Every year over 3500 Adélie penguins arrive at Bécherveise Island in mid October to breed throughout the spring and summer. They have spent the winter out at sea and on the pack ice feeding, some ranging more then 1200 kilometres away. They have been recorded diving to depths of 175 metres but generally feed above 70 metres in depth.
The Adélies are only 70 centimetres tall and weigh between three to six kilograms, they are amongst the smallest of the Antarctic penguins. If possible, they return to the same colony, nest site and mate every year.
As Adélie penguins feed predominantly on krill, a long term study on their population can provide valuable information on fishery stocks in the east Antarctic region. Kingston based researchers are part of the long term international monitoring effort that involves closely observing the penguin numbers on Bécherveise Island. Every summer a team of two researchers arrive from Hobart to count, weigh and monitor the population. Before the researchers get here the whole station gets involved in recording the arrival of the Adélies. Every second day a pair of expeditioners goes to the island to count the arrivals and report back to Kingston.
This week we spent the day getting our bearings and locating the various different colonies that are scattered around the island, making sure that we are all going to be counting the same groups each visit.