Emperor Penguins

Just before smoko on Monday, word got around that there were a pair of Emperor penguins on the sea ice just near the Met office. A few of us wandered down to have a look. As we got close we could see that they were making their way around the coast so we got into a position in front of them and waited. As soon as they saw us they headed straight over to check us out. They are such an inquisitive animal they can't help themselves (just like us I guess, only without the cameras). The braver of the two was straight over and the other one was a little reluctant but curiosity soon got the better of it. It was really amazing to have these guys come up to us, and at one stage I had one less than a meter in front of me. Paul was a bit funny though - he had put on his big zoom lens and complained that they were too close. We all loved it though. You know when they get bored with you, they simply just turn around and head off.

The one on the right was the bolder of the two

They really do like getting close for a look

This was taken from about 1 meter away