Earka and Others Get Up Close with Penguins
A Penguin Pecks a Team Member’s Collar from Behind
Landing in Antarctica is the most exciting part of the trip, where you can get up close to adorable penguins, laid-back seals, stunning glaciers, and even have snowball fights and go skiing. The joy far exceeds life on the cruise ship.
However, there are many rules for landing and exploring in Antarctica. Established in 1991, the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO) has developed a series of tourism regulations under the Antarctic Treaty system, which all operating vessels and tourists are required to strictly follow. Today, ecotourism in Antarctica is recognized worldwide as one of the best models of sustainable tourism.
You Must Be “Searched” Before Your First Landing
On the morning of the 16th of last month, the cruise ship announced over the loudspeaker: landings would begin at 3 PM. Everyone’s spirits soared: “We’re going to see penguins soon!”
Before landing, in addition to receiving a pair of well-fitting insulated boots and a specialized life jacket on board, the most important task was to undergo what’s called a “major cleanup”—a self-conducted “search.” But it’s not others searching you—it’s you using a vacuum cleaner to clean out the pockets of your landing clothes, backpacks, and other items, removing any plant seeds that might have been inadvertently carried, to prevent introducing them to the Antarctic continent and harming its ecosystem. After vacuuming, you must sign off; otherwise, you won’t be allowed to land.
Polar experts once conducted a survey, randomly inspecting 800 people from 55 tourist groups, and found that 30% had plant seeds in their clothing pockets, camera bags, backpacks, shoes, gloves, or even trekking poles—covering 250 species. Shoes carried the highest number of seeds, up to 43%. Researchers were found to carry more seeds than ordinary tourists.
Qu Xiangdong, a former famous CCTV host, said that Antarctica’s extremely cold climate makes its ecosystem very fragile—once damaged, it’s hard to restore. In the early 20th century, when humans used dog sleds to conquer Antarctica, the sled dogs played a significant role, but starting in 1994, all dogs were removed from Antarctica because they are not native species.
Lost Items Must Be Recovered Immediately
While cruising near Port Lockroy, a participant from Wuhan, Sheng Hongfei, dropped a glove into the sea. The eco-guide immediately turned the ship around so he could retrieve it.
In Antarctica, tourists are not allowed to lose anything. If something is lost, it must be recovered immediately.
Qu Xiangdong said that once, a Chinese team member’s rainproof plastic bag covering their camera was blown into the sea by the wind. An expedition staff member immediately jumped into the water to retrieve it. Seeing this, the team member said apologetically, “It’s okay, I don’t need the plastic bag anymore!” But the expedition member insisted on retrieving the bag. Because their concern wasn’t whether the tourist had a plastic bag—it was to prevent litter from polluting Antarctica’s environment.
Additionally, tourists are not allowed to bring food ashore, smoke, or relieve themselves on land. If absolutely necessary, eco-guides will instruct tourists to dig a hole in the snow, bury the waste along with some snow, and pack it in a plastic bag to be taken back to the ship for proper disposal.
You Must Be “Fully Equipped” Before Landing
Before departure, the reporter looked up information and learned that Antarctica’s extreme lowest temperature reaches -89.2°C. At such low temperatures, steel plates become as brittle as glass and can be shattered with a punch. In Antarctica’s interior, the summer average temperature is also around -60°C. Such temperatures are truly chilling.
Upon arriving in Antarctica, however, the weather wasn’t as cold as imagined. The Antarctic Peninsula, located on the edge of the continent, has summer temperatures between 5°C and -5°C—not extremely cold. On the day of landing in Paradise Bay, the sun was shining brightly, with temperatures exceeding 5°C. After climbing a snow mountain over 100 meters high, all team members were sweating profusely, with steam rising from their heads. Several tourists even took off their shirts to enjoy the sunshine on the snow.
However, the weather in Antarctica is highly unpredictable—sunny skies can quickly give way to snowfall. Strong winds are also common, biting painfully against exposed skin. Before landing, you must dress warmly. Experts recommend a four-layer clothing method: thermal underwear, fleece, down jacket, and waterproof outer shell. Insulated boots, life jackets, hats, gloves, scarves, and sunglasses are also essential. Due to the ozone hole, Antarctica’s ultraviolet rays are very strong and can easily burn the skin—even on cloudy days, sunscreen is a must.
