If you headed due west from Macquarie Island and maintained your latitude at 54° south, you would be surrounded by ocean all the way to South Georgia (head due east, and you would have to skirt around Chile’s southernmost archipelago first). These two Sub-Antarctic islands, despite being on nearly opposite sides of the globe, share a number of incredible ecosystems that can be found almost nowhere else on Earth and are home to substantial populations of king penguins, southern elephant seals, and a wide array of other polar species. In Macquarie’s case, this includes the endemic royal penguin, the largest of the crested penguins and one of the most charismatic wildlife stars of the Antarctic region. National Geographic Orion’s landing on Macquarie today coincided with fantastic weather and gave us the opportunity to spend all day photographing, admiring, and, in some cases, sidestepping these amazing and inquisitive island locals as they roamed the beaches with the kings and the seals, stopping often to size up the strangely-colored Homo sapiens that were present. If spending hours amongst penguins on a Sub-Antarctic island is but a dream, there were at least a few of us who were perfectly happy staying asleep.
12/21/2024
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National Geographic Orion
Great Barrier Island, New Zealand
Due North of Auckland, New Zealand lies a secluded archipelago known as the Bay of Islands. National Geographic Orion motored within this paradisical labyrinth to reach Great Barrier Island. A dedicated group of conservationists have been fighting a winning battle against invasive mammals for the last several decades. Today, our National Geographic-Lindblad explorers were the beneficiaries of this inspirational project. Awaiting our arrival on the docks was the highly endangered New Zealand brown teal. As if to thank the conservationists for his survival, the precious feathered wonder posed for photographs in the morning sun. As we meandered through floral gardens, we were serenaded by the New Zealand tui as they hopped from branch to branch in search of juicy nectar. After reaching the island’s summit, we were greeted by a Maori conservationist who explained the importance of the forest to his people. We eased our way through a canopy of ancient tree ferns to the prize of the forest, a giant kauri tree. It stood defiantly among the ferns as a testament to the island’s ecological recovery. A swaying canopy bridge allowed each participant to walk within touching distance of this marvel of the New Zealand forest.
