You can hear them before you see it. And smell them.
During this time of year – the South Atlantic summer – the penguins of the Falkland Islands are together in cruises on these isolated beaches to raise their fluffy chicks.
And we are surrounded by them.
The beach at Volunteer Point at the northeastern point of the Falklands is home to its largest colony King Penguins.
Up to a meter long they stand in a defensive shelter around their chicks.
King Penguins
But there are others, also digging magellanic penguins and red, yellow-footed gentoo.
Over the 740 islands that make up the Falkland, there are five different species and about a million of them in total.
To prevent disturbance and the spread of bird flu, visitors are asked to keep six meters from the birds.
But the rule does not apply.
Turn your back for a minute or two and a curious or territorial penguin will blow upright, giving you a side eye like a three-foot-yob in a colorful bill.
The penguins are only a few of the most visible and accessible marine life on these islands.
Magellanic Penguin Chick
There are stamps, fur stamps, even some of the world’s largest, the elephant seal.
Seabirds such as albatross, petrels and only recently large number of whales are back. They have rarely been seen here since their wholesale in the 19th and 20th centuries.
An abundance of life that is in stark contrast to the windswept peat and rough grassland of the Falklands.
And a revelation for many visitors who arrive and think that the islands are remarkable for the distance and a cruel conflict more than four decades ago.
But it is not easy to see the best of the island of the island.
To get to Volunteer Point, it’s three hours drive from the capital Port Stanley, two hours of which are out of the road.
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At one point, even our well -equipped 4×4 and experienced driver were no match for the bad terrain that swallowed our vehicle’s wheels to the axes.
As everywhere, the wildlife of the Falklands is vulnerable to Climate change. But here it is more vulnerable than most.
Penguins in the water
The Falklands are from the first ice -free country between Antarctica and the rest of the world, and many species here are on the northern border of their range, which is expected to move further south as the planet gets hot.
The number of Rockhopper penguins is already taking off on the islands, and this is due to their most important food source, shrimp-like Krill, which moves further south to cooler waters.
Giant petrel
The Falklands receive less rainfall, which resulted in the turf soils drying out.
This, together with centuries of overgrazing by sheep, causes the soil to be blown away by strong south atlantic winds.
“On some of the country we are working on, we see about nine football points blowing away from the ground every year,” says Esther Bertram, CEO of Falklands Conservation.
The drying climate also led to wildfires. Recent fires have burned important wildlife habitats. “We had albatrosses on their nests that are literally burning alive,” says Ms Bertram.
Conservation groups and researchers on the islands have worked to study the changing ecosystem and restore important habitats, including the re -planting of indigenous tussock grass to maintain the soil that is decisive for penguins and petrels. But even that work is in danger.
Conservation and research here is almost entirely dependent on the British government grant financing through a scheme for British overseas areas called Darwin Plus.
However, the future of the scheme is in question, as budgets for overseas development and conservation are threatened.
Defra, who administers the scheme, could not confirm whether the Darwin Plus scheme would continue beyond 2025.
With 8,000 miles ocean between the Falklands and the financial dilemmas of Westminster, the value of their unique wildlife is easily overlooked.
