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Location: Northern Spitsbergen → Krossfjord → Kongfjord (known as Stefan's Garden in honour of a naturalist who encouraged Lindblad Expeditions to first stop there) Highlight of the Day: Listening to Adam, the National Geographic Naturalist, talk about climate change while the glacier was calving behind him Today I Learned:
Today I walked on the Arctic Svalbard! We disembarked the ship and I walked on Arctic tundra! The Fauna We walked along the coast and could see white speckles on the mountain instantly- not snow, but reindeer! They are white because they still have their winter hair, but there was shreds of white hair all over the ground. They also have shorter legs- adaptive to their environment. As we watched the reindeer, suddenly someone noticed whales- beluga whales! It was difficult to get a photo because they swim directly beneath the surface, and come up so briefly for air. We were told we would never be that close to a beluga whale (in their natural habitat) again, so I put my camera down and enjoyed the moment that we were in. As we were watching the beluga whales, an Arctic fox appeared behind us- we didn't know where to look- at the beluga or the fox. It was amazing to be standing amidst Arctic wildlife. The Flora To view purple saxifrage with the backdrop of a glacier is the most beautiful paradox- it is so unexpected with the cold climate, but due to the fertilization from wildlife and meltwater, it makes the lichen possible. There is no soil on Svalbard, so lichen thrives on bird poop. More birds → more lichen. It is currently thriving due to continuous daylight. Fact: Lichen dehydrates itself in the winter to survive the Arctic cold. Glaciers We walked along the coast to a calving glacier. For those who don't believe climate change is real, I urge you to come stand before a glacier and watch and listen as it falls apart right before your eyes. You don't need to wait years to see it change- just stand there for an hour. Even in the time we were standing there, the ice from the calving had drifted into the ocean and floated by us. The Arctic is such a fragile environment and without producing carbon emissions itself, it is fading away. Along the shore, there were piece of wood, and Adam, the NG Naturalist, asked us where we thought it came from because there are no trees in the Svalbard. The answer: Siberia. The logs get caught in the Arctic geyser and travel from Siberia to the Arctic Svalbard. We really, truly live in ONE world. Our world is more connected than ever- we breathe the same air, we drink the same water and we are polluting the same planet. As Adam said, 100% of the glaciers in the world are receding and in our lifetime, the Arctic will change drastically and may not even exist. I have never watched a glacier calve before my eyes, and I feel forever changed. There was a Captain's Cocktail this evening, and the Captain talked about how accessible the Arctic is today, but also how it is changing faster than ever. Here is a short clip of Adam talking about climate change in the Arctic, as well as a clip of the beluga whales:
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