Living in Harmony with Nature: Penguins and Seagulls at the Changcheng Station

The seagulls at the Changcheng Station are playing in the Seagull Lake (February 10th photo).

Recently, the icebreaker ‘Snow Dragon 2’ was moored near the Changcheng Station unloading cargo. During the unloading period, the reporter interviewed the research personnel at Changcheng Station and saw that they were protecting the environment and living in harmony with nature.

Changcheng Station is China’s first Antarctic scientific research station, completed in February 1985, located on George VI Island in the southernmost part of the Antarctic Peninsula. There is a group of seagulls living in the station area, their home – Seagull Lake – is adjacent to the living area of the Changcheng Station research personnel, less than 60 meters apart, and connected by a rare patch of bright green moss.

From time to time, one or several penguins visit the edge of Seagull Lake and the coast near Changcheng Station, either walking around or sleeping in one place, and peacefully coexist with the research personnel, as if they were a family.

Xinhua News Agency reporter Liu Shi Ping photo

Seals in the Changcheng Station area (February 9th photo). Xinhua News Agency reporter Liu Shi Ping photo

Seals in the Changcheng Station area (February 8th photo). Xinhua News Agency reporter Liu Shi Ping photo

Inside Changcheng Station, on one side are the research personnel unloading cargo, and on the other side are the seagulls in Seagull Lake playing in the water (February 9th photo). Xinhua News Agency reporter Liu Shi Ping photo