WAIS Divide, Antarctica, Jan. 9, 2010 — A driller named David Ferris cooked a big Middle Eastern Feast for us tonight. It was a lovely change in menu and good timing as we just received a bunch of “freshies” on a Herc this morning (this is only the second Herc to make it to WAIS since December 23 due to bad weather conditions in both McMurdo and WAIS!).
Along with the Herc came a bird. I am not sure what kind of bird it is. I have heard that sometimes they follow the planes. I found the bird flying around the arch and he stopped in the snow for a little rest. This little guy looked a bit lost and confused but he wasn’t afraid of me and after about 5 minutes of preening (cleaning his features) and putting himself in order, he took a short running start and disappeared in the direction of McMurdo Station and the coast. This is the first animal, besides humans, that I have seen since November. Very rarely, a few birds will fly overhead but I have not seen any yet.
I saw this little guy flying around the arch. He stopped for a short rest and
then flew off again in the direction of McMurdo and the coast.
This is the first animal I have seen, besides humans, since November.
After our feast, several headed outside for a spontaneous game of croquet in the snow around the center of town and the outhouses!
Kendrick Taylor, WAIS Divide chief scientist, and others playing croquet in the snow!
(2 votes, average: 4.00 out of 5)
Loading ...
Simply great stories and photos. They put a real human face on this pioneering work.
The bird looks to be an Antarctic skua (Catharacta MacCormicki), also called “brown skua.” Here’s some info:
http://www.gdargaud.net/Antarctica/Birds.html