After nearly two days at sea the excitement on board was
reaching fever pitch. We had listened to
many presentations about the history of exploration in the Antarctic, Antarctic
Wildlife, and our code of conduct according to the International Association of
Antarctic Tour Operators (IAATO).
Melissa and I gave our presentation on Oceanites and the research the
passengers would witness while on board.
But what we all really wanted to know was, “when are we going to make
our first landing!?” And that day was
today.
 |
| Kate and Annie loading up for their first Antarctic kayak excursion! |
As the guests loaded into zodiacs to visit the Chinstrap
penguin colony on Half Moon Island, Melissa and I were transported [by zodiac
as well] to a site called Rugged Rocks about 2.5 nm (nautical miles) from Half
Moon. Though I had very much been
looking forward to stretching my legs the steep ascent up Rugged Rocks, over
snow, ice, and rock reminded me that I may very well live in one of the
flattest places on Earth. Melissa and I
decided to divide and conquer the counting of Chinstrap penguin nests on this
island and set to work.
Though a small island, Rugged Rocks is home to 1,664 pairs
of nesting Chinstrap penguins as well as nesting Blue-eyed Shags, Snowy
Sheathbills, Antarctic Terns, Kelp Gulls, and Cape (Pintado) Petrels. It took Melissa and I a little over an hour
to count the nests, the topography playing a bit of a role in the amount of time
we spent at this site.
 |
| Rugged Rocks |
In the afternoon we sailed south to Deception Island, one of the most popular stops on many Antarctic voyages. As the guests headed towards Whaler’s Bay to hike, view the remnants of an old whaling operation, and mentally prepare for the polar plunge, Melissa and I got a ride back towards the entrance of Deception Island to count the nesting Chinstrap penguins at Entrance Point. Deception Island is an active volcano, last erupting in 1969. As we sailed through the entrance, referred to as Neptune’s Bellows we entered into the caldera of the volcano. On cold days like today you can see steam rising from the beach; stick your hand down into the sand and you may nearly get burned. It is a beautiful location, especially on days like today when the weather was beautiful—bright sunshine and calm seas.
I had been to Entrance Point on my first trip to the
Antarctic three years ago. The Chinstrap
penguins nest high up on top of the ridge meaning we had quite the steep hike
ahead of us. Though the hike is not far
to reach the penguin colony, it is extremely steep and the substrate is
essentially sand. Needless to say, for
the second time today I was reminded that I live on the flat, coastal plain of
North Carolina and should probably have gone hiking in the mountains a few more
times before coming south. While the
walk up might not be incredibly enjoyable, the view from the top can’t be
beat. It took us about an hour and a
half to count the 696 nesting pairs of Chinstrap penguins, about 10% of which
had chicks (1-4 days old); we also found two adult Macaroni penguins attempting
to fit into the colony as well. There is
a small colony of Macaroni penguins on the outside of the caldera that is where
these birds likely came from. I
remembered seeing Macaroni penguins at this site in the past; they are not
breeding and are likely young birds, perhaps trying out their nest building
moves before settling down with a mate in their own colony. Melissa and I did watch a pretty vicious battle
as the Macaroni penguin attempted to fend off three Chinstrap penguins as they
encroached upon his “nest”. Being
slightly larger and quite ferocious the Macaroni penguin came out on top of
this scuffle. I think we must have
watched for 10 minutes, not able to tear ourselves away from this little soap
opera.
 |
| View of Neptune's Bellows from the top of Entrance Point |
With a little time to spare after completing our work we
were able to relax and take some photos. We rarely get a chance to be still and
watch the birds, so we took full advantage firing off shots of chicks and
laughing as one very curious adult bird waddled over to give me the once
over. All in all, a fantastic first day
of field work in the South Shetland Islands.
 |
| Chinstrap penguin and chick |
 |
| Leopard seal |
No comments:
Post a Comment