Simply the nest: an early start for the gentoos of Goudier

28/11/2025

We’ve started the season with some wonderfully positive penguin news. I feel very lucky to have been chosen as the wildlife monitor for the first part of the season, and I’m excited to share this first update on our gentoo colony.

After months of preparation, we finally landed on Goudier Island on 3 November. As we approached in a Zodiac, the first thing I noticed was just how many penguins had beaten us to it!

Alette's first view of Goudier Island (UKAHT/Alette Kattenberg)

From photos of previous years, we’d expected the island to be buried beneath a thick blanket of snow. Instead, we found only about half a metre in most places. That meant far less digging for us to access the buildings, but more importantly for the penguins, it meant some rocky outcrops were already bare. For them, this is the signal to start building nests early.

Alette was surprised to find so many well-developed nests (UKAHT/Alette Kattenberg)

Once we stepped onto dry land, I could see that many nests were already sizable and well-developed. I didn’t spot any eggs yet, but we didn’t have time to linger and watch our penguin neighbours – there was a long list of jobs to tackle as we opened the base. Gentoo penguins are famously adaptable, and when early-season snow is low, they take full advantage. Clearly, that’s what has happened this year.

the first egg of the season (UKAHT/Alette Kattenberg)

On our third day on the island, our shop manager, Tiago, spotted the first egg. As with last year, it was laid on Rainbow Rock – though this time it arrived two weeks earlier. Early laying gives chicks a stronger chance of fledging successfully, as they will have moulted and be ready for the sea before the autumn ice returns. At the time of writing, almost every nest now has eggs, and soon we’ll carry out the annual all-island egg count. Gentoos usually lay two eggs, three or four days apart, but intriguingly, the chicks hatch at the same time. We’re all eagerly waiting for the first signs of fluff.

A gentoo gets down to business (UKAHT/Alette Kattenberg)

Some nests sit high up on the hill, and the penguins painstakingly carry pebbles up to build them. The loose structure of the nests helps drain meltwater and lifts eggs and chicks off the damp ground. The most dedicated gentoos haul their pebbles all the way from the beach, but many take the easier option of pinching stones from a neighbour’s nest. The annual pebble wars are now fully underway, accompanied by plenty of squabbling.

Pebble wars (UKAHT/Alette Kattenberg)

Both males and females share incubation duties. When off duty, a penguin heads to the sea to fish, wash and preen. Changeovers are usually marked by a burst of trumpeting – the daily Port Lockroy soundtrack. This week, we witnessed a particularly clumsy exchange: an egg was accidentally kicked out of the nest and rolled down a slope. One penguin tried to stop it with its claw, but couldn’t hold on, and the parents didn’t try to retrieve it. After a while, a gentoo with an empty nest gently rolled the egg into its own. We’ll be monitoring this adopted egg carefully and hope it hatches into a healthy chick.

Amanda helps Alette during a count (UKAHT/Alette Kattenberg)

And finally, some delightful visitor news: this week, both an Adélie penguin and a chinstrap penguin paid visits to Rainbow Rock, adding even more diversity to our little corner of the island.

A visiting chinstrap (UKAHT/Alette Kattenberg)

Plus a visiting Adélie (UKAHT/Alette Kattenberg)