Nov 7, 2009 – Antarctic Fur Seals and King Penguin Chicks On Beach, Gold Harbor, South Georgia Island, South Atlantic – Tony Ernst
Posted In: Antarctic, Atlantic, Beach, Chicks, Fur, Georgia, Gold, Harbor, Island, King, Penguin, Seals, South
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- Can you name the only otariid that breeds south of the Antarctic Convergence?
Wait, what’s an otariid? - One day this baby will trade in its big fur coat for a sleek tuxedo.
More baby penguins, right here - Which explorer crossed this island on foot in 1916 looking for aid for his stranded crew?
He sailed 800 miles in a whaling boat to get there - This desolate island sparked a war between Argentina and the UK in 1982.
Where is it?
Gold Harbour is a small bay 5 miles (8 km) south-southwest of Cape Charlotte, with Bertrab Glacier at its head, along the east end of South Georgia. During the early 1900s, the feature was variously called Anna’s Bay, Gold-Hafen or Sandwich Bay; the latter name has also been used for Iris Bay. The approved name appears to have taken root through common usage by sealers and whalers and is now well established. It is so called because the sun’s rays make the cliffs yellow with their light in the morning and evening.
There is no particular historical or geological reason to give Gold Harbour its mineral name, which was in common use among the early sealers. Perhaps they were inspired by the sunsets (see stamp). The Bertram Glacier at Gold Harbour was named by Filchner’s 1911-1912 German expedition after General von Bertrab, Chief Quartermaster of the German General Staff.
The area is a breeding ground for penguins include kings and gentoos, and elephant seals also breed here, especially at the west end of the beach, where a glacial stream flows. Sooty albatrosses also breed here.
