The last one on our Antarctic Big Five has to be one of the large whales. In this case, I didn’t go for the largest ones, Blue and Fin Whales, but for the more common one, the Humpback Whale. Especially later in the season (February, March), Humpbacks are very abundant in the Gerlache Strait area. Visits to Orne Harbour, Cuverville or Wilhelmina Bay usually result in a large number of these 15m long whales.

Maybe not the biggest, but definitely the most playful one. Fluking regularly, waving with their 5m long pectoral fins and sometimes even jumping out of the water. They are here in summer to feed, and towards the end of the season they are so full, they get lazy. They sleep a lot and are easy to find and to play around with.