- Address: Preserve Seno Otway, Punta Arenas, Chile;
- Number of penguins: more than 10.000 individuals.
Punta Arenas is the most southern city of the Earth, from the capital of Chile it is separated by 3,090 kilometers, it can also be called the capital of Patagonia . The city serves as a starting point for many tourist routes.
Near the city of Punta Arenas in the south of Chile, on the coast of the inner sea between the island of Riesco and the peninsula of Brunswick, is the Seno Otway reserve. It is famous for the fact that from October to March here for the nesting and withdrawal of nestlings Magellan penguins gather.
Interesting information
The penguin colony in Seno Otway is one of two large penguin colonies in the Punta Arenas area. Their number exceeds 10 000 individuals. They sail here specially from Argentina and the central part of Chile to nest and breed. They are attracted by the non-hot southern summer. The colony occupies a rather large space. Part of it is open to tourists. You can come to watch the life of these birds and even talk with them. Penguins are not afraid of people. Also tourists can observe how they live in burrows, how they stamp on the paths, how to feed the cubs. The ticket costs 12,000 Chilean pesos, which is approximately 17 euros.
It is very interesting to watch the penguins, for how they communicate with children. Parents share their responsibilities for upbringing. Every day from 10 am to 5 pm they take turns watch, replacing each other. One sits with the children, the other catches fish. Travelers look with pleasure at how penguins waddle close to the seashore and trample on the spot, not daring to enter the water. They wait who will be first, sometimes up to half an hour. But it is worth one to jump into the water, as the others follow him. Penguins on both the ground and in the water keep a flock. Males come to the colony before females and create nests. The female lays an egg, but it incubates and breeds the male in the folds under the belly. If you look closely, the slightly grown cubs are already in the manger. Several neighboring nests are combined to look after the children, replacing each other.
There are several kinds of penguins: Imperial, Royal, Papuan, Arctic, Magellanic and others. In the reserve of the Seine Otva nests the Magellanic view. In appearance, they are distinguished by two dark bands crossing the white breast.
How to come to the reserve?
In the reserve tourists come from Punta Arenas as part of excursions or on jeeps rented. In Punta Arenas you can get by plane from Santiago or on a cruise liner. It should be noted that the best months to visit are December, January and February.