Arctic fox seem to make their living by following bears around and scavenging. We have seen foxes trailing behind bears as they travel, and their tracks often wind around bear prints. (My apologies that the pictures below are graphic. However, the carcass below illustrates a critical aspect of the life of predators).

These bones – the vertebral column and attached ribs – are all that remained of a large seal that was most likely killed by a polar bear. The area was covered with fox tracks, and the carcass had been thoroughly scavenged.

Even a flipper had been used for food – the bones of this flipper were intact, showing the similarity to the shape of my hand.

Such an existence seems precarious; polar bears range over great distances, and their successful hunts are few and far between. What if the fox doesn’t find a carcass? It turns out that foxes themselves can be successful predators of young seals. In the early 1970s, a researcher named Thomas Smith trained his Labrador dog to sniff out seal lairs (lairs are in hollow spaces on top of sea ice but below a blanket of snow; seals use these protected spaces to rest and give birth). He spent several winters digging up hundreds of lairs and found evidence that Arctic foxes were able to enter the lairs and predate on young seals. He wrote:

“A keenly developed olfactory sense allows the arctic fox to locate the subnivean seal lair, sometimes through snow depths of over 150 cm…Lairs that had been entered by foxes showed one or more entry holes. Usually the holes penetrated the lair at a slight angle and were never more than 20 cm in diameter…In the case of an apparently successful kill, blood was always present on the floor of the birth lair once the lair had been dug open…When the lair was well developed into a tunneled structure there was usually more blood and the site of the actual kill usually appeared to be in one of the small tunnels”

In fact, Smith concluded that in certain parts of the Arctic, foxes may be more important predators of young seals than bears. However, foxes were never found to kill adult seals, which must be simply too large for a fox to attack. Foxes were also more thorough than bears. They seemed to remain at the site for several days and consume the entire carcass.

So perhaps foxes don’t live as close to the edge as I originally thought, although no animal in the Arctic seems to have it easy. In a very different way, our field season is currently on the edge – due to good weather early on, we flew for more hours than were budgeted, leaving one of our two helicopters in a crunch for funding. We have scrambled to line up addition funding, to support the helicopter for more time; otherwise, we could be forced to end the season in just a couple days. We have had some tremendous luck in locating and re-sampling bears from previous field seasons, giving us great data on how bears fare over time – I really hope we are able to continue flying.

On what has become a rare, sunny day, this is my view through the bubble windshield of the helicopter, wrapping below my feet, as we fly north over the sea ice.

Thomas Smith’s article:
Thomas G Smith. 1976. Predation of ringed seal pups (Phoca hispida) by the arctic fox (Alopex lagopus). Canadian Journal of Zoology, Volume 54, pages 1610-1616.

In this next video, also a time lapse of one image per minute, we set up our personal tents, where we each would sleep.

Part of the safety protocol is to have the field party pitch one tent before the plane can leave. This is in case something happens, weather or injury, there can be a haven out of the elements. In certain scenarios, it might just be the difference between life in death.

As you’ll see, we pitched our tent much too close to the plane and we were bowled over by the force of the propellers. Moments later the plane disappeared into a cloud of snow. Silence and we were alone.

Below is a table of all the dried food we brought with us. We had an additional frozen food, butter, bacon, sausage, etc, which is not included in the table. But this offers insights into our daily lives in the field.

Our pantry set up in the field in our main tent.

Here’s a menu for most of our meals. We were in the field until February 2. I forgot to record the menu for the last few days, but it continued in a similar trend.

Friday Jan 8

Lunch: Cabin bread and tuna
Dinner: Assorted freeze dried meals

Jan 9
Breakfast: Oatmeal with dried fruit
Dinner:Chili relleno w/ mozzarella quesadilla, corn and refried beans

Jan 10
Breakfast: Oatmeal with frozen Maine wild Blueberries
Lunch: corn and refried bean burritos with cheddar cheese
Dinner: coconut milk, vegetable, corn and tofu stir-fry with Thai peanut chicken

Jan 11
Breakfast sandwich English muffin with Canadian bacon and provolone cheese
Pea soup, dried carrots and bagels
Quinoa, three bean salad and curried tofu

Jan 12
Oatmeal with frozen strawberries
Bagel sandwiches with sun-dried tomatoes hummus and fried ham
Potatoes, boiled vegetables and chicken with mustard sauce

Jan 13
Onion and potato hash-browns with bacon and sautéed onion on English muffin
Lunch in the Field
Rotini with sun-dried tomato, mozzarella, spinach and chorizo tomato sauce

