Top 5 Questions About Save The Bay's Seal Watch Tours

By Eric Pfirrmann, Lead Captain at Save The Bay

It’s October and Seal Watch season is underway! As Save The Bay and I begin our 16th season, I thought I would share the top five questions about our trips.

Q: What kind of seals will we see?

A: Harbor Seals. About 99% of the seals we see are Harbor Seals. It makes sense. They are the most common marine mammal in New England, and they are cool. Roughly human sized: say 4-6 feet, 125 -250 lbs. They are cute, sometimes playful, sometimes lazy and always entertaining.

Toward the end of Cape Cod and on Nantucket, there is a large, year-round colony of Grey Seals, and we do see a couple of these big seals every year, but it is not a common occurrence. More exotic ice seals, like Harp Seals, and even juvenile Hooded Seals, are also occasional visitors to Rhode Island, but I cannot confirm that I have ever seen either on a seal watch.

Q: Why don’t you run Seal Watch Cruises in the summer time?

A: My answer is: I’d love to! But a Seal Watch Cruise without seals is just a nice day on the Bay. If we want to see seals, we need to head out when they are here, and for Rhode Island, that’s the cooler months.

Our Harbor Seals are migratory. They depart our area by the first week of May and head anywhere from the Maine/New Hampshire border on up through Maritime Canada. The females leave first to have their pups along the rocky shores. The pups will be with them for just 4-6 weeks, or sometimes as late as the beginning of July. The adult males follow a couple of weeks later. They set up and fight over territories near where the females are tending their pups, because mating will occur as soon as the females leave their pups for good. The juveniles leave the Bay last. I'm convinced they look up one day and wonder where everyone else went.

Harbor seals spend the rest of the summer feeding on stocks of herring, mackerel, and menhaden (or pogy as it is called up there.) As the summer fades, these fish begin their annual migration south. And slowly but surely, the seals follow. We often think of the migration game as animals in search of warmer weather, but most times they are simply following the food. Even the fish are following their food. Plankton feeders like menhaden and herring ultimately depend on the sun and the presence of enough phytoplankton and Zooplankton. There aren’t many hours of sun in those northern latitudes, so they head south.

Luckily for us it’s Fall and seal season is starting back up. Reports of Harbor Seal sightings usually begin in sometime in September, with numbers gradually increasing throughout October, November and December. In Narragansett Bay the numbers peak in late February or early March. Soon after that, it will be April again. The sun will rise higher and longer, the fish will move, and the seals will follow. By the first week of May, they will all be gone and once again we will hear, “So why don’t you run Seal Watch Cruises in the summer time?”

Q: Where are our trips?

A: We run out of three locations: Newport, Westerly and Fall River. Newport trips depart from Bowen’s Ferry Landing at the end of Market Square. These are one-hour trips out to the area just south of the Newport Bridge near Rose Island. Sights include Newport Harbor, Rose Island Lighthouse, Clingstone and the beautiful lower Bay. This area is one of the best seal haulout sites in Narragansett Bay. These trips run Saturdays, Sundays and school vacation days from mid-November through April. These trips are tide dependent; seals like low tide for hauling out, so departure times vary.

Westerly trips depart from Viking Marina on Margin Street. These are 90-minute trips down the stunning Pawcatuck River and into Little Narragansett Bay. Fantastic fall foliage, majestic homes and idyllic marshes line the shores. If you haven’t been down the Pawcatuck before, you need to join us for a cruise. It really is a Rhode Island must do. These trips run at 11 a.m. every Saturday from October 15 through December 31 and over the December school vacation. Also, check out our trips with special guest speakers from Mystic Aquarium’s Marine Mammal Stranding Team!

Fall River is our third location, with tours running on Saturdays March 18 through April 8, 2017 from Borden Light Marina. These are 75-minute trips spotting seals at Spar Island in Mount Hope Bay. We also check out the lower Taunton River and get up close and personal with the historic ships in Battleship Cove!

Q: Seals are great but what other wildlife can we see? Will we see whales?

A: Seal are great, but there is a ton more going on for us to see on our trips, birds especially. Wintering sea ducks like Goldeneyes, Buffleheads, Eider, Mergansers and Loons are always possible. More rare sightings include Snowy Owls and Bald Eagles. In April, we can see nesting birds like American Oystercatchers, Egrets and Heron.

Will we see a whale?  I used to say no, but after last year’s mid-winter visit to Narragansett Bay by a Humpback whale, I’ll never say never again!

Q: Will we get cold?

A: Our trips are definitely an outdoor activity, but we don’t freeze anyone! Each of our boats has a roof with curtains so we are well protected from the wind, but appropriate gear like hats, gloves and warm footwear are suggested for mid-winter cruises. We go out most days, but in real inclement weather we will cancel. Your safety and comfort are our biggest concern!

See you out there!

