Flightless birds live in mountains and islands that have not been studied for 40 years
The Norwegian company Viking reported that its expedition team had found a new colony of a species of chinstrap penguin. The discovery was made at Diaz Rock, near Astrolabe Island in Antarctica, when the team visited the island located in the Bransfield Strait of the Trinity Peninsula.
Astrolabe Island is home to a colony of chinstrap penguins that have not been surveyed since 1987. During the visit, Viking's scientific partner, the leading field research organization for monitoring chinstrap penguins, Oceanites, conducted visual and thermal aerial photography. The work documented the first Chinstrap penguin colony in nearly 40 years of research.
Oceanites will share additional details of the study in a scientific paper to be published in the future.
The discovery was made a year later after Viking published its first scientific paper in the Norwegian Polar Institute's scientific journal Polar Research following its expedition team's encounters with a rare giant ghost jellyfish in Antarctica.
“As we approach our third season in Antarctica, we are pleased to support another important scientific development that will allow us to better understand the region,” — says Viking Chairman of the Board Thorstein Hagen.
Recall that during each expedition, a group of 36 experts conducts important scientific research, providing shore excursions and giving lectures.
For 30 years, the American Oceanites, a non-profit field research organization, led the monitoring of chinstrap penguins. As a scientific partner, Viking supports Oceanites' research efforts by providing thermal imaging cameras. Teams of scientists can learn more about penguins on Antarctic expeditions.
The company conducts destination-specific expeditions to Antarctica, the Arctic and the lakes of North America, with an expedition fleet including 378-person polar vessels purpose-built for expeditions and are the perfect size for security and event management in remote locations on Earth.