cute penguins ~ almost 200,000 Chinstraps

Baily Head, January 7th 2018 ~ It is a location on the east side of an active volcano, called Deception Island in the South Shetlands in Antarctica. This place is famously revered as natures amphitheatre with roughly over 50,000 breeding pairs of Chinstrap penguins. Plus chicks & juvenile animals easily makes the population close to 200,000. Chinstraps are named after the soldiers in World War 1 - due to the black marking under their chin somewhat resembling that of the strap from the helmet worn by the brave people during that period.

Penguins have a highway, which is a path they use in somewhat a single file allowing them to pass back and forth from their nest to the ocean in order for them to forage. At Baily Head is more known as the "penguin autobahn" not a highway. Keep off their highway/path/Autobahn. That is rule 1 when being near their breeding colonies. Also, 5 metres away at all times from them, which can prove to be difficult at times when you are surrounded by almost 200,000 of them.

These little guys are known as the mountaineers of the penguin world - scaling up mountain sides again and again to get to their nests in order to feed their young ones and to relieve their partner so they may forage for food too.

They are everywhere!!!

Interestingly, penguins can only recognize one another via their distinct call. Physically they can not pick their partner from another penguin using just sight. This makes sense, as I can not pick one from another... Hence, the constant squawking from all of these animals as they stumble up and down the mountain side of this small valley on the edge of a volcano.

Did I mention the chicks..? They are pretty damn cute.

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