EARTH. CLIMATE CHANGE.
YOU CAN ARGUE ABOUT ITS CAUSES ALL YOU WANT, BUT THERE ARE FEW
PLACES ON THE PLANET THAT HAVE FELT THE EFFECTS OF EARTH'S
WARMING MORE THAN HERE, THE ANTARCTIC PENINSULA.
WHERE THE AVERAGE WINTER TEMPERATURE HAS RISEN NINE
DEGREES. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?
THE PENGUINS WILL TELL US. >> THE ANTARCTIC PENINSULA ISN'T
THE EASIEST PLACE TO GET TO. IT REQUIRES A TWO DAY SEA VOYAGE
FROM THE BOTTOM OF ARGENTINA ACROSS THE SOUTHERN OCEAN.
OUR DESTINATION, THE 800 MILE LONG LEG OF LAND THAT REACHES
NORTHWARD FROM THE CONTINENT. IT IS A PLACE OF JAW DROPPING
GRANDEUR, MOUNTAINS, GLACIERS, AND ICEBERGS THE SIZE OF CITY
BLOCKS. >> WE CAME HERE TO COUNT
PENGUINS, FOR THEM CLIMATE CHANGE IS ALREADY A CRITICAL
PROBELEM. AND THEIR PROBLEMS MAY SOON BE
OUR PROBLEMS. >> HOW TO YOU COUNT THEM?
WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO? >> IT IS SUPER LOW TECH.
WE'VE GOT THESE CLICKERS. THERE YOU GO.
>> HANDHELD CLICKERS. WE GOT ONE FOR YOU TOO HARRY.
>> ONE CLICK FOR NEST AND THAT'S IT.
>> I MIGHT BE ABLE TO HANDLE THAT.
>> ALL RIGHT >> IT'S HARDER THAN YOU MIGHT
THINK THEY ALL LOOK ALIKE. BUT WE'LL GIVE IT A TRY.
>> ANTARCTICA IS HOME TO MILLIONS OF THESE DUMBFOUNDINGLY
CHARMING AND REMARKABLY RESILIENT ANIMALS.
A FLIGHTLESS BIRD THAT HAS BEEN CAVORTING AROUND THIS PART OF
THE WORLD FOR 60 MILLION YEARS OR SO.
RON NAVEEN IS THE "BIRDMAN OF ANTARCTICA."
A CITIZEN SCIENTIST, HE FOUNDED AN ORGANIZATION CALLED
OCEANITES. IT'S SOLE PURPOSE IS KEEPING
TRACK OF THE PENGUIN POPULATION. >> WELL, THERE'S FIVE HERE.
>> DR. HEATHER LYNCH, JOINED HIM ABOUT TEN YEARS AGO.
SHE'S A HARVARD TRAINED EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGIST AND
TEACHES AT STONYBROOK UNIVERSITY.
>> WOULD IT BE TOO MUCH OF A STRETCH TO SAY THESE PENGUINS
ARE SORT OF THE CANARY IN THE COAL MINE OF CLIMATE CHANGE?
>> OH WE DO THINK THAT. AND IN FACT THAT'S ONE OF THE
REASONS WHY WE ARE SO FOCUSED ON THEM. BECAUSE THEY ARE THE THING
THAT WE CAN, WE CAN STUDY. AND WE HOPE THAT THEY -- THEY
CAN TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT OF WHAT WE MIGHT EXPECT
ELSEWHERE. YOU KNOW ALL THE SPECIES ON THE
PLANET NEED TO DEAL WITH CLIMATE CHANGE. IT'S NOT AN ANTARCTIC
ISSUE. BUT THESE PENGUINS ARE DEALING
WITH IT NOW. >> SPECIFICALLY THEY ARE HERE TO
COUNT THREE TYPES OF PENGUINS. CHINSTRAPS, ADELIES, AND
GENTOOS -- EASIER TO DO NOW BECAUSE IT'S DECEMBER, SUMMER IN
THE SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE. IN ORDER TO COUNT PENGUINS YOU
MUST OVERCOME AN OLFACTORY CHALLENGE.
THE EVER CONSTANT AROMA OF PENGUIN POOP.
>> THERE IS AN ODOR THAT ACCOMPANIES OUR TASKS HERE,
TODAY. >> IT'S THE SMELL, IT'S THE
ANTARCTIC PERFUME YOU MIGHT SAY. IT'S THE GUANO FROM THE
PENGUINS. >> RON CAN TELL FROM SMELL AND
SIGHT EXACTLY WHAT THE BIRDS ARE EATING.
>> SO THE PENGUIN POOP TELLS YOU A LOT.