Jan 14
7 grain hot meal with dried cranberries
Bacon and English muffins
Pepperoni pizza, pepperoni and mushroom pizza and pepperoni and olive pizza

Jan 15
Oatmeal with frozen blackberries
Lunch in field
Spring rolls, oyster mushroom, carrot and green pepper quinoa with peppered chicken and asparagus

Jan 16
Oatmeal with dried cranberries
Roast beef on bagels
Chirozo, ground beef green chili and refried beans with mozzarella burritos

Jan 17
Bacon on toast
Lunch in field
Falafel, three bean salad, macaroni with pesto, TVP and mushroom sauce

Jan 18
Hot 7 grain meal with frozen strawberries
soups
Enchilada, beef and bean burrito sweet Italian sausage in vegetarian chili

Jan 19
Bacon on English muffin and/or bagel w/ cream cheese
Lunch in Field
Tortellini (cheese and tofu) in coconut thai sauce w/ green beans

Jan 20
Oatmeal with frozen strawberries
Polish (El Slawek’s) Potatoes, hash brown and Canadian bacon (late lunch)
Apple and blueberry cobbler (freeze dried)

Jan 21
Oatmeal
Lunch in the field
Angel hair w/ tomato sauce and sweet Italian sausage

Jan 22
Couscous w/ raisons and walnuts
Bacon and English muffin and/or bagels
Beef and bean burritos with fajita vegetables

Jan 23
Oatmeal w/ almonds, peaches and apricots
Bagels with cream cheese
Asian rice(coconut and curry sauce) with chicken and cauliflower, broccoli carrot mixed
vegetables

Jan 24
Oatmeal w/ fruit (apples and raspberries)
Bagels cream cheese
Roast Beef, hash browns (black olives and jalapeno), corn, peas and carrots

Jan 25
Oatmeal with mixed dried fruits
English muffins and bagels
Pork tenderloin, asparagus and carrots and quinoa

Jan 26
Hash browns with cheese
English muffins and bagels
Pizza (beef pizza, tuna pizza, Hawaiian pizza)

Jan 27
Hot dogs on English muffins
Hot dogs and pepperoni on English muffins
Burritos (pre-made frozen), chili relleno

Jan 28
Oatmeal with caned peaches and canned strawberries
English muffins with cream cheese, jelly and/or pepperoni

Check out the video below to see how we collect ice from the iceberg for our camp’s drinking water. (Music: “Ethereal Void,” courtesy of Project Divinity.)

Mt. Erebus and its volcanic plume blowing to the right.

Above Mt. Erebus was the sun with incredible sun dogs and a halo around it. This spectacle is caused by ice crystals in the atmosphere, and the north and south poles may be the best places in the world to see this effect.

Our instructor, Nick, said that we were in an excellent area for cutting up snow blocks for building structures (you use a saw). Some of my fellow campers tried to build an igloo (a major technological challenge, and they almost succeeded, but they gave up around 1:00 AM).

My fellow campers and their igloo.

Some built a duplex, and I built an ice cave but ended up sleeping in a Scott tent.

An ice duplex.

My ice cave.

Scott tents are famous for their durability in storms.

The next day we were debriefed on how the night went (the low was a balmy 24F, so we were all pretty comfortable during the night), and we then completed the course (the survival training course is good for five years of traveling in remote parts of Antarctica). Overall the course was a lot of fun, and very interesting!

We spent the first week or so in the deep field visiting GPS stations that were left out on the ice over-winter and setting out passive seismometers. Whillans Ice Stream behaves in a unique way – it slips twice a day in episodes that are linked to the tidal cycle. The passive seismometers record this slip, because it is a rupture similar to an earthquake, but much slower.

Here I’ve dug a hole and then placed a passive seismometer in the hole. I am roped in due to crevasses in the area.

To get to all of our sites, we used Ski-doos with sledges attached to the rear with all our science and safety gear attached. During setup, at the beginning of the season, and takedown, at the end, Slawek and I would go on rides covering over 150 km and lasting 9-10 hours. It is hard not to hesitate getting on the Skidoos in the morning, when the temperature is at 20 degrees below zero Celsius and there is already a 20 knot wind blowing, knowing you will be going 30 mph sometimes directly into it!

Our Ski-doos with sledges attached to the rear with all our science and safety gear attached.

Because our bodies have to generate all this heat, it is important to stay well-fed and healthy out on the ice. One of the breakfast favorites was frozen eggs. In the video, you see a block of eggs sizzling on the pan. In order to break off a chunk from the main supply, a hacksaw and hammer/chisel are required.

