid or Flee R-1, A Maturing Elephant Seal Bull

Jamie Hall Photo

Ultimately, R-1 Devastated Jenner Haulout

Lisa Hug Photo

2006 Haulout, with R-1 PresentWinter Haulout Disappears

2006 Total Jenner Seals

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11/6/05 12/26/05 2/14/06 4/5/06 5/25/06 7/14/06 9/2/06 10/22/06 12/11/06 1/30/07

HauloutVanishes

In 2007 R-1 Lingered into Breeding Season Haulout Numbers Were Reduced Save for Molt

2007 Total Jenner Seals

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12/11/06 1/30/07 3/21/07 5/10/07 6/29/07 8/18/07 10/7/07 11/26/07 1/15/08 3/5/08

MoltRemains

Decline in Jenner HauloutYearly Average

Jenner Seals

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1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

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In Fall, Seal Counts Drop at the Time When the Sandbar Tends to Form

2007 Total Jenner Seals

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12/11/06 1/30/07 3/21/07 5/10/07 6/29/07 8/18/07 10/7/07 11/26/07 1/15/08 3/5/08

Bar Likely to Form

Sandbar Affects Harbor Seal Colony Strongly In Fall

• Sandbar indicated by bar in graphs

• Seals often abandon Jenner when bar forms

• Quick return after breach

Possible Results of Sandbar Earlier in the Year

• We know a single source of disturbance like R-1 can wipe out a haulout

• Similar case of haulout elimination in part as a result of early morning walkers and other factors at Strawberry Point in Marin County

• Data shows that sandbar consistently reduces Harbor Seal haulout population

• Prolonged sandbar without breaching may reduce or eliminate this significant Harbor Seal haulout in molt

Jenner is Also for the Birds

Kevin O’Connor Photo

Hundreds of Birds May Rest on the Bar

• Rest is vital not just for seals and people, but also for birds

• Many species of coastal birds congregate on the Russian River Spits

• Some come from our local colonies, others from distant rookeries

• Birds are put to flight by people walking across the bar and often abandon the area

Jenner Sea Mammals and Sea Birds Enjoy Legal Protections

Kevin O’Connor Photo

Brown Pelicans at Jenner are a Bird of Special Concern under the Endangered Species Act and Heerman’s Gulls are

protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty

Kevin O’Connor Photo

Photo by George Zastrow

Marine Mammal Protection Act Covers Seals, Sea Lions and Whales

North Central Coast Marine Life

Protection Plan is Being Finalized

Marine Life Protection Act Provides General Protection

• Provisionally the Outer Mouth will be a State Marine Conservation Area

• And the Estuary will be a State Marine Reserve

Extension of the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary

• GFNMS likely to be

extended northward shortly,

bringing more protections to

Jenner and the coast

• Thus Jenner may be protected

by many laws and agencies,

just like Bolinas Lagoon

Many Other Species Will Affected by Closure

• The Estuary is a nursery for dungeness crabs

• How will they and other species be affected?

In Summary, the River Mouth Is and Will Be Protected

• The Migratory Bird Treaty

• The Marine Mammal Protection Act

• Marine Life Protection Act

• Extension of the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary

But how do these bear on the Biological Opinion?

Why Not Integrated Management?

• Manage for all species, not just two

• Consider the breadth of consequences

• Take holistic approach

• There are many stakeholders at the mouth of the Russian River

Finally Remember

The Jenner Seals are Ambassadors for the Marine Environment

The seals link children,

visitors, all of us, to the estuary and to the sea

Kevin O’Connor Photo

Jenner Seals

Ambassadors to the Marine Environment • Harbor Seals provide a connection for visitors to the

otherwise inaccessible ocean environment

• Beach, estuary and Route 1 overlook provide public exceptional visual access to the river/ocean interface

• The overlook is a destination for thousands of travelers along the Sonoma County coast who stop just to see the Harbor Seals

State Park

Seal Watchers

Educate the Public while Protecting

the Seals.

Stewards of the Coast and Redwoods supports the State Park Volunteer in Parks Programs. Seal Watch was their first program and Seal Watchers have been protecting the Harbor Seal colony since 1985.

When we try to pick anything out by itself, we find it hitched to

everything else in the universe. -John Muir

Kevin O’Connor Photo