Pres. Scott opened the meeting at 12:38 PM with the usual introduction of guests and he then stated that our club only had a 19% response to the most recent club survey compared with a 25% response for the District. One of the suggestions that he is now following, is that we go back to the old way of eating first and then introducing guests. Another suggestion is that we have more member spotlights or craft talks as they used to be called. He also stated he was pleased with our new member growth.

Pres. Scott called upon John Traversaro to give us a card board presentation, which entailed showing a board with a large 74 on the upper portion and 74 candles in the lower portion. In keeping with his long tradition, John donated $74 to our Rotary Foundation. Steve Burnside’s failure to up date the ClubRunner resulted in a 40 ID’s spin-the-wheel and an additional 40 ID’s for presidential disrespect. Mark Olson also failed to update ClubRunner, which cost him 40 ID’s . Shannon Bowdey spun the wheel for 40 ID’s in recognition of her 4 years with the Club. Ashlea Boyer donated $25 happy buck box to make an announcement that she is selling raffle tickets to raise money for Jack’s  school.

Jim Lewis reported that the old Alex’s Barbecue restaurant, which was designated a Pismo Beach historic landmark, was demolished today in violation of the city’s order to only take down the attached lighthouse. Ashlea announced this Thursday’s social will be at the Lido Dolphin Bay in Pismo Beach starting at 5:30 PM. Next week’s meeting will feature Scott Andrews of the SLO Jazz Festival.

Ashlea Boyer introduced Kathy who after obtaining a PhD from UCLA became a clinical physical therapist . After Kathy retired, she joined the Friends of the Elephant Seals and is now on the board of trustees of that organization. They have recently formed a Speakers Bureau, which gets the word out as she is doing at our meeting today. The elephant seal (ES) rookery is located at Point Piedras Blancas, 7.7 miles north of San Simeon and has grown to 25,000 elephant seals along a 6-mile stretch of coastline. The rookery is part of the Central Coast National Monument, which is one of 2 National Monuments. The other monument is the Carrizo Plain. ES are part of the pinniped species that includes harbor seals, sea lions, and fur seals. The ES range from 3000 to 5000 pounds and live from 14 to 16 years. Newborn pups weigh in at 60 pounds and reach 250 to 350 pounds within 28 days. For every pound a pup gains, the mother loses 2 pounds. Each year about 5800 pups are born at this rookery. In late November and early December, the adult males, with their large trunk-like proboscis, arrive at the rookery and fight for dominance. The winner becomes the alpha male over his harem of up to 100 females, which are distinguished by their smaller size and short noses. The battles can be bloody, but seldom are life-threatening. Pregnant females arrive mid-December and form into the alpha males’ harems. Birthing begins when they arrive mid December and ends in early February. In March the last of the females are gone by escaping the alpha males that try to keep them on the beach. Between about April and May, the females return to the beach for molting in which they lose their hair and skin in 32 days. During June through September, first the young males then the mature males come in for their molting. The ES cycle closes in October and November with the return of the juveniles and yearlings after a hazardous 5 to 6 months at sea. During this time by the use of GPS chips pasted to the skin of the ES, they have determined that the ES range extends from Alaska to Baja in the south and as far west as the Hawaiian longitude. ES can hold their breath for more than 100 minutes and dive to a maximum of over a mile in depth to feed primarily on octopuses and squid.

“Some of God’s best truths, like priceless treasures, are hidden in the depths most folks never take the time to search out.”