Polish Polar Research

The number of breeding pairs of penguins nesting in the Admiralty Bay region during the 1979/1980 summer was as follows: Pygoscelis papua — 3703, P. adeliae— 32918, P. antarctica — 8237. Due to diverse preferences in selection of the breeding-site environment and varying numerousness and structure of the colonies of these species the conditions of the outflow of faeces to the sea varied considerably. Long period records of the populations of penguin colonies around Pt. Thomas and Llano Pt. show increase in the number of breeding pairs of P. papua and P. antarctica and an increase in the number of P. adeliae at Llano Pt., while at Pt. Thomas the data approximate the records for the summer 1909.

In the 1980/1981 breeding season nesting of 9762 pairs of Pygoscelis papua, 59356 pairs of P. adeliae, 302388 pairs of P. antarctica and 1 pair of Eudyptes chrysolophus was observed in the region of King George Island. The greater part of P. antarctica rookeries was located in the hitherto unexplored cliffy coast in the northern part of the island. A hypothesis was set forth that the recent increase in penguin populations was mainly due to the retreat of glaciers and consequently the exposure of new places suitable for breeding sites.

Analysis was made of ornithogenic soils being formed around rookeries of krill-eating pygoscelid penguins on elevated volcanic island in Maritime Antarctic Zone. The profiles in the bird colony and in its close proximity have been described, explored chemically and characterized mineralogically, especially in the zone of deep metasomatic phosphatization of stony and clayish weathered covers. The semantics of ornithogenic soils was discussed in terms of their genesis and morphology as well as the dependence of phosphatization with species selectivity of breeding sites of the pygoscelid penguins.

Minerals were analysed that had been found in penguin guano and in underlying silicate weathering crust phosphatized by guano leachates. Struvite and hydroxylapatite were found in guano, leucophosphite, minyulite, amorphous aluminum phosphate and taranakite in phosphatized layer, and in some distance from the zone of ornithogenic soils — vivianite. Minerals were identified by the X—ray analysis and results of this identification were confirmed by the microscope studies and the analysis of chemical composition. Results of the thermogravimetric analysis of the selected minerals occurring in monomineral agglomerations (struvite, minyulite, amorphous aluminum phosphate, taranakite) are also presented. Relation between distribution of those minerals in ornithogenic soils and changes in chemical composition of mineral-forming guano leachates during their infiltration through soil, were described.

Results from the hydro-acoustic studies aiming at evaluation of the Euphausia superba biomass in the Bransfield Strait in March 1981 are presented. These investigations, called conventionally Micro-FIBEX, were carried out on the r/v "Profesor Siedlecki" during 13-16 .March 1981, as continuation of the studies carried out in that region within the scheme of the FIBEX programme in the period of 5-12 March 1981. The abundance of the biomass was estimated at 258 thousand ton, which at the investigated area of about 1755 NM2 gives the mean value of biomass density 142 t/NM2 (41.4 g/m2).

The paper presents the results of biomass estimates of commercial fishes in the South Georgia region made by "swept area" method on the basis of catch statistics of a B-22 Polish trawler in the 1980/1981 season. Total biomass was estimated on about 11 x 104 t.

Carotenoids of two species of the Antarctic higher plants from King George Island were analysed. Using thin-layer and column chromatography 16 carotenoids were identified. The total carotenoid content ranged from 4.064 to 17.257 mg/g of dry weight material.

Carotenoprotein compounds containing astaxanthin as a prosthetic group were isolated from the body of the Antarctic krill — Euphausia superba.