If you get a chance, take a look at Christine Dell’Amore’s blog on National Geographic, about her expedition to Antarctica. In it she gives a very entertaining personal account of all of the little things that go into preparing for such a trip, actually getting to Antarctica, and everything she has done while there. It’s also worth noting that she is working a great deal with ASOC’s David Ainley, while down there.
In one section she talks about her and Ainley’s visit to an Adelie rookery, “…I plopped myself down a safe distance from the squabbling birds, agape at the unusually clear Mount Erebus glittering in the distance. Some of the birds approached me curiously with cocked heads, flapping their little wings. I particularly enjoyed watching one that would pick up a rock in his beak, waddle over to another nesting penguin, and add the rock to the nest. Ainley later told me these were teenaged birds play-acting the roles of adults.”
One quote which I found especially chilling (excuse the pun) is from where she is talking about just walking around the continent, “So far the weather’s been no worse than a wintry day in D.C., but a storm barreled in this morning that is like nothing I’ve ever experienced - winds that suspend you in mid-stride; heavy wet snow; and a disorienting lack of visibility”. As much fun as it sounds, it makes me thankful to be nestled here in far more mild conditions.
The blog makes for a fun and fascinating read and I can’t help but point out the adorable videos of penguins like this one…
Check it out.
No comments:
Post a Comment