Happy Thanksgiving from the far south!
It's a beautiful sunny day here (a
rarity for Cape Shirreff although this is our 3rd in a row). We've gotten
a lot of work done on the penguin colonies. Yesterday Mike and I spent the
day catching and banding chinstraps and setting up my study site.
Consequently, my hands are chewed to pieces from vicious penguin bites -
they are tougher than they look, so stop laughing!! We also attached some satellite
recorders to some females to see where and how long they forage
after they've laid both eggs. I love the penguin work. Our days are
fairly relaxed and the commute is spectacular. We ski to the north tip of the
island and then I start a circuit that takes a few hours checking the eggs
and who is attending the nest. On these clear days I get amazing views of
the island, icebergs, and nearby mountains. A bull fur seal has established its
territory on our front porch, so we have to sneak around him or scare him
off. We think he might have some kind of infection because he's not acting
very aggressive. Today we'll only work a half day, then come back for our
first showers - boil water, attach water pump, and take shower in fur seal
lab. Then we'll cook a big T-day feast for our Chilean neighbors who
agreed to provide the Pisco Sours. All is well here. I'm very happy, but as the
snow melts, I envy all of you in the northland. Our penguins get stinker when the snow is gone and the chicks hatch (late Dec).
I'm looking forward to hearing from you. I'll send mail out in Jan as
well.
Happy turkey day to all! Have a great one.
Love, Iris
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