Wildlife at earth’s end

Résumé détaillé

Extraordinary biodiversity thrives in plain sight among the wild seas and monochrome scenes of Antarctica and the deep Southern Ocean.

Extraordinary biodiversity thrives in plain sight among the wild seas and monochrome scenes of Antarctica and the deep Southern Ocean.

Sprawling some 13,661,000 km² across the bottom of the planet, Antarctica and its Subantarctic Islands are famously inhospitable. Yet travellers to the region are welcomed by an abundance of wildlife, including nine different penguin species, 100 million seabirds, at least 10 types of whale, and various seals and sea lions.

Here, just some of the wild things you might encounter on an expedition cruise through the New Zealand and Australian Subantarctic region; across the Ross, Amundsen and Bellingshausen sea sectors and along the famous Antarctic Peninsula itself.

This crabeater seal may look like it has eaten more than its fair share of crunchy crustaceans around Stonington Island – but its name is a misnomer as crabeaters actually eat krill.

A trio of king penguins socialise on the beach near their small colony at Macquarie Island’s Sandy Bay.

Macquarie Island’s king penguins are famously curious and often come in close to check out visitors.

Crabeater seals are the most abundant of the Southern Ocean’s pinnipeds with an estimated population of 15 million found across the region.

Around Ross Island, the dry, frigid conditions have mummified the remains of at least 300 crabeaters, 100 Weddell seals and 20 leopard seals. Some of them, it has been determined, are up to 1500 years old. This particular unidentified specimen rests on the beach at Cape Royds.

A wandering albatross soars through New Zealand’s subantarctic region. These airborne nomads have the biggest wingspan of any bird, stretching 3.5m from wingtip to wingtip.

Début de l'article, extrait de Australian Geographic. Pour lire la suite, ouvrez l'article chez le média.