Hello again! It’s been about two months since I began my internship with the Ventura Fish and Wildlife office, and I thought for this month’s blog post, I would share a little about a trip I took to San Luis Obispo to do some BeachCOMBERS surveys.

The Coastal Ocean Mammal and Bird Education and Research Surveys or BeachCOMBERS is a citizen science program that is conducted monthly and is used to document the mortality of marine birds and mammals on California beaches. This data helps gather information on the causes of mortality of beached birds and mammals and provides baseline data on the number of wildlife mortalities on beaches. Earlier in August, I assisted in a BeachCOMBERS survey with one of the BeachCOMBERS volunteers, who is also a biologist for CDFW.

I learned a lot during this survey, specifically when it comes to identifying the dead birds that wash up on the beach. I learned that northern fulmars, a part of the tube-nosed family, have a very distinctive bill tip and a very distinctive musky smell (which to me smells like very old library books). I also learned that common murres have a distinctive keel that is longer than it is wide and has black wings tipped with white. After I was taught what to look for in identifying these dead birds, I could identify some birds without much assistance, which made me quite happy. Along with dead northern fulmars and common murres, we also found a deceased brown pelican, sooty shearwater, and California sea lion. The BeachCOMBERS protocol includes tying twine around the flippers of every deceased mammal we come across to know if the animal had been counted in the previous month. So, when we came across the California sea lion, I put on some gloves and tied twine around the flipper of the rotting, stinky carcass. It was interesting to inspect, yet just a bit gross. 

There wasn’t just deceased wildlife on the beach, but many different types of live ones. There was various species of gulls and other shorebirds, some were resting on the beach, some searching for food, taking advantage of the low tide. A highlight for me was the western snowy plovers on the beach; I was able to catch a glimpse of a snowy plover chick, which was so adorably tiny. I also caught a glimpse of a harbor seal in the ocean. There were many turkey vultures on the beach who were enjoying the deceased California sea lion. After surveying the beach, we stopped at Morro Bay, hoping to see some sea otters. I was especially hoping to see a sea otter as I had never seen them in the wild before. So, I was pleased to see a raft of otters, most of whom were napping. My favorite scene was a mother otter foraging in the water while her baby floated nearby.

I enjoyed heading to San Luis Obispo to conduct BeachCOMBERs surveys. It was very informative, I learned a lot about identifying deceased wildlife, and I enjoyed seeing the different and diverse wildlife of coastal California. It has made me look forward to more field trips in my internship.

Agency: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Program: US Fish & Wildlife Service

Location: Ventura Fish and Wildlife Office