As we headed further south, ice became more of an issue and on our arrival at Petermann Island there was so much brash ice choking the landing cove it was hard to imagine that we would be able to get ashore. The Captain used the ship’s thrusters to clear a patch on one side so that the Zodiacs could be launched and they then managed to push a way through. We were on the first Zodiac to land and it was a bumpy and slow journey through the chunks of ice. It was well worth it as Petermann Island was looking like the Antarctic of the imagination – snowing with plenty of snow and ice with areas of rock poking through and not a hint of bare earth but a surfeit of penguins ( Adelies and Gentoos) and Blue-eyed Shags.

Just after landing and while assembling my gear I had the cutest encounter of the trip as an inquisitive Gentoo chick, fluffy and soft a stuffed toy, waddled right up to me as if to ask what I was doing. I took a shot with my wideangle lens before moving further away to isolate him against some out of focus rocks and he started catching snowflakes which gave me a very sweet image.

Petermann Island had the largest number and most accessible Adelies we encountered so it was a great opportunity to get some portraits. They are keen tobogganers, unlike the Gentoos which prefer waddling, so we had quite a few chances to capture this behaviour. If heading up from the sea they can overheat so will, at times, stop and eat snow to cool down. Interestingly we saw a few Gentoos tobogganing on Petermann Island and it would be fascinating to know if they were imitating the Adelies or whether it was just that the terrain made it the most efficient method of moving. The Gentoos that I saw tended to toboggan down the steeper snow slopes and then get up and waddle once things levelled off while the Adelies tobogganed up and down slopes and on the level.

The clouded, snowing conditions made it ideal to look for some photos for my Birds on White project and one image that I particularly like seemed to work best in Black and White. It shows an Adelie moving past a large rock protruding up through the melting snow. I waited until the penguin was placed for a symmetrical composition with the rock mirroring the shape of the bird but looming over it to represent the threat of climate change which is causing the ice to retreat south. This has resulted in decreasing Adelie colonies in West Antarctica as they are reliant on sea ice. Fortunately this reduced breeding success is being offset by increasing colonies in East Antarctica where they can more easily retreat south with the sea ice but begs the question”where to when there is no more south left?”. By then it will be too late and they will have all gone west!

All photos with Nikon D810 and 200-400mm f4 lens