Adelie penguin

(Pygoscelis adeliae)

The Adelie is the archetypical penguin, named after French explorer Dumont D´Urville´s wife. They are purely black and white, with a characteristic angular head with a distinctiva white eye ring and a tiny bill. Size: 70 - 71 cm, weight 3.8 - 8.2 kg. Females are smalller in size, but like all penguins, the sexes are alike. The downy chick is uniformly grey. We should be able to make sightings at: Arctowsky, Fildes Bay and Petermann Island.

Chinstrap penguin

(Pygoscelis Antarctica)

Chinstraps are superficially similar to Adelies, being black and white, but they are slightly smaller and have a distinctive black line connecting the black cap to the part below the chin. The chicks are uniform brownish-grey and paler below. Size: 68 - 76 cm, weight 3.2 - 5.3 kg. In average, the female is smaller in the size of the flipper and bill length. The are highly gregarious and monogamous. It is believed to form long-lasting pair bonds. We should be able to make sightings at: Arctowsky, Half Moon Island, Petermann Island, Hannah Point and Aitcho Island.

Gentoo Penguin

(Pygoscelis papua)

Easily recognised by the wide white stripe extending like a bonnet across the top of its head. Chicks have grey backs with white fronts. Adult Gentoos reach a height of 75 to 90 cm. They are the fastest underwater swimming penguins, reaching speeds of 36 km/h. Two sub-species of this penguin are recognised: Pygoscelis papua papua and the smaller Pygoscelis papua ellsworthii. Males have a maximum weight of about 8 kg just before moulting, and a minimum weight of about 5.5 kg just before mating. For females the maximum weight is 7.5 kg just before moulting, but their weight drops to below 5 kg when guarding the chicks in the nest. We should be able to make sightings at: Arctowsky, Fildes Bay, Half Moon Island, Port Lockroy, Petermann Island, Deception Island, Hanna Point and Aitcho Island.

Macarroni Penguin

(Eudyptes chrysolopus)

This beautiful penguin has characteristic orange tassels meeting between the eyes that distinguishes this species form its relative which is slightly smaller, the rock hopper penguin. The size of the species is 71cm, and weight 3.1 - 6.6kg. Female averages smaller and lighter, and averages smaller in bill lenght and overall mass. Chicks are uniform brownish-grey above and whitish below. We should be able to make sightings at: Hanna Point.

Crabbeater Seal

(Lobodon carcinophagus)

They are comparatively slim and flexible, tipically with an elongated, square-shaped head, protruding dog-like fore face an longer mouth opening and flippers proportionately larger than Weddell Seals. The eyes are dark and small. The coloration is predominantly dark brown dorsally becoming blond ventrally with a marked seasonal and individual variation in coat colour. With age, fur gradually becomes uniformly blond after moult. Many are deeply scared on the back and body-sides due to attacks of Leopard Seals and Kller Whales. Crabeaters actually eat krill, not crabs as their name suggests. They reach about 2.7 mt the females and 3.0 the males, and they can weight up to 180-410 kg. The Carabbeater Seal could be seen at: Port Lockroy, Deception Island, Lemaire and Newmayer Channels and Fildes Bay.

Elephant Seal

(Mirounga leonina)

The Southern Elephant Seal is the worl´s largest seal, it is a heavily built, long body seal with proportionately small flippers and some skin folds just behind the head. The dark eyes are large and round. The adults have short stiff hair, usually dark grey dorsally and paler ventrally. Males have squarer and larger heads, with a conspicuous proboscis, while females have more rounded heads with no proboscis. Breeding males may weigh up to six that of a breeding female. Males reaching 4.5 - 6.5 mt anda3.700 kg; female 2.5 - 4.0 mt and 359 - 800 kg. We should be able to make sightings at: Arctowsky and Hanna Point.

Leopard Seal

(Hydrurga leptonix)

They have long slims bodies with an almost sepentine appearance and comparatively large reptilian heads with a long fore face/snout, powerful jaws, broad gape and relatively small dark eyes. Fore flippers are rather large situated near the center of the body. With dark on the back, almost black or blue - grey on the flanks, and paler ventral coloration; a dark area variably spotted with darker grey. They have very long canine teeth, with long pointed cusps on its molar teeth. Females are larger than males (3.8 mt and 500 kg compared to 2.8 - 3.8 mt and 300 kg). We should be able to make sightings at: Port Lockroy, Lemaire & Newmayer Channels, Hanna Point and Aitcho Island.

Weddell Seal

(Leptonychotes weddelli)

This species was not discovered until 1823 when Captain James Weddell captured six specimens during his voyage to the South Pole. They are amongst the largest and fattest seals, with proportionatly small flippers and heads, and large dark eyes. Both sexes are similar in size and appearance, but females are generally slightly larger, and males have thicker necks and broader heads. They rech 2.5 - 3.0 mts. anda 400 - 600 kg (females 2.6 - 3.3 mt). They have short dense coats of a dark blueish-grey color wich are irregularly streaked. They can become browner and buffier prior to moult. We should be able to make sightings at:Port Lockroy, Half Moon Island, Deception Island, Lemaire and Newmayer Channels.

