S2603 Exploration of South America and the Antarctic - Leg 3, Montevideo to Punta Arenas.
- annokcc
- Jul 14
- 10 min read
Updated: 1 day ago
"Penguins, Petrels and Humpy Soup"
PART ONE: MAGICAL MYSTERY TOURS, DRAKES PASSAGE AND THE FALKLANDS.
With Anno Brandreth and Mikey Bailey.
A delayed start to our adventures saw me and Mikey stranded in Montevideo, after Industrial Action in Argentina saw flight delays and last-minute hotel bookings. The flight out had been eventful with no reception in terms of Wi-Fi causing issues with the Internet and shutting down the inflight entertainment. This resulted in just a few hours to watch something, so I chose to watch the Rolling Stones play their sell out free gig, played in front of 1.5million people, the biggest concert of all time, at Copacabana Beach, Rio De Janeiro, in February 2006.
Little did I know that a few hours later as the rest of the crew walked up to see the Christ the Redeemer statue, I would be casually walking along the very same beach!
Whisked off around 1.00 am on a flight to Montevideo, we finally got into our room around 3.00am – sleep methinks!
Montevideo
The laidback capital city of Uruguay in South America, and a new Country in the passport for me. Mikey needed to catch up on work, but we managed to get out to the Botanical Gardens last minute for a quick wander and what better way to get away from it all than a stroll through the beautiful and lush Juegos Infantiles Jardin Botanico in Prado?
Cardinals, Hummingbirds and Parakeets kept us occupied for a few hours, and Rufous -Collared Sparrows too.
After a brief stop off and a re-charge of the batteries, we then got whisked off to the port to join MS Borealis and embark on our journey to Las Malvinas AKA the Falklands, via Drakes Passage.
At Sea
The 21st February was our first day onboard and at sea, with highlights coming in late as we reoriented ourselves to the ship, in fact one of our first birds encountered after our introductory talk was a becalmed Great Shearwater as we traversed the decks, which was brought to our attention by passengers.
Shearwaters do not fare well when they are stranded on Cruise Ships; thankfully, we are both veterans of dealing with the short staying visitors. Great Shearwaters are ocean nomads who journey thousands of miles each year from remote South Atlantic breeding grounds to cool North Atlantic waters in the boreal summer (their non-breeding season). Flying low over the ocean on stiff, straight wings, but arcing higher and wheeling steeply in stronger winds. On the water, they show a strong dark-and-white contrast, with a dark cap set off by a white collar. When they take flight, they reveal brown smudges on the belly and underwings that help differentiate them from other shearwaters.
The legs on Great Shearwaters are positioned far back on their bodies, making them skilled fliers and swimmers but making movement on land difficult and awkward for them. After bringing some attention to itself the bird was examined and found to be dehydrated and weak but was released without incident from the expert handling of Mikey.
The 22nd was a day of contrasts, and several speciality species were added to our lists, following on from yesterdays single Great Shearwater we added another 10,000 birds to the tally along with 60 plus Sooty Shearwaters too! In terms of Albatross species an early showing of around 30 Black Browed were accompanied by a single Northern Royal and plenty of Manx Shearwaters.
It wasn’t long into the afternoon when our first and only encounter of a much-prized cetacean arrived in the form of Southern Right Whale, again a target species for me having not seen it on previous trips along the coast of Patagonia. At least 6 animals were seen including a youngster, and the distinctive blows could be witnessed by passengers as we let them know the significance of this siting.
Right whales were one of the first species to be hunted by whalers. Tragically, they became the target of huge scale whaling and were hunted to the brink of extinction. Hunting of southern rights was banned in 1935, but illegal Russian whaling continued until the 1970s. Whalers considered right whales to be the “right” whale to hunt because they are slow swimmers and easy to catch, also, thanks to their extremely thick blubber layer, right whales are buoyant and floated when dead, making things easy for the whalers. Their enormous bodies contained vast quantities of oil, meat and baleen, making them a very valuable commodity.
The body is mostly black and typically features patches of white on the belly and chin. There is no dorsal fin. The head is extremely large, up to a third of the overall body length, and is very obviously marked with callosities. Callosities are white or cream patches of raised skin found all over the head and around the jaw; each whale has a unique pattern of callosities and these are used by researchers to recognise individuals. The mouthline is dramatically arched to accommodate their long baleen plates inside the mouth. They have two blowholes and produce a wide, V-shaped blow up to 5m high. The flippers are large, broad and paddle-shaped with blunt edges. The black tail flukes are wide and have smooth trailing edges. They lift their huge tails clear of the water when beginning to dive.