Book your Seal Cruise at www.savebay.org/seals 

With Friends Like These: A Circle of Friends in the Warwick School District

Bridget Kubis Prescott, Director of Education

Save The Bay long ago recognized that if we are to fulfill our mission to protect and improve Narragansett Bay, we’d have to reach deep into a new community of supporters—the hearts and minds of young people, school children, who would one day become keepers of our beautiful Bay. Our education program has since evolved from isolated classroom presentations into rich integrated experiences with entire grades, schools and school districts. The success of these programs is rooted in strong partnerships that begin with relationships with individual teachers and grow over time. 

A Circle of Friends in the Warwick School District 

The generous support of the Defenders of Greenwich Bay and The Rocky Point Foundation laid the groundwork for a long-term partnership with the Warwick School District. In 2009, we began working with the entire student body at Robertson Elementary School, and, in 2011, with the fourth grade at Warwick Neck Elementary School. Our education staff worked with teachers at both schools to tailor programs that would integrate seamlessly into their science curriculum and provide hands-on, field based programs. 

Although the two initial Warwick programs were not formally connected, the enthusiasm and excitement they generated were. Parents were thrilled to learn about the presence of Save The Bay in their child’s classroom. Recognizing the value of the partnership to students, the Warwick School District this year expanded the program from two schools to include all fourth-grade students in the district. “These hands-on activities enrich the life science lessons received in science class. By using similar vocabulary, questioning, and inquiry, students have had multiple opportunities to expand their learning. Save The Bay staff has brought the Bay to life in the classrooms,” said Ryan Mullen, math and science coordinator at Warwick Public Schools. 

Our educational partnerships do not happen overnight, but require time, personal attention, flexibility and openness that we are happy to put into them. True to the early visions for a Save The Bay education program in the 1980’s, we feel we’ve been able to develop amazing opportunities for students and foster the growth of future stewards of Narragansett Bay. Our team truly values the school relationships we’ve built over the years; we look forward to building new ones in the years to come.

BayKeeper Blog: Harmful Algal Bloom Present Bay-wide

By Tom Kutcher, Narragansett BayKeeper

You may have heard about a “harmful algal bloom” (HAB) that has taken hold in Narragansett Bay starting last week. This bloom, or overabundant growth of phytoplankton (microscopic plants), is now confirmed throughout the Bay, including East and West Passages, Mount Hope Bay, the Sakonnet River, and all sub-estuaries (coves and smaller bays) and tributaries. The HAB has not been found in RI salt ponds at this point.

The HAB is responsible for releasing a toxin that can cause stomach problems and long and short-term amnesia, according to The R.I. Department of Environmental Management (DEM). It concentrates in the guts and tissues of shellfish as they filter-feed on the algae. Eating the shellfish may expose you to dangerous levels of the toxin. DEM has therefore closed all Bay waters to shellfishing until further notice. This includes both commercial and recreational shellfishing.

DEM does not know what triggered the HAB. It is known that this is a species that is generally present in the Bay at low levels and produces the harmful toxin at very high levels.

The HAB is concerning for a number of reasons:

1. This closure differs from common bacteria-related closures in that the toxin produced by the HAB is not a living organism and therefore is not eliminated when you cook the shellfish. 
2. The algae comprising the HAB are a cool-water species, so there is no known timeframe for the persistence of the bloom.
3. Shell fishermen will therefore be out of work indefinitely until the bloom subsides.
4. It is unknown at this point how long it takes for the shellfish to purge the toxin once the bloom stops.
5. Rhode Islanders like me who regularly eat local shellfish are out of luck until the situation passes.
6. It is unknown whether swimming in the Bay is safe at this point.

DEM and the R.I. Department of Health are working with the State of Maine to try to find answers to all the unknowns. Maine is also currently experiencing their first occurrence of this specific HAB along a significant stretch of their coastline. I will post another blog as I find out more. But, for now, don’t go clamming or eat any local shellfish until you hear that it is safe from our State agencies.

Link this to DEM first mention: http://www.ri.gov/press/view/28732

Advocacy Blog: Why Vote YES on Question 6?

By Topher Hamblett, Director of Advocacy

As a native of the Ocean State, I take great pride in Rhode Islanders’ emphatic support, over the past three decades, of projects that clean up Narragansett Bay and enhance our environment. Many Rhode Islanders never leave, or, like me, leave and return because our strong sense of place. Narragansett Bay. The coastal ponds. The Blackstone, Pawtuxet, and Wood/Pawcatuck Rivers. The urban neighborhoods with old mill buildings that stand as monuments to the industrial revolution. Acadia Park. Sachuest Point. All of these places define who we are. They are in our soul.

On November 8th, Rhode Island voters will once again go to the polls to cast their vote for candidates, and a series of bond referenda. Question 6, the Green Economy Bond is a $35M ballot measure that builds on the tremendous success of past investments in water quality, open space, parks, and the cleanup and reuse of contaminated industrial sites. It also expands our growing network of bike paths that gets people outdoors and connects communities. I hope you will join me in VOTING YES on 6!

