Fun At The Lighthouse

We got quite a few new birds yesterday, as well as a few new Island residents.  Notable birds were Purple Martin, Blackpoll Warbler, ASY male American Redstart, Northern Waterthrush, and the continuing Painted Bunting.  Also, during my sharkwatch shift at the lighthouse, we got some good sharky action.

First of fall MacGillivray's Warbler with a little schmutz on breast.

This is usually as much of the shark as you're likely to see.  The smaller front fin you see is about halfway up the shark's back, so you can about double the distance between the fins for an idea at the true length of this animal.  What I failed to capture was the gigantic blood pool that forms after the initial attack.  The victim in this case was likely a Northern Elephant Seal.  I've been wondering if the pattern on this shark's tail fin makes it distinguishable from other individuals.  The oldschool shark researchers knew all of the resident Farallon sharks by their unique fin markings.