One of our fellow passengers, Graeme Pearse even managed to get a shot –
Star of the following day for me, the 23rd – never having encountered the species before, was the first Spectacled Petrel – which was misidentified by me as a White – Chinned petrel initially before we got a better look. A large, stocky, dark petrel with a diagnostic pattern of white “spectacles” on its face. In strong flight it alternates slow wing beats with glides. Usually seen well offshore in relatively warm waters, this bird only breeds only on Inaccessible Island, and this bird was on of 5 encountered throughout the day.
The closely related, White-chinned Petrel lacks the white face pattern, and we saw around 20 on the day.
23rd Sea Day on the way to the Falklands, a long day to chill out and explore prior to our first stop off, and a changing of the guards cetacean wise with at least 7 Sei Whales encountered throughout the day. Sei’s are always a bonus, sleek powerful and swift for their size, they are the 3rd largest rorqual species. They are rarely found near shore and prefer swimming in more open areas, not far from the surface of the water, and their diagnostic tall and falcate dorsal fins can be observed cutting through the surf. The name ‘Sei’ comes from the Norwegian word ‘Seje’, which means pollock. The Sei Whale is often found near shoals of these fish and hence they are named after them, they also have another local name the sardine whale for obvious reasons!
Today was also a good day for dolphin species (any day with a dolphin is a good day obviously!) but as well as a small group of Dusky Dolphins, the speciality dolphin in these waters, and admittedly one of my chief reasons for doing this leg, is the wonderful black and white Hourglass Dolphin and an early pod that seemed to come from nowhere took us all unaware as the camera shy pod blasted through from the port bow and promptly disappeared much to our annoyance and dismay! This dolphin inhabits offshore Antarctic and sub-Antarctic waters. It is commonly seen from ships crossing the Drake Passage but has a circumpolar distribution. The Hourglass Dolphin is so called because of the two white markings, connected by a thin white band on either flank, reminding us of an hourglass.
Considering the distinctive appearance very little is known about this rarely encountered species, including its breeding patterns and associations with other species. an extremely rear species. This animal is the only cetacean, classified as an existing species according exclusively to evidence of eyewitness accounts rather than strandings and observations in captivity.
Although nobody from our team managed to get a shot, somebody did – and its hats off again to Graeme Pearce who caught up with them at the back of the vessel and managed to get some distant but clear shots!
In terms of birds another fantastic day for seabirds including circa 100 Soft Plumaged
Petrels and 20 plus Cory’s – these also included an individual that had ‘wrecked’ onboard and was again sorted and returned to the sea by Mikey.
Among the most fascinating of our avian inhabitants are the petrels. These remarkable seabirds, play a crucial role in marine ecosystems and boast a history as compelling as their flight. Whether you are a seasoned ornithologist, a curious nature enthusiast, or simply someone who marvels at the wonders of the ocean, Petrels are the keystone birds in the ecosystems we visit in relation to food distribution and interaction with other species.
Approximately 53 species of seabirds live within the family Procellariidae. They are closely related to albatrosses and shearwaters, and all belonging to the order Procellariiformes. These birds are characterized by their tubelike nostrils on top of their bills – a unique adaptation that aids in detecting scents while foraging at sea. Petrels are generally small to medium sized, with wings adapted for dynamic soaring, enabling them to cover vast distances with minimal effort. Their plumage is often dark, ranging from chocolate brown to slate grey, thus providing camouflage over the open ocean. While many species are pelagic, spending most of their lives over the open ocean, they return to land or islands to breed. Breeding colonies are frequently located on very remote islands, cliffs, and even burrows dug into grassy slopes.
Different petrel species occupy distinct ecological niches. The Cape Petrel, for example, is commonly found in Antarctic waters, thriving in the icy conditions and feeding on krill and fish. The Snow Petrel, equally at home in the Antarctic, is famed for its pristine white plumage, providing camouflage against the snowy landscapes and was another target species for this trip. Warmer water species like the Black-bellied Petrel breed on sub-Antarctic islands in the Southern Ocean and spend their non-breeding season traversing vast stretches of ocean. Understanding these regional variations is crucial for both monitoring and our conservation efforts.