Only 100 People Allowed to Land at a Time
In Antarctica, each landing site allows only one ship to disembark at a time, with no more than 100 people per landing. The MS Ocean Albatros had 117 passengers, so the first landing boat took 100 people ashore, while the rest formed a group. They waited until some of the first group returned before being allowed to land.
This seemingly unpleasant rule was cleverly turned into a benefit by the ship’s management. Before each landing, they randomly select a “lucky group” to take a rubber boat tour around the landing area by sea. Although they land last, they get to see more scenery than the other tourists.
Keep at Least 5 Meters Away from Penguins
The adorable Antarctic penguins are incredibly endearing—everyone wants to hug them, touch them, or take a selfie with them. But in Antarctica, this is absolutely not allowed. You must keep at least 5 meters away from penguins and 15 meters from seals. Touching penguins, seals, or other animals is strictly prohibited. If a penguin approaches, you must step aside to let it pass.
Eco-guides explain that humans may transmit diseases to penguins, which lack immunity to these foreign pathogens and could become ill or even die as a result.
Antarctic Penguins Are Not Afraid of People
Arriving in Antarctica is like entering a penguin kingdom. On the six islands landed by the “Zero Distance Antarctica” team, thousands of penguins could be seen everywhere.
Swimming to forage, preening feathers, carrying stones to build nests, stealing stones from neighbors, courtship, incubating eggs, feeding chicks, fighting, calling, and defecating—here, every aspect of penguin life is displayed in its raw, unfiltered form.
The reporter noticed that on every island’s rocky slopes and bare ground, many penguins were incubating eggs. But only on Petermann Island was an Adélie penguin seen feeding its newly hatched chick. The eco-guide said that it’s currently penguin breeding season, and by February or March 2013, many chicks will have been born, making the island even livelier.
On Aiqiu Island, as several team members were walking across the snow, a Gentoo penguin came waddling toward them. The team immediately stopped to let it pass. The penguin also halted, looked left and right, then turned and walked away. “Penguins are so polite,” the team couldn’t help but chuckle.
However, although there are many penguins in the Antarctic Peninsula, only three species can be seen: Gentoo, Chinstrap, and Adélie penguins. Gentoos, with their red beaks, red feet, and white eyebrow stripes, are the most numerous. Chinstraps are gray and white with a black line under each cheek, resembling a chinstrap, and appear to be smiling when viewed from the front. Adélies are black and white with short black beaks and distinctive white eye rings on either side of their heads.
Experts say there are about 20 penguin species worldwide, but only seven are found in Antarctica. The largest of them, the Emperor penguin, lives deep in the Antarctic interior and cannot be seen on the Antarctic Peninsula.
Gentoos are the most friendly toward humans
The reporter also observed that Gentoos are the most fond of interacting with humans.
After landing at Neko Harbour, the reporter witnessed an amusing scene: a foreign woman sat motionless on the snow with her legs stretched out. Twenty minutes later, a Gentoo penguin slowly approached her and stopped about a meter away to observe her. Seeing she didn’t move, it came closer and eventually stopped right at her feet, pecking at the soles of her shoes with its beak. The woman burst into laughter and kept taking photos with her phone.
With the help of an interpreter, the reporter interviewed the woman. Her name was Elka, and she was traveling to Antarctica with her husband from the United States. She said she absolutely loved penguins and really wanted to touch one, but the rules didn’t allow it. According to the eco-guide, it’s not against the rules if the penguin approaches the human first. The only way to get a penguin to come close, she learned, was to sit still. She sat there for a long time, and sure enough, a penguin came to her. “With these photos, this trip to Antarctica was totally worth it!” Elka laughed.
Right after Elka left, the reporter saw another amusing scene. British eco-guide James and an American tourist stood perfectly still in the snow when a Gentoo penguin slowly walked up to their feet and looked up at them curiously, as if asking, “Who are you?” They couldn’t help but grin, but were afraid of startling the penguin, so they dared not laugh too loudly.
At Port Lockroy, a member of the “Zero Distance Antarctica” team leaned against a rock while waiting for others after disembarking. A Gentoo penguin quietly approached him and started pecking at his collar, much to the delight of the team member.
James told the reporter that Antarctic penguins aren’t afraid of people because there’s no record of humans hunting them in their genetic memory. When humans arrive in Antarctica, the penguins are very curious and want to find out what these giant creatures are.