Adélie, the mascot of the Vendée Globe since this 10th edition, is a species of penguin living in Antarctica. Recently, a lost and disorientated Adélie penguin was found on the coast of New Zealand, a long way from its natural habitat. This is not an isolated case: Antarctic birds are sometimes seen far from their usual territories, raising concerns about the impact of climate change and environmental transformations on these vulnerable species.
Find out more about polar birds observed outside their usual territories
Let's find out a little more about the mascot Adélie - who is, of course, unthinkable to see in Vendée - by breaking down 7 preconceived ideas about this little penguin with the pinkish tinge on the edge of its beak, white and black.
The maritime piedmont of Erebus, an active volcano in Antarctica, is home to Adélie penguins. Fifteen per cent of the world's penguin population breeds there. A colony there welcomes 300,000 pairs every year. The volcano's coastline is well situated, close to the gyres of the Ross Sea. Let's imagine, even if it's difficult to verify, that the smoke from the erupting volcano is a visual landmark for these migratory birds.
New penguin colonies are regularly discovered all around the white continent. In 2022, a ship chartered for research discovered an unrecorded colony of birds in the south-east of the Antarctic Peninsula. In this case, it is difficult to know whether it is an old colony or new occupants who have decided to move. This does not make counting any easier. In 2016, abnormal melting revealed a colony that had been extinct for more than 800 years. Another type of discovery, a sort of Pompeii of the Adelies buried by the Little Ice Age.
Coastal scientific stations on the White Continent were often built close to penguin colonies in order to study them. The question of disturbance only arose later. At Dumont-d'Urville, for example, cohabitation rules were put in place to limit disturbance and researchers tested the effect of their presence. The young chicks experience stress, but not the adults. Tourist visits to breeding sites are supervised by guides, criticised by environmentalists and studied by a few scientists.
To come back to the previous question, the construction of Dumont-d'Urville would have produced small stones that are appreciated by Adélie penguins when they build their nests. These numerous small stones near the station's foundations could help the penguins to build a cup in which they lay their eggs. Males and females look after their nests, and this complicity is not called into question when it comes to stealing stones from their neighbours.
Walking on the pack ice allows them to reach open water, when it is neither too rough nor too vast, in which case the penguins would tire to get back to the ocean from the coast. Secondly, the ideal ice concentration for penguins is 80%, so they can dive, swim, jump and rest on the drifting ice that carries them northwards in winter and southwards in summer. They can travel 12,000 kilometres a year in the Ross Sea. In the Weddell Sea, sea ice conditions are still stable despite climate change, and scientists consider it to be a refuge area.
A particularly gluttonous Adélie was examined and found with 4,200 krill in its stomach, equivalent to more than 4 kilos. Around the Orkney archipelago, 9,000 tonnes of krill are said to be collected each season to feed young chicks. The species ranks 4th in the list of krill-eating birds in Antarctica. This penguin also hunts fish, which it pursues, doubles up on and intercepts with its beak.
If we take a closer look, apart from the colonies that are stable, some are in decline due to climate change, or fishing. For example, near the Australian Mawson station, the decline has been estimated at 43% in 2022. But other populations have been increasing for several decades. In the Windmill archipelago, count results have increased sixfold in 60 years. But progress is slowing, held back by recovering whale populations that also eat krill. Adelie colonies are therefore stable overall around Antarctica, but this may not be the case in the future.
Find out more about :
Nine months adrift in the Ross Sea : https://polarjournal.net/nine-months-adrift-in-the-ross-sea/
Do Adélie penguins pass the mirror test? https://polarjournal.net/do-adelie-penguins-pass-the-mirror-test/
Insight into the life of Adélie penguins : https://polarjournal.net/insight-into-the-life-of-adelie-penguins/
