Wednesday, January 6, 2016: Exploring Lemaire Channel and Penola Strait

Weather Forecast: mostly cloudy with fair periods; temperature approximately 30°F with windchill 28°F light winds SW 5 knots

Learned about The Miracle of Penguins. There are only 18 species of penguins remaining today which is quite small considering there are 10,000 species of birds. They are a flightless bird and can only be found south of the equator. Their feathers, as opposed to fur, keep them warm on land and create a dry suit to keep them warm in the water. Their streamlined bodies and strong, paddle-shaped flippers propel them up to 22 miles an hour, faster than any other diving bird. Adults spend the entire day hunting. While pursuing prey, which includes fish, squid and krill; they can remain below water for up to seven minutes and dive as deep as 655 feet.

Predators include leopard seals, sea lions and orcas that patrol the waters around their colonies, called rookeries. On land, their only predator is humans. Since they are protected by the Antarctic Treaty of 1959, they have become quite friendly and curious about humans. We are instructed to remain 15′ away from wildlife but the penguins are so friendly they will often come right up to us. I guess they didn’t need to sign the IAATO agreement in order to enter Antarctica.

This morning we visited Cuverville Island, home to the largest Gentoo penguin rookery in the Antarctic. Many of these Gentoos have chicks hatching now. Gentoo parents, who often form long-lasting bonds, are highly nurturing. At breeding time, both parents will work to build a circular nest of stones, grass, moss and feathers. The mother then deposits two eggs which both parents take turns incubating for more than a month. Hatchlings remain in the nest for up to a month, and the parents alternate foraging and brooding duties.

Penguins have got to be the most charismatic species on earth. Their waddle, their chatter, their clumsiness, just everything about them. I will let a small sampling of the pictures I took tell the story. Trust me, this a very small sampling of the photos I took.

We have reached the southernmost point of our journey at 65°18’S, 64°17’W. Our vessel has set a record; we traveled further south than any vessel of its size. Captain Dag stopped the ship so we could take in the view.

 

Bon Mot for today: “Glittering white, shining blue, raven black, in the light of the sun the land looks like a fairy tale. Pinnacle after pinnacle, peak after peak, crevasses, wild as any land on our globe, it lies unseen and untrodden.” –Ronald Amundsen (1872-1928)