Early last week we counted Adélie penguins on the islands around: Le Maugeen, Rostand, Bernard and Lamarck (see map in the previous entry). We can count the breeding pairs since the breeding season has now begun. I also took pictures of the emperor penguin colony so I could count the chicks there, but the emperor penguins are at the end of their breeding season.

On Wednesday we went further for counting Adelie penguins at Pasteur Island, and took this opportunity to look at the polynya, an area of open water surrounded by sea ice. Polynyas play an important role in the Antarctic ecosystem because they are very productive areas and the wildlife there is very active. As we walked toward the polynya, columns of penguins, both Adelie and emperor were walking toward us. With the sun, the Adelie were silver and the emperor golden, it was really beautiful. Emperors walk leisurely while Adélies are almost running and frantic. It’s very funny. Near the polynya we saw a leopard seal resting (see picture of Arnaud Coupin, my card was full).

The leopard seal is a predator of penguins and very impressive! On our way we stopped at the Island of “Debarquement”, where Dumont D’Urville debarked in 1840. He gave the name of his wife “Adèle” to this land, thus call now “Terre Adelie”. It was a wonderful journey.

Thursday we started our demographic study on emperor penguins. We are using a passively interrogated transponder (PIT) tag, which we put under the skin, to electronically monitor penguins. This tag is uniquely identified and allows us to get important information on penguin return and survival, so we can eventually better understand the impact of climate change on this species. This is especially important, as emperor penguins are not currently listed on the endangered species act.

We want to transpond 250 penguins chicks, approximately 8% of the total number of chicks. It takes 4- 5 minutes to place the PIT tag and complete the biometry, i.e. measuring the length of the flippers, the bill and weight the bird; and take few drops of blood. Chicks are currently weighing between 15 and 20 kilos.

The biometry gives important information about the quality of the bird, which could be related to his chance to survive. For example, heavier bird may have a better survival rate. The blood we collect is used to sex the individual. This is especially relevant for the emperor penguins because we have detected difference of survival between females and males, which in turn has a strong impact on population dynamics. Males are thought to be more sensitive to climate change because they fast for four consecutive months, while the female return to sea to feed after laying her single egg.

The demographic work on emperor takes several days of good weather conditions. We worked Friday and Monday intensively. We have equipped 135 chicks so far.

The other days have been spent on continuing with the other programs. We are currently putting some GLS (geolocation systems, see previous entry) on Antarctic skuas. It’s very hard to catch skuas because they are very smart. It can take several hours before a skua is trapped with a lasso that has been hidden in the ground.

The boat is still stuck in the ice. People were finally debarked by a plane that landed on sea ice near the boat. However, it was not possible to debark all the material and food. This will delay all the rotations, and I’m hoping that the boat will be able to reach the base next time. If not, my departure could be delayed by a couple of weeks.