A Rare Sighting

November 19, 2008

I don’t know where all the storms are. Despite its gnarly reputation, Antarctica delivered another clear, sunny, calm day (current temperature eight degrees F), perfect for recording penguin bands. After yesterday’s exhausting and freezing project, Kirsten, Michelle and I spent this afternoon wandering in the colony, dividing areas and searching for banded birds. Each nest with a tagged penguin is marked so we can keep track of their reproductive success this season.

Around five in the afternoon, Kirsten, who was out of earshot down the frozen beach, suddenly burst on the radio. “Noah! Look over your left shoulder! What’s that bird?” A streamlined gray and white seabird was gliding up and down the coastline. As it made two passes then landed on a rocky cliff, Michelle, Kirsten, and I (spread out over a quarter mile but in sight of each other) discussed it over the radio, directing each other on its movements. Eventually, we all had decent views, and the bird did a fly-by about eight feet in front of Michelle.

It was a Southern Fulmar (also called Antarctic Fulmar), the first one to be recorded at Cape Crozier in 13 years of field seasons, and the 10th bird species to be seen here in that time. They can be abundant in oceans surrounding Antarctica, but are apparently quite rare in the Ross Sea. Unfortunately, the bird headed out to sea before posing for any photos, but its identification was unquestionable. You never know what might show up here!