We managed to squeak out one last deployment on a crabeater seal on the way back to Palmer Station. That means all of our CTD tags are deployed! In other words, we're all tagged out!

We rolled the dice a little bit today and it paid off.

Well, we got a little taste of Antarctic weather in late May yesterday.

Today we were successful in deploying our first tag, above. And, below, that's the seal heading into the water after it's tagged.

That’s Marine Mammals Exploring the Oceans Pole to Pole. Dan Costa, one of TOPP’s principal investigators, and Mike Fedak, a researcher from the University of St.

Today we deployed one tag and attempted to capture two other seals.

After some frustrating attempts to get tags out today, we managed to get a tag on a female seal at the end of the day. She was sleeping on an ice floe with three other seals.

We moved out of Lellamand Fjord yesterday and woke up ready to move towards Marguerite Bay. However, before we could get very far, we came across a flow with two seals on it.

We awoke this morning to another fabulous day. It is hard to imagine a place more beautiful than Lallemand Fjord, where we spent the last few days.

We had high hopes of catching at least one more seal today.

After a final day working to catch a seal we headed north back to Palmer Station. The weather continues to be amazing with the barometer over 1000 mmHg (sunny, high pressure).

After a day of cargo ops and preparations, the LM Gould left this morning with the ice fish group for a trip to obtain more fish for continued research at Pa

Around Palmer Station, we use a small boat to search the area for crabeater seals. Along the way we stumble upon a variety of interesting wildlife.

Today some of us stayed and worked in the lab, analyzing samples, or working with track data, while others went to look for crabeater seals.

Today was probably our last survey for crabeater seals. We didn't see any, but we did find a group of Antarctic terns resting on the ice.

Yesterday we saw the return of the L.M. Gould as she returned from the ice-fishing expedition to obtain samples for research here at Palmer Station.

We moved about the L.M. Gould last night as we made final preparations to sail.

Today we found out how lucky we were to have made the crossing of the Drake when we did. Apparently a low pressure cell has moved in behind us and the Drake is now a washing machine.

Aboard the RV L.M. Gould in the (dreaded) Drake Passage. We are in the midst of a crew switch for the remainder of the crabeater seal tag deployments.

The seal crew arrived yesterday at Palmer Station and met up with Gitte McDonald. We spent the day reviewing procedures, working on equipment and getting oriented to the station.

The bad weather has hampered the fishing crew on the Gould and cost us the extra half day of seal-catching that they were trying to give us.

We left Palmer Station (above) yesterday evening and arrived at Crystal Sound this morning where the previous seal team tagged its first seal.

Dan Costa, at King George Island, near Antarctica -- This is the first in a series of short dispatches from an expedition to do a fur seal survey, starting around Livingston

Dan Costa, aboard the Yuzomegeologia, near Livingston Island - Well, our luck finally ran out. After a wonderful corssing of the Drake Passage from Chile to the Shetland Islands, and a very easy day of offloading supplies at Copa Field Station, we had hoped for the best as we made our passage to Cape Shirreff. The weather was promising as we were able to make it through Nelson pass and save a lot of time getting to the Cape. However, just as we were arriving, the weather picked up. Fifty-knot winds gusted to 70-80 knots.

Dan Costa, aboard the Yuzomegeologia, off Livingston Island - For the last two days, we've been busy counting fur seal pups to get an idea of how their population is doing. We count the pups, because the moms often go to sea to feed. If we counted females on the beach, we'd only count 20-30% of the number of females in the rookery here. The time they spend at sea varies from season to season, so you can't correct for the number present. So, we just count the number of pups.

Dan Costa, aboard the Yuzomegeologia, Drake Passage, Antarctica -- We recently returned to the ship after spending the last few weeks on Cape Shirreff. Given the limited e-mail capacity of the Cape Shirreff field station, I was not able to send e-mail updates or images.

Dan Costa, aboard the Yuzomegeologia, Drake Passage, Antarctica -- To give you a feel for where we've been working these last few weeks, the first image shows what it's like on a clear sunny day at Cape Shirreff, a remote outpost in the Shetland Islands, about 72 miles from the Antarctic mainland. the That's the overall study sight for the fur seal work we're been doing, as well as where we tagged elephant seals and leopard seals. The second is within the area shown in the first image.

Dan Costa, aboard the Yuzomegeologia, returning from Antarctica -- We weren't sure it would work....but we did it! We tagged four leopard seals!

When I first went to Cape Shirreff, a remote outpost in the Shetland Islands, in the late 1990's, you could count on seeing the occasional leopard seal. If you were lucky, you might see a leopard seal take a pup or a penguin.

Daniel Costa at UC Santa Cruz Long Marine Lab -- To wrap up our Antarctic adventure, here are a few last photos from our field work down south. These images were taken on the last few days at Cape Shirreff. By the way, according to Wikipedia, Cape Shirreff (62°27S, 60°47W) is " a prominent cape at the north end of the rocky cove which separates Hero and Barclay bays on the north coast of Livingston Island, in the South Shetland Islands. Named by Edward Bransfield in 1820 for Captain William H.

