Penguins!

We went on our first excursions today!  In the morning we were brought in the zodiacs to Pleneau island.  On Pleneau we saw Gentoo penguin colonies, mink whales in the harbor, a crab eater seal and two wedels in the distance.  Passengers wandered all around the site and, for the most part, respected the IAATO guidelines that Chad had explained.  In the afternoon we traveled to Booth Island where we saw all three species of bush penguins (Adelie, Chinstrap, and Gentoo) and even a chick!  The staff had observed how we had tramped everywhere in the first site so made a point to put trail markers in order to keep us from getting too close or making unnecessary tracks in the snow.  A few of us accompanied one of the staff members as she made the path up to the high point for others to follow.  When we reached the top, gulls began to squawk and swarmed around our heads.  The staff member, the naturalist for the ship, explained that there must be a nest nearby and that we should back up and they would calm down.  This is the site where I first recognized that certain passengers were not abiding by the IAATO guidelines.  One family in particular continuously got a little too close and were yelling to their other family members across the hill as they were sitting right next to penguins.  The children of the family would sit right in the middle of penguin highways, forcing the penguins to either start making another highway or turn back.  This definitely caused added stress for the penguins, and building new highways would require the penguins to use additional energy.  I was directly observing our human influence on the Antarctic ecosystem. 

            After the excursions my project group met up to discuss and reflect on the passenger behaviors and staff enforcement thus far.  Many of us had seen similar disregard for the guidelines but could not blame the staff because they cannot be everywhere at once.  We did come up with a recommendation of a “why” method of teaching.  We also discussed cultural differences and language barriers as potential issues for passengers.  It is possible that conservation and environmentalism is not as high of a priority in certain cultures as in U.S. and Canadian culture. As students, we are very biased as well because we have been learning about human impact on Antarctica for an entire semester and are very educated about IAATO guidelines even before the mandatory lecture.  We also determined that it is our responsibility as knowledgeable ambassadors of Antarctica to hold other passengers accountable when the staff is not able to.

            The staff mentioned that "you come for the wildlife and stay for the ice".  I'm starting to see what they mean.  The glaciers and icebergs are so massive, unique and beautiful.