A large male Type C Orca checking out the ice edge. We had sailed from the Ross Ice shelf into McMurdo Sound. We visited the historic huts of Scott and Shackleton (outstanding experience!) and then headed to the ice channel created by the icebreaker Polar Star to...
We arrived in the early morning getting our first glimpse of Ross Island and Mount Terror and soon after the ice shelf could be seen. This was named “The barrier” by the early Antarctic explorers since it represented an impenetrable barrier to their progress. The ice...
Antarctic Minke Whales. As we sailed along the Ross Ice Shelf we spotted the distant blows of Antarctic Minke Whales feeding just in front of the ice cliff. As we approached we realised there were about 30 of these animals and they were feeding on the upwelling of...
As we rounded Cape Bird en route to Cape Royd (Shackleton’s hut) and Cape Evans (Scott’s hut) with its large Adelie Penguin colony, we ran into some dense pack ice. The Captain took the Spirit of Enderby gently and skillfully through the ice. We enjoyed the...
The Antarctic Petrel is often gregarious and will form large flocks. They are often seen near the pack ice and icebergs. They have a wing span of abut 1m and weigh 675g. Performs distinctive stiff winged glides.
This unmistakable, pigeon sized bird has distinctive markings. A very manoeuvrable flyer has stiff and shallow wing beats followed by short glides. They are well known to follow ships.
These stocky little birds have a wingspan of about 75-95cm and are very similar to the Lesser Snow Petrel. That feed mostly on fish, crustacea and cephalopods by surface diving, surface seizing and contact dipping. They are monogamous and form long-term pair-bonds.
The South Polar Skua is large gull-like Skua with very striking white primary flashes. They would glide effortlessly around the ship.