23 Dec 2024

The magic of Macquarie Island!

Macquarie Island. What a day! We hopped in our Zodiacs to land at the beach on the isthmus, home to weaner Elephant Seals, Giant Petrels, Brown Skuas, and endemic Macquarie Island Shags nesting on rocks. The morning was a sensational opportunity to explore, passing Elephant Seals snoozing along the dirt road, Gentoo Penguins feeding their large fluffy chicks, and groups of King Penguins looking decidedly scruffy as they go through their annual moult.

In the afternoon, Heritage Adventurer sailed down the island's west coast to marvel at the 600,000 pairs of Royal Penguins at Hurd Point. Along the way, we were greeted by Wandering Albatross wheeling above the waves, swarms of seabirds in a feeding frenzy, and several groups of hungry Orcas. At Lusitania Bay, Captain Jacek positioned our trusty expedition vessel to offer stunning views of the 250,000 King Penguins and chicks resident at the site.

Images © E. Bell, Heritage Expeditions