Thanks to the efforts of citizens, organizations, elected officials, and environmental agencies, Rhode Island is in the process of shedding that age-old, misguided myth that says, “environmental protection is bad for the economy.” We are transitioning to a mindset that says, “protecting and improving our environment is good for our economy." Think about it. Why do people want to live here? It’s our quality of life.  And what makes our quality of life so unique? It’s our environment!

And those old mill buildings that dot communities throughout Rhode Island? They produced and dumped tons of harmful chemicals into our rivers and Bay. Not to mention, harming the people who worked in them. Today, with the help of measures like the Green Economy Bond, they are being cleaned up and used for housing and business.

Please vote Yes on 6, and play a direct role in helping Rhode Island build upon its strengths and on the progress it has made in cleaning up Narragansett Bay.

Critter Tales: Phil and Jerry

Jerry

By Dani Gariglio, communications intern

Two resident Diamondback Terrapins call Save The Bay’s Exploration Center home. Meet Phil and Jerry, at one time strangers, but now two peas in a pod.

Jerry, though smaller in stature, is bold and boisterous as he tries to push around his adoptive big sister, Phil, who is nearly twice his size. And even though Jerry thinks he’s in charge, it’s really Phil who calls the shots.

As kids crowd the Exploration Center, pushing and shoving to get a front row view of the critters, Phil and Jerry appear to be doing the same. In an attempt to get a good view, Jerry begins taking a few laps around the tank. Effortlessly gliding through the water as if there’s a jetpack on his back, he picks up speed and rams into Phil, who has comfortably taken a front row seat to stare at their visitors. Instantly Phil stretches out her lengthy limbs and winds up to knock Jerry right in the head! Jerry immediately backs down, but Phil must have felt bad about the tussle, because the two go on to drift through the tank together. It looks like Phil even gives Jerry a piggyback ride when Jerry floats directly above Phil’s back and they move in sync like a well-oiled machine!

Phil

Phil and Jerry are Save The Bay’s representatives of the endangered terrapins turtle species in Rhode Island. Most distinguishable by the diamond shaped mountainous peaks on their shells, these turtles can live anywhere from 25­–40 years old and can grow to be 5–7.5 inches in length. Terrapins are native to the northern Atlantic coast of the Eastern United States and can often be found in brackish ponds and salt marshes where they nest and raise their hatchlings in the Narragansett Bay of Rhode Island. Though an endangered and small species, these critters play a crucial role in the overall health of the Narragansett Bay. Because they often inhabit the salt marshes of Rhode Island, if salt marshes begin to dissipate so too will the terrapins. And because terrapins spend their time both on land and in the water, the extinction of these critters would disrupt links in the food chains in both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. The absence of terrapins would lead to poorer health of sea grass beds, which are important breeding habitat for many species of fish, shellfish and crustaceans, and stunt the growth of dune vegetation, which could eventually lead to dangerous beach erosion. Without terrapins, the shoreline ecosystem would suffer a massive imbalance, ultimately damaging the health of the surrounding environment.

Among the Exploration Center’s two resident terrapins, Jerry is the younger of the two and first arrived as just a hatchling, about the size of a quarter. A researcher who studied terrapins found Jerry in an untouched salt marsh, but noticed that the hatchling was missing his upper jaw. Knowing the turtle would be unable to eat and survive on his own in the wild, the researcher brought him to Save The Bay’s Exploration Center and Aquarium, where he has thrived for the past four years. Despite some trouble with eating at first, Jerry adjusted to his disability and has grown to love his new home with Save The Bay.

Phyllis, more commonly known as Phil, was found in the wild by a local resident–we’ll call her Sue–who thought the turtle was lost and took her home. But in all reality, turtles like Phil don’t really get “lost”.

“Terrapins stay at the same nesting site year after year and have coding in their DNA that drives them to return to the same site,” Exploration Center Manager Adam Kovarsky explained. “This is called site fidelity, which is strong in this species.”

Phil stayed with Sue for several months until Sue realized that owning Phil as a pet and disturbing a terrapin’s natural habitat is illegal in Rhode Island. Sue contacted Save The Bay to try to find a better home for Phil. Since Phil had been removed from the wild for so long and had lost much of her natural instinct, Kovarsky turned to the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management for advice, who suggested that Phil’s best chance of survival would be to receive care at the Aquarium.

Diamondback Terrapins like Phil and Jerry face endangerment because of habitat loss due to rising water levels from climate change, human development and pollution. However, this last year more nesting sites have been discovered in Rhode Island, which Kovarsky described as, a huge win for this species!

To meet Phil and Jerry and the rest of Save The Bay’s friendly critters, visit the Save The Bay Exploration Center and Aquarium in at Easton’s Beach in Newport, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m.–4 p.m.

Amazing Adaptations and Seal Cruise Kickoff - STB Podcast 8

October's theme at the Exploration Center and Aquarium is "Amazing Adaptations".

Register for Feeding Frenzy - savebay.org/aqaurium

Book your Seal Tour - savebay.org/seals