The arrival of the emperor penguins

At the end of March, while Adelie penguins and all the other birds of the island are leaving, a new inhabitant of our neighborhood arrives: the emperor penguin. We can see them coming from the sea, in large colons, to reach the area of sea-ice near the station, where they form the rookery every year.

During April, more than 6000 emperor penguins arrive at the site and couple. Some of them choose the same partner as the year before, some of them change, depending on the couple’s reproduction success and other factors. To find one another, they choose a song so that they can recognize themselves among all others.

Copulations are frequent during April and May, and the first eggs are laid at the beginning of May. The males will then incubate the egg while females return to the sea to feed. In July, they will come back right in time for the hatching, and males will go back to sea, after 4 months without any food. If the egg hatches before the female returns, the male will be able to feed the chick for one day with a special substance they keep in their stomach.

The emperor penguins are very curious animals. When we go to the rookery, we try to sit or lie at a correct distance to observe them in order not to disturb them, but some of them always come nearby to see what kind of animal we are. It's always an amazing moment, watching the behavior of the biggest penguin on earth.