Checking the Light Trap has become one of the highlights of my week. Not only do I think the project is super cool and contributing data that will lead to a better understanding of the impact of climate change on our environment, but also because you never know what you’ll see.
Yesterday, for example, Rebecca and I were checking the trap along with some of her out of town family members when I heard them say, “oh hello, aren’t you adorable”. I immediately abandoned my light trap checking duties (momentarily) and spun around to see this little guy.
We watched for a few minutes. The pup looked like he (or she) was pretty young and appeared to be trying to suckle the boat. As the pup moved around, we spotted what looked like the remnants of an umbilical cord tag still on the pup’s belly. Very young indeed!
The pup didn’t look to be in any distress, but we had started talking about whether it was alone and had somehow lost its mom. I had started to think about who we might alert if we did think there were any concerns. And just as I had that thought, mom arrived on the scene! She gave us all a very long stare with her dark eyes reminding us that she was in charge, then flipped on her belly, I think to show us her size, before happily swimming under the boat following her pup who had just done the same.
We didn’t see any Dungeness crabs yesterday, but there were a few other things swimming around in the sample. One was an Oar Bug (we think). We didn’t know the names of the others. Can’t wait to see what we find the next time. Just another reason to look forward to checking the Light Trap! You never know who or what you’ll see, inside or outside of the trap.
Kira Leeb – kira@falsecreekfriends.org