Day 11 – We’ve got mail, we’ve got whales (and penguins)
Monday 12 January 2026 – written by Jim
Our day began at Port Lockroy, a special place where history, wildlife, and science come together alongside the Royal Mail at the southernmost post office in the world. Formerly a whaling site, it became the first permanent British station (Base A) in Antarctica in 1944. Today, a dedicated team from the UK Antarctic Heritage Trust (www.ukaht.org) runs it as a museum and operational post office. Known as the penguin post office, it hosts a thriving colony of gentoo penguins, who are key to the Trust’s long-term conservation efforts. Since it is too small to accommodate everyone on board, Pete, Tiago, and some team members brought the shop and postal service to us. Naturally, no one wanted to miss the chance to send a postcard to friends and family from Antarctica, even if some struggled to remember their addresses. After learning more about their work, we wanted to contribute, so we, as a group, adopted a penguin. Be sure to check out our Instagram, where you can help us name it!
Out on the Zodiacs, we enjoyed a view of the bay from the water, bustling with activity against a glacial backdrop stained by patches of nutrient-rich pink and green snow algae, known as watermelon ice. These organisms bloom again when exposed to sunlight as the glacier calves, revealing new layers. The bustling gentoo colony had utilised all available spots to build nests, including the buildings, their foundations, and even the chains and whale skeletons left from the days of whaling. To our surprise, they nested side by side with Antarctic shags, kelp gulls and their well-camouflaged chicks, as well as sheathbills. A possible advantage of this mutual-nesting strategy is access to productive waters and protection from predators.
A striking sight was a giant petrel actively feeding on what appeared to be an unfortunate gentoo chick, while its partner circled low over the zodiac. Giant petrels mate for life, and the aerial display seemed like a protective warning, but nonetheless, it was an impressive view of their ~200cm-wide wingspan as it skimmed overhead.
In the afternoon, we rounded the headland to Dorian Bay which is home to Damoy Hut. Last used in 1993, the hut once served as a transfer station supporting an airstrip built along the glacier’s spine. Today, however, its most notable residents are the thriving gentoo penguin colony that surrounds it. Equipped with notebooks, pencils, and ethograms, we worked in pairs to carry out 30-minute behavioural observations of these charismatic species.
The colony was far from quiet, with donkey-like braying or trumpeting sounds ringing in our ears; gentoos use these to locate mates or claim territory. Constant nest maintenance, chick provisioning, and territorial disputes played out continuously, providing a rich dataset and an even deeper appreciation for the complexity of their daily lives.
After returning to the ship and preparing for the next phase of surveys after dinner, we were unexpectedly rewarded. Minke whales began to appear one after another, each sighting met with increasing excitement on deck, culminating in a whale breaching and executing a backflip!
Just as it seemed the day could offer no more, the light softened as we approached midnight, and the narrow waterway filled with humpback whales lunging to feed. This feeding strategy involves accelerating towards the surface through dense patches of prey with mouths open, engulfing large volumes of water and prey before filtering the water out through baleen plates. Seeing multiple individuals lunge in near-unison was reminiscent of a synchronised swimming performance and truly a spectacular way to end another wonderful day.