Nicole Teutschel at UC Santa Cruz, Long Marine Lab--Today Luis Huckstadt boarded the massive icebreaker US-chartered Russian ship R/V Yuzhmorgeologiya to start his 3-4 day journey across the Drake Passage into wild Antarctica. Luis, a PhD student in Dan Costa’s Lab, is embarking on a major expedition to the frigid, unforgiving Antarctic waterways: home to some of the most diverse ecosystems on Earth.

Nicole Teutschel at UC Santa Cruz, Long Marine Lab--Accountants have tax season, teachers... back to school, malls have the holidays: TOPP biologists are busy now...when many species are ready for tags, all at once! TOPP biologists are busy deploying satellite tags on five species....and that's just today!

Patrick Robinson at Port Stanley, Falkland Islands--The crew and scientists have all arrived in Port Stanley, Falkland Islands to board the RRS Shackleton and start a 2-month research cruise down to the Antarctic.  If all goes well, we will be deploying 10 tags on Weddell seals in the Weddell Sea to study their movements, diving behavior, and the oceanographic environment. 

So far, we have been preparing our gear, stocking up on last-minute supplies, and strapping everything down for the rough journey ahead.

Luis Huckstadt at Cape Shirreff, Antarctica-- I'm finally here at The Cape! It's a stormy Antarctic day, so I thought that I'd take this opportunity to write you a report of my expedition so far!

Patrick Robinson in the Drake Passage, Southern Ocean -- After a spectacular sunset, we set sail yesterday and are currently halfway to Signey Island, a British research base. The seas are very calm (a mere 6 - 8 ft swell), but several folks on board are tucked away in their bunks due to motion sickness. The rest of us have been using this transit time to prepare instruments and help the crew cook and clean. Yesterday I peeled ~80 pounds of potatoes!

 Here are a few photos from the past couple of days:

Sunset over Port Stanley, Falkland Islands

Luis Huckstadt at Cape Shirreff, Antarctica--Days at the camp are pretty busy, and it's really interesting. We start our work day early, heading out for Antarctic fur seal tag resights, or searching for flipper tags. These are little tags, on squirmy seals, so it usually takes most of our morning. Besides resighting tags, we count individuals which can be complicated in cold places like the Antarctica!  On chilly days, seals tuck their flippers under their bodies to conserve body heat, making our mission of reading their flipper tags quite the challenge!

Patrick Robinson at Signy Island, South Orkneys -- We made it through the drake passage with very calm seas and have arrived at our first stop, a British research base on Signy Island (part of a small group of islands called the South Orkneys).  We are dropping off a few biologists and will return for them after the oceanographic and seal-tagging work in a few weeks.  

Patrick Robinson from somewhere near the South Orkney Islands -- Today, chief scientist Keith Nicholls and his team from the British Antarctic Survey recovered a pair of oceanographic moorings that were deployed two years ago.  First, we traveled to the exact location the mooring was deployed.  The mooring line and instruments sit well below the surface and stretch all the way to the bottom, some 3,000 meters below.  

Patrick Robinson from somewhere near the South Orkney Islands -- Today, chief scientist Keith Nicholls and his team from the British Antarctic Survey recovered a pair of oceanographic moorings that were deployed two years ago.  First, we traveled to the exact location the mooring was deployed.  The mooring line and instruments sit well below the surface and stretch all the way to the bottom, some 3,000 meters below.  

Patrick Robinson on the eastern Weddell Sea--The science that goes on during a research cruise is always exciting, but what is it like living aboard a research vessel for weeks at a time?

Patrick Robinson on the eastern Weddell Sea--The science that goes on during a research cruise is always exciting, but what is it like living aboard a research vessel for weeks at a time?

Luis Huckstadt at Cape Shirreff, Antarctica-- It's been very busy at the Cape these last couple of weeks. The daily routine hasn't changed that much from the previous report, but the workload has not decreased a bit! We continue with our daily flipper tag resights of Antarctic fur seals along the coast of the Cape. We're trying to make sure that we count them accurately, as well as trying to figure out if the moms still have their pups. Fur seals seem to be really good moms, and keep track of their pups really well.

Luis Huckstadt at Cape Shirreff, Antarctica-- It's been very busy at the Cape these last couple of weeks. The daily routine hasn't changed that much from the previous report, but the workload has not decreased a bit! We continue with our daily flipper tag resights of Antarctic fur seals along the coast of the Cape. We're trying to make sure that we count them accurately, as well as trying to figure out if the moms still have their pups. Fur seals seem to be really good moms, and keep track of their pups really well.

Luis Huckstadt at Punta Arenas, Chile--We are finally back to civilization after a successful field season at Cape Shirreff, Antarctica. I'm happy to report that we accomplished our goal of deploying 15 satellite tags on southern elephant seals (see Cool Cousins). This work could not have been done without the great crew that helped us at the Cape Shirreff camp.

