Page 52 - 2008 NZ Subantarctic Islands

Now that the rigors of the
hike are behind us so to

speak, it is appropriate to
rhapsodize on the splendors

of the island. The rata forest
is an alien-appearing growth
to be sure. Slender and

twisted, the trunks grow
about 15 feet high in search

of the sun that does not
shine all that often down

here in the SubAntarctic. The
foliage at the top is both thin

in terms of the tiny leaves
and scarce since the leafy
component of the trees is

not fulsome at all. The trees
seem to strain to intertwine

with one another more than they struggle to reach the canopy.
The forest appears impenetrable at first look because of this

tangle of trunks. However, we had to pierce through the maze
because the forest was to be our best hope of seeing the yellow-

eyed penguins up close and with babies in their nests. These birds
are one of the few non-colonial species of penguin in the world.
Instead of huddling close together in huge rookeries, these

penguins are solitary except at breeding season and even then the
pair do not join others of their kind. Instead, they seek shallow

depressions, burrows, or caves to deposit their eggs far removed
the other breeding pairs. Then like other birds both sexes tend the

chicks alternately—while one parent is at sea, the other sits the
eggs and guards the chicks. They are also very different from

other penguins in that they are very quiet—no sitting around
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