Whenever I have seen photographs of penguins, they usually either seem docile, silly, graceful, or clumsy — so seeing an angry penguin on Barrientos Island as I was taking photographs unexpectedly caught me off guard.
Angry Penguin on Barrientos Island. Sunday Morning Photograph.
A gentoo penguin was peering down at one of a pair of south polar skuas.
South polar skuas are large predatory birds which breed in Antarctica and are known for their aggressive behavior — including stealing food from other animals — but especially for eating the eggs and chicks of penguins.
This one angry penguin was having none of that, as it fearlessly defended its colony by chasing the hungry skua away while the other skua looked on.
Final Boarding Call
Trivia time: Barrientos Island is part of the Aitcho group on the west side of English Strait in the South Shetland Islands of Antarctica.
The purpose of the weekly series of Sunday Morning Photograph articles is to feature photographs from my travels around the world which you can view while enjoying your morning coffee.
Please click here for a complete list of the Sunday Morning Photograph series of articles at The Gate With Brian Cohen, which include photographs taken of nature and sights of interest in many countries and territories around the world — including but not limited to:
Albania • Andorra • Antarctica • Argentina • Australia • Austria • Bahamas • Bahrain • Belgium • Belarus • Bosnia and Herzegovina • Botswana • Brazil • Bulgaria • Canada • China • Chile • Colombia • Côte d’Ivoire or Ivory Coast • Croatia • Cyprus — including the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus • Czechia or Czech Republic • Denmark • Dominican Republic • Ecuador • Egypt • England in Great Britain in the United Kingdom • Estonia • Fiji • Finland • France • Germany • Greece • Greenland • Hungary • Iceland • Ireland • Italy • Jamaica • Kenya • Kosovo • Latvia • Lebanon • Lesotho • Liechtenstein • Lithuania • Luxembourg • Malaysia • Mexico • Montenegro • Morocco • Mozambique • Netherlands • New Zealand • North Macedonia • Northern Ireland in the United Kingdom • Norway • Oman • Panama • Philippines • Poland • Portugal • Romania • Scotland in Great Britain in the United Kingdom • Singapore • Slovenia • South Africa • South Korea • Spain • Swaziland or Eswatini • Sweden • Switzerland • Thailand • Turkey or the Republic of Türkiye • United Arab Emirates • United States of America • Uruguay • Vanuatu • Wales in Great Britain in the United Kingdom
All photographs ©2025 by Brian Cohen.
