I suppose I should begin this by saying I'm a bit nutty about penguins as well as things Antarctic. The pic here is of a scientist in the early 1950s who worked on Heard Island with the ANARE (now know as the Australian Antarctic Divison)
Its a Library image (State Library NSW) one of many pics about the far south in the collection. Most of us who see penguins in the wild know that you have to keep 5 metres away from them. Its a wildlife protection thing although the penguin species here is noted for its pluck and aggression. That thrill of the southern wildlife may have been piqued by a nip from that fearsome beak.
I guess we are seeing times change.
The penguin in Sir Ashton Lever's museum (earlier blog) is less of a mystery. A beautiful select catalogue of the collection was published between 1792-1796. In the catalogue is a reference to a 'Patagonian penguin' (now called King Penguin) collected from the Falklands. The Falklands were a resupply point for many ships going south so the penguin may have been picked up by one of any number of ships.
Steve