Humpback Whale

(Megaptera novaengliae)

Humpbacks may be recognized by their enormous flippers, which can reach a third of their total body length. They are normally black but the undersides of flippers and flukes have varying amounts of white and can be used as aids for individual recognition. Size:11-19 mt and 25.4 - 35.5 tonnes, males usually 1.0 - 1.5mt shorter than female. We should be able to make sightings at: Drake Passage, near Hannah Point, between King George Island and Livingston Island, Gerlache Straits, Fildes Bay and Aitcho Island.

Orca Whale

(Orcinus orca)

The Orca is the largest memeber of the dolphin family, and it is probably the most easily recognized of all cetaceans. The most obvious feature is the enormous dorsal fin, which is the tallest and most pointed of any cetaceans. In adult males it may stand 2 meters (6 feet) in height, while in females and immatures males it is more curved and smaller. They have a striking black and white pattern, with throat to abdomen, some of flanks and oval blaze behind the eye white and rest mainly black. The huge conical head is pointed with very slightly rounded beak. Males can reach 7-9 mt length, and weigh 3.8 - 5.5 tinnes, females are noticeably smaller in overal body size reaching 5.0-7.7m length. We should be able to make sightings at: near Petermann Island, Lemaire Channel and Drake Passage.

Black browed albatros

(Thalassarche melanophris)

The Black-browed albatross is one of the smaller black and white ´mollymawks´ with a pale head. This albatross can be identified at a distance by its underwing pattern featuring a wide dark leading edge. At close range, the adult birds have a yelow eye that makes identification easy. Size 80-96 cm, wubg 50-56 cm, wingspan 210-250 cm, weight 2.9-4.6 kg. Males average larger than females in bill, tail and wing measurements, and weight. We can see this albatross between Ushuaia and Puerto Williams, Drake Passage.

Blue eyed shag

(Phalacrocorax bransfieldensis)

There is no clear agreement on how many secies of cormarants inhabit the southern islands and the Antarctic Penpinsula. There could be as many as seven or as few as two, sorrounding Antarctica, depending on what taxonomic levels the different poppulations are differentiated. All are reasonably similar, but the Antarctic Shag is unmistakable in range because no other blu-eyed shag overlaps with it. They are rather large, they have a black and white shag, with a bright blue eyed-ring, with a long wispy black erectile crest. Their size is 77 cm, wing 32-33 cm, weight 2.5 - 3.0 kg. Sexes are similar except that males are significantly larger and behavier. This bird could be seen at: Bransfield Straits, near the bases Arctowsky, Ferraz and Gabriel Gozález Videla, Half Moon Island, Port Lockroy, Petermann Island, Paradise Bay and Hannah Point amongst other.

Polar Skua

(Catharacta sp.)

The Polar Skua is able to fly to the furthest south than any other antarctic bird. It is light brown in color with a yelow neck. Whilst flying, you can see a lighter band that crosses the lower surface of the wings. It has a dark beak which is curved at the end. Feet are dark grey and almost black. We should be able to make sightings at: Drake Passage, Arctowsky, Fildes Bay, Port Lockroy, Petermann Island, Deception Island, Hanna Point, Aitcho Island and Half Moon Island.

Snowy Sheathbill

(Chionis Alba)

Southern Giant Petrel

(Macronectes giganteus)

Giant Petrels are the largest of the petrel family, which goes to make up the order of tubenosed or procellariiform seabirds, along with albatrosses, shearwaters, storm petrels and diving petrels. The crucial feature used to distinguish the northern giant petrel from the closely related southern giant petrel is the color of the bill tip: reddish-brown in the northern, and greenish in the southern. This characteristic is not always easy to spot at sea. Some southerns are all white, except for the odd dark feathers. This color phase does not occur in northerns, helping with specific identification. White phase southerns are more common at southerly breeding sites, and are absent at the northelrly ones. Size: 85-100 cm, wing 46 -57.7 cm, wingspan 150-210 cm, weight 3.8-5 kg. Males are larger in bill, tarsus and wing measurements and weight. We should be able to make sightings at: Drake Passage, Bransfield Straight, Arctowsky, Half Moon Island, Port Lockroy, Deception Island, Hanna Point and Aitcho Island.

Wandering Albatross

(Diomedea exulans)

The Wandering Albatross is the largest bird of the Suthern Ocean. In all stages adult birds appears very white on the body and upperwings, becoming even pure white with age. They have dark vermiculations on the body and upperwings. Juveniles have long wings and a long body; overal blackish chocolatebrown, but contrasting white face from forehead to upper foreneck, and white underwing. Size: 1.1 - 1.35 mt, wing: 62-79cm, wingsoam: 2.5 - 3.5mt, weight: 6.35 - 11.3kg. We should be able to make sightings at: Drake Passage.