Susan R. Eaton
February 18, 2010

Antarctica: Dispatch Number Three

On February 18th, we awoke to the sun streaming into the cabin – we had
travelled 12 hours overnight to Astrolabe Island, situated in the
Bransfield Strait, and bracketed, north and south, by glacier covered
mountains. Astrolabe, named by French explorers, is an island with
towering volcanic mountains – it’s also an assembly point for birds and
animals feeding on krill, the staple food species Antarctica. We saw
many species of sea birds: Brown albatroses, Fulmars, Cape Petrels and
large colonies of Chinstrap penguins. The Chinstraps are incredibly
adept at hopping from rock to rock, and their nests extend from sea
level to hundreds of feet upwards, on craggy ledges of prime real
estate – one can identify penguin colonies on shore, by the colouration
of their guano, reddish due to their diet of krill.

Crabeater and Fur Seals shared the lower beach terraces with the
Chinstrap penguins. Leopard seals patrolled the waters adjacent to the
penguin colony, waiting for newly fledged chicks – not yet adept
swimmers – to make their daily forays to feed at sea.

While some of the Explorers circled Astrolabe Island by zodiac – there
are no landing beaches on the island – another group of Explorers
slipped into the frigid waters, ready to get up close and personal with
Leopard seals. Decked out in Antarctic-rated dry suits, masks, snorkels
and fins, we plunged into the chilly waters. Even after several days of
snorkelling, it’s still a shock when the Antarctic waters hit your face
and fill your dive hood.

Today was my first face-to-face encounter with Leopard seals, and I was
nervous, to say the least. Several years ago, a snorkeller, a marine
biologist, was killed by a Leopard seal in Antarctica.
Weighing in at between 1,000 to 2,000 pounds, Leopards are nonetheless
sleek and graceful in their marine environment. Early Antarctic
explorers described Leopards’ heads as ‘lizard-like’ which is an eerily
accurate description. Leopards and killer whales are the top marine
predators in Antarctica.

Leopards stare at you, eye-to-eye, as they cruise on by…
Within minutes of entering the water, I was greeted by not one, but two,
Leopards who circled, at arm’s length. Karen, one of my snorkelling
buddies and a dive medicine physician from Australia, screamed with
delight as two Leopards circled, checking us out while doing acrobatic
summersaults. A Leopard approached the snorkelers, on several
occasions, opening its mouth and flashing an impressive array of
serrated teeth.

We spent almost two hours in the frigid waters, snorkelling with Leopard
seals in high swells along the rocky coastline, and, later, around an
iceberg grounded on the sea floor. The term ‘tip of the iceberg’ is an
apt description, as only a very small percentage of the berg is visible
from the surface. As the sunlight danced off the iceberg and its
underwater apron, the dark Antarctic waters were transformed into a rich
shade of turquoise, and the snorkelers transported to a Caribbean sea.
Appearances, however, can be deceiving — one female snorkeller was
taken to the ship’s hospital, and treated for hypothermia.

Our snorkelling group interacted with three large Leopards — it was a
magical experience for all, and one which I will never forget.
Later the same day, the Explorers were cruising further north, at
Gourdin Island, and came upon Leopard seals tearing Chinstrap penguins
apart – they actually thrash the penguins in the water, until the birds’
skin and feathers are dislodged from the meat of the body… Field
observations indicate that it takes about 15 minutes for a Leopard seal
to kill a penguin.

We continue travelling north along the Antarctica Peninsula.