One of the most splendid sights in nature is also one of the stinkiest
Getting up close and personal to vast colonies of penguins in Antarctica is a stupendous experience on many levels – not least when it comes to the incredible stink.
The first penguins we see are no more than tiny black dots on a passing iceberg somewhere off the coast of the South Shetland Islands, as our expedition ship, Greg Mortimer, lurches across the Drake Passage from Ushuaia on the tip of South America towards the Antarctic Peninsula.
My fellow passengers and I stir with excitement as we squint through binoculars, but how naive we are. Before we're done, we'll see a million penguins – no exaggeration – and many close enough to admire their shimmering throat feathers and black, wrinkled feet.
Guidelines say we should keep our distance, especially as the arrival of avian flu in Antarctica is a major concern, but that turns out to be tricky with so many of these naturally curious creatures on every side.
While some penguins waddle off like affronted nuns when we appear, the majority shuffle towards us, fixing us with beady eyes, apparently as fascinated by us as we are by them.
This exploration of the Antarctic Peninsula and South Georgia with Aurora Expeditions produces one wonder after another – mountain ranges, glaciers, giant icebergs, glossy seals, albatross swooping like giant Chinese kites – but penguins are my lasting memory.
I expected penguins, of course, but not like this. Not huddled in entire battalions as far as the eye can see. Not in colonies 200,000 strong. And not assaulting all the senses with their noise, iridescent plumage, peculiar behaviour and smell.
Penguins have no consideration for pooping in the proper place. Nobody tells you that penguins have not happy feet, but stinky feet. I smell their colonies before the ship has even anchored. As we approach landing sites on Zodiacs, the ammonia in the air makes my eyes water.
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