Antarctica Wildlife Calendar: What You'll See, Month by Month

Adélie, gentoo, and chinstrap penguins return to their colonies. Courtship displays, nest building, and the famous stone-stealing begin. King penguin colonies in South Georgia are active year-round.

Early humpbacks and minkes begin arriving as krill swarms build. Sightings are possible but less frequent than later in the season.

Weddell seals pup on the fast ice. In South Georgia, elephant seal breeding beaches are crowded and fur seals begin returning.

Eggs begin hatching at many colonies. Adults shuttle constantly between nest and sea. South Georgia's king penguin chicks — the fluffy 'oakum boys' — are everywhere.

Humpback and minke sightings increase steadily. Orcas patrol seal and penguin colonies.

Antarctic fur seals crowd South Georgia's beaches. Leopard seals hunt penguins near colony shorelines.

Chicks are everywhere and growing fast. Colonies are noisy, busy, and wonderfully chaotic. Feeding chases on the beach are common.

Whale numbers continue building. Humpbacks feed intensively in the Gerlache Strait and around the Peninsula.

Fur seal pups fill South Georgia's tussac grass. Crabeater seals rest on passing floes.

Chicks gather in crèches, molt their down, and begin testing the water. Colonies start to smell — and feel — like a nursery at full volume.

Peak whale season. Humpbacks are seen on nearly every voyage, often bubble-net feeding in groups. Minkes approach Zodiacs; orcas hunt in the channels.

Leopard seals patrol penguin entry points. Elephant seals molt on island beaches.

Fledged chicks head to sea. Colonies thin out, though gentoos linger longest on the Peninsula.

Still excellent — feeding humpbacks remain a highlight, now against low golden light and early sunsets.

Fur seals spread out along the Peninsula. Weddell seals hauled out on ice are common.