Petrels often interact with other marine animals, and as I said in my talk, they may follow whales and dolphins, scavenging for food disturbed by these large mammals. This is why the behaviour of these birds and monitoring at distance very often leads our teams to the whale’s feeding area. They also compete with other seabirds for food resources. Predators of petrels include skuas, giant petrels, and marine mammals like seals and sharks.
24th February - Port Stanley
Port Stanley became capital of the Falkland Islands in 1845, and along with the rest of the islands is a British Overseas Territory, although Argentina has contested this sovereignty for almost 200 years, most notably in 1982. The town itself has extensive displays from this conflict, and about the flora, fauna and wildlife of the area. Gentoo and Magellanic penguins, oystercatchers, grebes and kelp geese can be seen here.
Geographically, Stanley is situated on the eastern side of East Falkland, near a natural deepwater harbour and characterized by low-lying terrain with pastures and bogs. The area experiences a maritime climate, with mild summers and cold winters, and is home to various wildlife, including notable colonies of penguins.
The islands are famously at the centre of an over a century-long feud between the United Kingdom and Argentina, which led to a bloody war in 1982, that lasted 10 weeks and killed more than 900 people, 649 of them Argentinians. Still an open wound for many in the South American nation, and the reason that so many people were onboard to re-visit the sites and memories of the conflict.
Falklands brought endemic species like Falkland Steamer Duck and Long Clawed Meadowlark,
but along with many fellow passengers it was the ever present alure of those funny fellows in the dinner suits parading that drew us to seek out a local Penguin colony with a Company on the quay side, and it wasn’t long before we were on our way to Yorke Bay.
Yorke Bay is just 9 miles from Port Stanley, and this breathtaking white-sand beach is home to over 400 Gentoo penguins, along with a variety of other birdlife and occasional dolphin sightings.
After parking, there's a gentle 8-minute walk along a sandy path to reach the Gentoo penguin colony, set against a backdrop of dunes, wild grasses, and crashing waves, where you can often observe their unique behaviours’ — nest building, feeding, preening, and even clumsily waddling back into the sea!
Amongst the gentoo’s we found a single King Penguin and also discovered some Magellanic’s too, but the undoubted star of the show had to be the Gentoo’s – Gentoo penguins are easy to recognize because of the white stripe across the top of their heads, which looks like a little bonnet, or as I said some headphones - and their bright orange-red beaks. They have pale pink webbed feet and a long tail that sweeps from side to side when they walk, which helps them balance. Gentoo penguins are a playful species loving to slide on ice and make trumpet-like calls to communicate. During the breeding season, they become very noisy to protect their eggs and chicks. They often form pairs that last a lifetime and build pebble nests, sometimes giving pebbles to their mates as part of courtship.
While now a peaceful destination, Yorke Bay has a complex past. For years it was closed off due to landmines left during the 1982 conflict, and only in 2020, when the area was officially declared landmine-free, could it be opened to for both locals and tourists.
The drive to Yorke Bay also passes one of Stanley’s most striking visual reminders of history — the rusted skeleton of the Lady Liz shipwreck, and a chance to catch up with Kelp and Upland Geese.
25th February - Drakes Passage
The passage is named after Sir Francis Drake, who in 1578 discovered open waters south of South America, although he never fully crossed it. The first confirmed crossing was by Dutch navigator Willem Schouten in 1616, who also named Cape Horn.
Historically, the Drake Passage was a major route for ships before the Panama Canal opened in 1914, but its treacherous conditions caused the loss of hundreds of vessels and thousands of sailors.
The passage is ecologically rich, supporting krill, plankton, whales, dolphins, penguins, and seabirds such as albatrosses and giant petrels, all of which can be observed when the conditions allow – well, we got lucky!
Prior to tea we wandered to the back of the ship and all was relatively quiet until I heard something slamming into the waves at the back - a small pod of the acrobatic Peale's Dolphin who where not hanging around and seemed to be racing to find food that even put us hungry pair to shame!
As we exited the relatively calm waters of the Falklands conditions were like a mill pond and we sailed out in a calm and collected manner as we anticipated the next stage in our adventurous journey – onwards to Antarctica!
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