Hi my name is Shane, and I’m a………… uhhmmm……………I’m a repeat offender. This is my 4th season for the Australian Antarctic Program, with three down south on the continent as a “Dieso” and the first here at Macca.
After the three winters on the southern continent, contending with days of darkness, hanging off blizzlines during blizzards whilst walking to work or in knee deep snow, here at Macca it’s all about the abundance of wildlife you come across every day. Some say there is a lot of cuteness here but Diesos don’t do cute - it’ll ruin our reputation. Now most peeps will say its like being in a David Attenborough film, but not me. I sort of point towards Dr Doolittle (you know that dude who thinks animal’s actually talk to him and he talks back?)
So, without making stuff up or exaggerating, the following is true without a word of a lie, cross my heart. We live basically in a gated community and I work on the “other side of town” compared to most of the other peeps here at Macca. So, sometimes my walk to work can take a while.
Just the other day (Pic # 1) Brutus the New Zealand sea lion (Pocarctos hookeri sorry can spell that but only those with a PhD can actually verbally pronounce it) was at the front gate so I stopped for a chat. Now he was not a happy chappy, kept complaining about the elle seals hogging all the good spots on the beach, fighting and carrying on and the pups keeping him awake all night. He asked if he could hang out inside with the humans, I had to tell him no, “mate you can’t, besides there is too much building and stuff going on and that will keep you up.” So, I pointed him to a quiet spot on the beach so he muttered something and headed off.
I’m heading across the Isthmus; zig zagging across as its congested with the big beachmasters. As I’m heading across most of them raise their head and open their eyes a greet me with “mornin’ Shaneo” or a “hey dude” or “What up”. “Hey Boys, behaving I see, good job,” I reply “Hey Will that’s a nasty wound you have there” “Just a love bite Shaneo’” “Ok Will no worries” I say as I give ‘em the thumbs up and let them go back to their snoozin’.
Now I get to the BoM building and there is Bill (Pic # 3) a southern elephant seal (Mirounga leonina) barkin’ at the front door, “Hey Bill what’s ya doing there” I asked. He replies “I saw a couple of stunners walkin’ in here a couple of days ago but some dude answered the door”. I says “Yeah, that’s Adam (BoM Met Tech), the girls are off station”. Bill looked at me with a disappointed look and muttered some expletive and wandered off into the tussocks.
I get to the workshop and there is Jerry the juvenile Elle Seal (Pic # 4) hangin’ out the front on a tarp looking pretty relaxed. “Hey Jerry how goes it” I ask and he replies “cool dude, hey can you open the door so I can hang inside?” “Sorry mate” I replied “Tommy (the welder) working in there today so it might get a bit noisy for ya.” Now just the other day I found Jerry snoozing away in the machinery shed (Pic # 5) as I left the main doors open, it took a while to get him out and he was a fightn’ and cursing the whole time saying it was too cold n wet outside and its warmer in here and that we were bad humans and so forth.
I do my usual walk around the fuel farm and sheds etc. and come across Bob (Pic # 6) now Bob has a massive big smile on his dial and was pretty excited to see me. “Hey Shaneo how ya doin?” “What’s going on Bob” I replied, “Ya looking pretty happy?” “Mate” he says I’ve been out in the water, I’ve had a big feed, come ashore and had a fight with ol mate up the beach and got myself a cuddle so now just heading off for a bit of a rest up” “Good on ya Bob” I replied “Enjoy” I found him later tucked up near the fence looking pretty content the big fella (Pic # 7).
Now most tasks I complete outside is usually with an audience so here I am at the back of the science building refuelling when Gary the gentoo (Pygoscelis papua) (Pic # 8 & 9) comes over for a chat. “Hey Shaneo ya refuelling again?” Yeah mate” I replied. He looked a little worried when he asked me “Hey who is that blond lady human who walks past here sometimes?” “A few of us are calling her the ‘Crazy Penguin Lady’”. “Why mate?” I ask. “Well” he says “She walks past all the time with this huge weird smile on her face, taking heaps of pics and keeps saying stuff like ’you’re cute, I wanna take you home’ and ‘Ernie & Gertie (Schnauzer) would love a new friend’. WT…..Shaneo you need to keep an eye on her; some of us are worried”. “Its mating season mate and a few of us are trying to have some quiet time with the missus and she is taking photos of us”. “Fred over there gets a bit nervous when humans are watching, if you know what I mean?” “Ah OK” Trying to think who that may be but without stating the obvious “Hey Gaz, no need to worry mate she is harmless” I replied. “Yeah well, we’ll take ya word for it Shaneo” and he waddles off.
I finish my day with a walk down the southern road towards razorback and greet Suzie (Pic # 10) an Antarctic fur seal (Arctocephalus gazelle) hiding up the side of the hill in the tussocks near the stairway to the lookout. Now Suzie always greets me with a wink and blows me a kiss, “Hey Shaneo darling how are you?”. “Hey Suzie” I reply “what’s ya doing up there?” I ask. “Renaldo is looking for me,” she replies. Renaldo is also an Antarctic fur seal (Pic # 11) who has a crush on Suzie. “So hiding from him, he is so annoying,” she says. “Ok I will keep an eye out for him for you Suzie” I replied as she ducks back into the tussocks. I continued my walk up the stairs to a magnificent view of the Northern Heads and station (Pic # 12).
I did come across Renaldo later on my way back down from the lookout at Razorback he was still looking for Suzie. He did ask me if I have seen her so I had to tell him no.
Until next time.
Good Job.
Shane
Macca “Dieso” and Macca Wildlife interpreter.
