Hercules Bay and Fortuna Bay
Nesting on the steep slopes of Hercules Bay, macaroni penguins, the most abundant species of penguin on the island of South Georgia, paraded in and out of the water, some going fishing, others returning. Macaroni’s can be recognized from a distance by their golden feathers streaming off of their heads. Macaroni’s return to the colonies in October, males first, preparing their meager nest sites with small pebbles. Females follow, and courtship involves hoarse vocalizations and plenty of modeling of their yellow plumes. Two eggs are laid, first one small and then one large, with the smallest likely being ejected from the nest. Hatching takes place in late December and the chicks leave the colony to fish on their own in early March. Macaroni penguins are pursuit-divers, eating mainly krill.
And we know from the famous Lindblad tradition of recap, “All you need is krill, krill is all you need.”
Wilson’s storm petrels danced on the silky calm surface of the water in Hercules Bay as we kayaked and Zodiac-cruised along the cliffs. Beautiful icebergs grounded in the shallow water reflected brilliant blues. Storm petrels dip their yellow webbed feet into the water while they seize their prey. Petrels venture ashore to breed, timing their arrival and departure with low light if possible, avoiding predators like kelp gulls and skuas. They arrive in the breeding grounds in December, and nest on cliffs and under boulder scree. A single egg is laid in late December or early January, with chicks hatching late January to late February. They are opportunistic feeders, but krill is an important component of their diet.
“And we know, “All you need is krill, krill is all you need.”
Antarctic fur seals greeted National Geographic Explorer in the water, and guests on the beach at Fortuna Bay in the afternoon where we hiked to a king penguin colony edged by tussac grass. Pups were swimming and running on the low tide ice strewn beach. The pups are more bark than bite. Mother Antarctic fur seals nurse their pups for twelve weeks, with pups more than doubling their birth weight. Almost like canine puppies, they are little bundles of energy. Pups are born with a black coat, and leucistic individuals known as “blondies” are not unusual on South Georgia. Once pups are weaned from their mother’s creamy fat rich milk, the will live on mainly krill.
And we know, “All you need is krill, krill is all you need,”
Here in South Georgia, as well as throughout the rest of Antarctica, animals from the smallest storm petrel to the largest baleen whale rely on krill for much of, if not all of their sustenance. Long live krill!
