EN: The vast majority of Antarctic cruise operators are members of IAATO, the International Association Of Antarctic Tour Operators. All staff working on these expedition cruises have to pass the IAATO online assessment each season to demonstrate that we are familiar with regulations within the Antarctica Treaty as well as IAATO’s guidelines. After pretty much…
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This summer, it was time for a change! Instead of working in the Polar Regions, I went to Australia (i. e. in the southern winter). The Kimberley region on the continent’s Northwest was one of the earliest settled parts but is still among the most remote wilderness areas on the planet. Let me show you…
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EN: Encountering wildlife is always exciting, no matter how big or small. This year, I had the privilege to work in Australia’s Kimberley for the first time. However, the wildlife here can be scarce and shy. That makes the encounters even more exciting and special. Hunter River offers a wonderful mangrove habitat with a large…
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As of now, there are 132 different species of marine mammals in the world. These animals are lumbed together because of their life style but they don’t actually have a lot of things in common. Yes, they all are mammals. That means there are certain characteristics that all of them share with other mammals, marine…
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Butt-breathing is a very little known ability of a small group of animals. It is more formally known as enteral respiration or cloacal respiration. It means that the gas exchange occurs in the posterior cavity of the enteral system. Typically this is not the major way for an animal to breathe. However, for some species…
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In July 2020, I worked on a couple of cruises along the Norwegian coast. One day in Melfjorden, beyond the Arctic Circle, we came across a dead whale. The carcass had started decomposing and was floating at the surface. It looked white as the skin had come off and the body was bleached (I guess…
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This post was inspired by a find at a beach in Spain. You can find so many things when you keep your eyes open – in this case, a Black moray… or, well, at least a part of it (see first two pictures). Moray eels are probably not among the most popular group of animals.…
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What the hell is a Mermaid’s purse? That’s what – back in the days – the egg cases of sharks, rays, and chimaeras (all cartilaginous fish, Chondrichthyes) were called before people figured out what they were. They wash ashore during strong winds and rough seas, where they can be found by curious beachcombers. The egg…
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In this article for Special Tours Iceland, I am focusing on what we have learned about the cultural lives of whales and dolphins. The better we study these animals, the more we realize that they are not that different from us. There are amazing examples of ingenious ideas of how to catch food and other…
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On 31 July 2015, a Humpback whale we had never seen before was sighted on one of the Whale watching tours in Faxaflói, the bay off the coast of Reykjavík. As we carefully approached the animal, our hearts dived: The whale was severely entangled in fishing gear. Some fishing lines were wrapped around its entire…
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