Polar Regions
Pole to Pole
In June 2009 I visited the Svalbard Archipelago – often also referred to as Spitsbergen (which is actually the name of the largest island in the group) – a High Arctic wilderness of exceptional beauty. Stretching beyond 80ºN, it is one of the world’s most northerly outcrops of land, with few human settlements, although evidence of past endeavor and exploitation in the form of whaling and mineral mining is evident at numerous historical sites.
The region is rich in wildlife, providing major breeding and hunting grounds for over 3000 Polar Bears, large colonies of Atlantic Walrus, several species of seal and numerous species of Arctic birds.
Barely seven months later I completed my polar experience and travelled south to the Antarctic to photograph the wildlife of the Falklands, South Georgia and the Antarctic Peninsula. Highlights are too many to mention, but would include bewildering numbers of King Penguins at Salisbury Plain and Gold Harbour on South Georgia, the grace of a soaring Wandering Albatross, the sinister grimace of a Leopard Seal ans the magical beauty of scuptures icebergs around the Yalour Islands.
King Penguins (Aptenodytes patagonicus) at breeding colony. Gold Harbour, South Georgia, South Atlantic. (digitally stitched image)
King Penguins (Aptenodytes patagonicus) with Antarctic Tern (Sterna vittata) hovering. On the beach at Salisbury Plain, South Georgia, South Atlantic. (digitally altered image)
King Penguins (Aptenodytes patagonicus) displaying at breeding colony. Gold Harbour, South Georgia, South Atlantic.
Leopard Seal (Hydrurga leptonyx) on ice flows, Yalour Islands, Antarctic Peninsula, Antarctica.
Light-mantled Sooty Albatross (Phoebetria palpebrata) flying over Fortuna Glacier with rainbow, Fortuna Bay, South Georgia. (digitally stitched image)
Magellanic Penguins (Spheniscus magellanicus) on the beach. Carcass Island, Falkland Islands, South Atlantic.
Magellanic Penguins (Spheniscus magellanicus) on the beach. Carcass Island, Falkland Islands, South Atlantic.
Male Common Eider (Somateria mollissima) Off the coast on northern Spitsbergen, Svalbard, Arctic Norway.
Mountain sides and patterns of melting snow along the coast on northern Spitsbergen, Svalbard, Arctic Norway.
Mountains and glacier along the coast of northern Spitsbergen, Svalbard, Arctic Norway.
North Atlantic Walrus (Odobenus rosmarus rosmarus). On the coast of northern Spitsbergen, Svalbard, Arctic Norway.
North Atlantic Walrus (Odobenus rosmarus rosmarus) scratching. On the coast of northern Spitsbergen, Svalbard, Arctic Norway.
