Image courtesy of Jean Pennycook

From: Jean Pennycook
Cape Royds, January 14, 2007

Sea of Chicks

The colony is a sea of chicks. The older ones are too big for the nests and spend most of their time sleeping, their energy being used for growing. The others stand close to their parents, waiting for the next meal. The nests, which were once neat piles of stones, are now scattered, the rocks intermingled with others. There are some parents still sitting on eggs, but it is most likely too late for them and the eggs are probably non-viable. Nests with smaller chicks who still need close guarding are closely attended by the parents. But there are less and less of these; the chicks are growing fast. The colony is very noisy now too as both parents and chicks are vocalizing greetings, feeding demands or just penguins being penguins and swapping noises.

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Postcards from the Field: Antarctica

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