Fossilized claws belonging to a terror bird have been discovered in Antarctica. The presence of this superpredator could well offer a new scenario for reconstructing Antarctic ecosystems during the Eocene.
Yesterday evening saw the conclusion of a strategy meeting for French action in the poles. Polar issues are emerging on the political agenda in France.
Mammals introduced to islands benefit from the “surprise effect” on an evolutionary scale, causing the disappearance of many seabirds. On Kerguelen, hyperspecialized cats threaten the chicks of great albatrosses.
Last Thursday and Friday, the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation’s Polar Symposium took place in the century-old Oceanographic Museum, between the Palais princier and the Mediterranean, bringing together scientists and experts, advocacy officers and directors of organizations, representatives of indigenous peoples and heads of state.
A contemporary French diplomat, Olivier Poivre d’Arvor projects himself into the year 2048, when the Antarctic Treaty expires, the balance of power shifts towards mining or maintaining the embargo, and it becomes possible to communicate with birds.
The French Navy’s Hydrographic and Oceanographic Service (SHOM) has just returned from Antarctica. After 20 years’ absence from the region, it carried out its second consecutive survey of the seabed in uncharted areas around Dumont d’Urville.
A study published in the Australian Journal of Politics and History dusts off an old Australian concern about the Kerguelen archipelago, a French possession since 1893, when England and France were still rivals.
From the convolutions of frozen rivers to the concentration of plankton and sediment, from the advance of a glacier to the symmetry of ice, satellite images of the polar regions offer a breathtaking spectacle.
A satellite antenna has just been installed at Union Glacier Camp by ALE. The data collected will be used to provide more accurate and reliable weather forecasts for Antarctic expeditions and programs managed by the company.
The Mendel Polar Station was opened after wishes from scientists but has since become important for national interest. Czechia, the newest member of the Antarctic community, has its own reasons for conducting polar research.
The release period after the breeding season can quickly resemble a sea voyage where the penguins have to choose one route over another… a story of compromise.
Four emperor penguin colonies have been discovered thanks to satellite images. These colonies, identified for the first time, each number fewer than 1 000 pairs.
To monitor the melting of the Antarctic and its effects on the balance of the Southern Ocean, a Spanish-Canadian association is installing a measuring point next to the Spanish Juan Carlos I base. It transmits data by satellite from the Antarctic Peninsula.
First announced last spring of the southern hemisphere, highly pathogenic avian influenza HPAI is now affecting five of the 14 species tested in South Georgia. A few suspected cases near the Antarctic Peninsula suggest that the disease is still spreading.
Southern elephant seals don’t fast completely during the drastic moulting period, but they may well go into the water, drink and perhaps even hunt, contrary to what has been established so far.
The Polar Issues Chair led by Anne Choquet and Brest’s maritime higher education courses looked at the profession of polar guide, at the heart of the controversy surrounding tourism in the Arctic and Antarctic.