Patrick Robinson at the Eastern Weddell Sea, Antarctica-- The main purpose of this RRS Shackleton expedition is to study the oceanography of the Weddell Sea.  To do this, researchers from the British Antarctic Survey deploy instruments on mooring lines (see previous blog posting), but also complete point samples by lowering instruments deep into the ocean from the ship.  The CTD (conductivity, temperature, depth) recorder as well as current profilers are the basic tools of oceanographers and provide information about a profile of the water column.

Patrick Robinson at the Eastern Weddell Sea, Antarctica-- The main purpose of this RRS Shackleton expedition is to study the oceanography of the Weddell Sea.  To do this, researchers from the British Antarctic Survey deploy instruments on mooring lines (see previous blog posting), but also complete point samples by lowering instruments deep into the ocean from the ship.  The CTD (conductivity, temperature, depth) recorder as well as current profilers are the basic tools of oceanographers and provide information about a profile of the water column.

Patrick Robinson in the Eastern Weddell Sea, Antarctica--After two weeks of transit and oceanography work, we are now ready to begin searching for Weddell seals.  We are in the southeastern Weddell sea in an area where chief scientist Keith Nicholls spotted animals on previous expeditions.  Weddell seals prefer areas of dense sea ice over the continental shelf in waters between 400-700 meters depth. The seals spend most of their time in the water diving and foraging, but we are looking for animals that have hauled out on the sea ice to rest. 

Patrick Robinson at the Eastern Weddell Sea, Antarctica-- The Weddell seal tagging is off to a great start.  We have been quite busy over the past 2 days and have already deployed 6 of the 10 tags!   This is how we do it: After we have located a seal from the bridge of the ship, we assemble a team of people to go out onto the ice.  We don our cold-weather gear and bring our tagging supplies to the main deck of the ship.  To get to the ice, we have to be lowered by a crane (I will admit, this part is actually quite fun!). 

Patrick Robinson at the Eastern Weddell Sea, Antarctica--We tagged three additional Weddell seals yesterday to bring our total up to nine and the seals are already sending us interesting data.  The seals have already collected more than four times the number of CTD profiles collected by the ship!  Here is a sample of the various data sent back to us from the tags:

Patrick Robinson at the Eastern Weddell Sea, Antarctica--Yesterday, we were in search of our 10th and final seal and found an ice floe with several seals.  We prepared our gear and went out onto the ice to get a closer look.  Unfortunately, the seals were a bit too young for our study (we are tagging adult animals).  So, we hiked back to the ship and continued our search.  We continued scanning through binoculars from the bridge for the remainder of the day, but saw only crabeater seals.

Patrick Robinson at Signy Island--After completing most of the science work for the expedition, the ship stopped at Halley Station (a British research base on the Brunt ice shelf) to pick up about 25 people and drop off supplies for the folks who will remain there during the winter.  This station is unique because it is built on a thick ice shelf rather than land.  The buildings must be raised on stilts to prevent the inevitable accumulation of snow from burying them over the course of several years.

Kimberly Goetz at McMurdo Station, Antarctica--Two groups of researchers led by Dan Costa (at UC Santa Cruz) and Jennifer Burns (at the University of Alaska) are traveling down to Antarctica to study Weddell seals in one of the most uninhabited places on Earth.  Very little is known about Weddell seals and their ocean environment because it is very difficult and expensive to conduct studies in this harsh environment.  We will use advanced tagging technology to study both the winter behavior and the environment of the Weddell seal over

Kimberly Goetz at McMurdo Station, Antarctica--This project required months of preparation.  In fact, preparations began more than 6 months before traveling south!  Seal tags were calibrated, prepped, programmed and tested; field gear was gathered, packed, and shipped; permit applications were submitted; logistics were arranged; medical clearances were obtained.  The list seems to go on and on with many long nights spent at the lab. 

Kimberly Goetz at McMurdo Station, Antarctica--On January 16th, Dr. Jennifer Burns and I donned our gear and headed to helo operations.  The goal of the mission was to fly within Erebus Bay and along the Victoria Land coastline of McMurco Sound in search of Weddell seals to tag during the next few weeks.  We not only needed to locate sizable groups of seals, but we needed to locate them on ice that was strong enough to support a helo loaded with 6 people and all our gear.

Despite a slow start to the field season, we kept ourselves occupied with various outdoor survival trainings and gear prepping in the lab.  While we were hoping to deploy tags soon after our arrival in Antarctica, this delay was a welcomed event while we patiently waited for the Weddell seals to complete their annual molt.  However, as more time passed, we realized that we would have a lot of work ahead of us in order to deploy all 22 tags in the time remaining.

Luis Huckstadt, Patrick Robinson, Kim Goetz, Jen Maresh in McMurdo Station, Antarctica-

Daniel Costa, Jennifer Burns, Mary Zavanelli, Michelle Shero and Luis Huckstadt, from McMurdo Station, Antarctica -