ADELIE PENGUINS 



colony near our hut which was threatened with total 

 extinction from the accumulation of thaw water. 

 As this trickled down from the higher ground 

 around them, the occupants of the flooded ground 

 exerted all their energies to avert this calamity, and 

 from each nest one of its tenants could be seen 

 making journey after journey for pebbles, which it 

 brought to the one sitting on the nest, who placed 

 stone after stone in position, so that as the water 

 rose the little castle grew higher and higher and 

 kept the eggs dry. One nest in particular I noticed 

 which was as yet a foot or so clear of the water and 

 on dry ground ; but whilst the hen sat on this, 

 the cock was working most energetically in anticipa- 

 tion of what was going to happen, and for hours 

 journeyed to and from the nest, each time wading 

 across the little lake to the other side, where he was 

 getting the stones. 



This scene, which I photographed, is depicted 

 on Fig. 33. In the right-hand corner of the 

 picture the cock is seen in the act of delivering 

 another stone to the hen who is waiting to receive 

 it, whilst some of the nests are actually surrounded 

 by water. Fig. 34 shows another nest, rising like 

 a little island from a thaw pool, the eggs being 

 only just above water. 

 66 