Since I was on a cruise for the duration of my last trip, I never had to cross one of the unifying stepping stones of everyone who works here, be them firemen or astronomers: I didn’t go to snow school. Snow School, or Happy Camper, is an overnight trip to the ice during which those new to Antarctica learn basic survival skills and come to appreciate some of the subtle differences between camping in the Midwest and camping on an ice sheet. My trip began December 2, with 17 other students in tow. The morning was spent listening to lectures but in the afternoon we walked out to the Happy Camper supply shed and began to set up camp. Right as we headed outside, it began to snow again!

Posing in front of Erebus Volcano on the way to Snow School.

After we had learned the basics of different shelters one can build on the ice, we were left to our own devices. During that time, our only responsibility was to cook dinner in our snow kitchen. Building in the snow, it is easier to build down than up. We began by expanding the kitchen so that there would be benches on either side of the preparation area. In the end, the area was able to accommodate at least 15 people at a time, allowing them to sit out of the wind and enjoy a hot beverage or some re-hydrated meals.

Eating our re-hydrated dinners in the kitchen we built by digging down into the snow. I slept in one of the Scott Tents in the background.

The food at our snow camp was not at all fresh or good! Amongst our rations for the evening we found a chocolate bar that was dated 13 years ago!

Amongst our food rations, we found a chocolate bar that expired 13 years ago. Here, Tim smiles before trying the chocolate. He was not smiling after.

Another group of creative individuals decided to build an arch out of snow. I helped in the beginning, popping the blocks of snow out of the quarry and also was there to assist in placing the keystone block which supports the weight of the arch, but much of the work was done while I was off cross country skiing for the first time in my life!

Happy Campers putting the finishing touches on our snow arch. At about 11pm the sun came out and smiled its approval on our construction.

When the time came, I chose to sleep in a Scott Tent, the design of which is over 100 years old. Having recently read about the early Antarctic explorers during my layover in Christchurch, I thought I would try-on a piece of their lifestyle. The tent has 4 poles that form a square base and meet at the top in a pyramid. Unlike modern tents, the base is not attached. It’s just a tarp you throw over the snow after the exterior has been propped up. We learned how to dig into the snow to make anchors for the tent that would neither rip it nor let it blow away. I can’t say I was particularly warm in the Scott tent, but I wasn’t any colder than the last time I went camping in Pennsylvania in April.

Even if I get to return to the Ice and become a Happy Camper once more, it will never be the same. The people I spent the night playing in the snow with are pretty amazing folks. And this experience alone was worth coming halfway around the world.

That is the scenario we prepared for in our Snowcraft II course or Crevasse Rescue course. Crevasses occur in actively moving ice when the ice is stretched and because the ice in Antarctica is extremely thick, crevasses can be hundreds of feet deep. When our team is out in field, we plan our snowmobile travel to avoid crevasses, but it is always smart to be prepared for any accidents that may happen.

A crevasse near McMurdo Station.

We began the day by getting fitted for harnesses and practicing knot tying and general concepts in setting up a crevasse rescue. We learned that by using a system of pulleys and prussiks (which is a special kind of knot used to grip climbing rope), one person does not have to be very strong to lift someone out of a crevasse.

Mountaineer instructor Danny Uhlmann shows the team how to properly set a snow anchor, one of the first steps in initiating a crevasse rescue. The Under the Glaciers team consists of University of California Santa Cruz Professor Slawek Tulaczyk, University of California Santa Cruz graduate student Jake Walter, University of Chicago undergraduate student Saffia Hossainzadeh, and Northumbria University Professor John Woodward.

After lunch, we drove out to the “crevasse simulator, ” which is a pit that has been dug into the snow on the Ross Ice Shelf, near the site of our Snowcraft I course or more fondly known as Happy Camper School, which we completed earlier in the week. Here, we practiced some of the techniques, we learned indoors, including that you can anchor someone using snow! We got the chance to apply them outside and everyone got lots of practice running through scenarios with our instructor, Danny Uhlmann.

To highlight the importance of these trainings, our camp is so remote and far away from any established bases, it could take a search and rescue team multiple days to reach us in the event of an accident. So we have to be self-sufficient and it is our hope that we will never have to use any of the techniques that we learned in this course. When you come down to the ice, you realize that scientists from all fields and the people who support them here risk their lives daily in Antarctica, in order to pursue their studies of this place, the last continent.