>> OH MY GOD, PENGUIN POOP TELL-GUANO IS EVERYTHING.
YOU KNOW WE GOT TO COUNT BUT I LIKE TO KNOW WHAT THE HELL THEY
ARE EATING IN THE ECOSYSTEM. AND THERE IS A LOT OF CONCERN
BECAUSE WITH THE WARMING DOWN HERE.
THE FOOD CHAIN'S BEEN REALLY DISRUPTIVE.
>> DISRUPTED, HE SAYS, EITHER BY RISING TEMPERATURES OR OVER
FISHING, MAYBE BOTH. THE BIRDS ARE EATING TINY SHRIMP
LIKE CREATURES CALLED KRILL INSTEAD OF FISH. AND RON'S NOT
HAPPY. >> YOU CAN YELL AT THEM EAT MORE
FISH, EAT MORE FISH, YOU KNOW AND THEY JUST DON'T GET IT.
>> AND IT'S NOT JUST THE FOOD SUPPLY, WARMER WINTERS MEAN RAIN
SOMETIMES INSTEAD OF SNOW. BIRDS BUILDING NESTS IN MUD INSTEAD OF
ICE. SOME THOUGH HAVE MOVED TO HIGHER
GROUND. >> LOOK AT THIS.
>> SOMETIMES THE ANTARCTIC ACTS LIKE IT WANTS TO SWALLOW YOU
WHOLE AND THEN TODAY IT IS NOTHING BUT GIFTS.
>> I'M SO SURPRISED THAT THESE BIRDS DECIDE TO NEST A COUPLE
HUNDRED YARDS OFF THE WATER. THEY ARE WAY UP HERE.
>> THEY ARE BUT LOOK AT HOW DRY THESE PLACES ARE.
I MEAN, IF YOU ARE A PENGUIN, THIS IS AWESOME.
THIS IS THE BEST ZIP CODE AROUND.
EGGS ARE DRY AND THESE LITTLE BOULDERS PROVIDE A LITTLE
PROTECTION FROM THE PREDATORS. >> FOR SEVERAL DAYS WE SAILED
AND COUNTED, AND SAILED AND COUNTED.
BUT ABOUT HALFWAY THROUGH OUR 11 DAY JOURNEY WE CAME UPON A
PLACE CALLED BROWN BLUFF. THERE WE SAW A PENGUIN COLONY
RON DISCOVERED. HIS CONNECTION HERE IS VISCERAL. BECAUSE, IT IS
ALMOST UNRECOGNIZABLE FROM WHEN HE FIRST SET FOOT HERE.
>> WHAT'S THE BIGGEST CHANGE YOU'VE SEEN HERE SINCE YOU
STARTED COMING HERE 30-SOME YEARS AGO?
>> THERE'S NO SNOW. AND IT'S EARLY DECEMBER.
THIS IS CRAZY. THIS IS USUALLY COVERED IN SNOW,
SNOW THAT IS MAKING IT DIFFICULT FOR ME TO COUNT THESE GUYS.
IT'S NOT HERE THIS YEAR. THE SEA ICE WAS LOW THIS YEAR.
IN OTHER LOCATIONS IN THE ANTARCTIC PENINSULA, I CAN WALK
BEACHES THAT WERE COVERED BY GLACIERS WHEN I FIRST CAME SO
MANY DECADES AGO. THIS PLACE IS CHANGING.
>> AND CHANGING FAST. THIS YEAR ANTARCTICA HAD THE
LOWEST AMOUNT OF SEA ICE SINCE SATELLITES BEGAN KEEPING TRACK
IN 1979. AND NOT BY A LITTLE BIT.
SEA ICE WAS DOWN SOME 66 THOUSAND SQUARE MILES FROM
THE PREVIOUS RECORD LOW. THAT'S ABOUT THE SIZE OF WASHINGTON
STATE. >> HAVE THERE BEEN MOMENTS OF
FUTILITY FOR YOU HERE, TRYING TO SAY THAT THESE ANIMALS AND THIS
PLACE ARE TRYING TO SEND A MESSAGE BUT NO ONE'S LISTENING?
>> I HAVE THAT FEELING ALL THE TIME.
YOU TRULY HAVE TO UNDERSTAND THAT THERE ARE A LOT OF
PEOPLE -- AND I DO UNDERSTAND THIS, WHO JUST DON'T HAVE THE
BEST OF LIVES. THEY CAN'T PUT FOOD IN THEIR
MOUTHS. THEY DON'T HAVE A JOB.
I UNDERSTAND WHY THEY CAN'T FOCUS ON CLIMATE CHANGE RIGHT
NOW. BUT THERE'S A HECK OF A LOT OF
PEOPLE OUT THERE THAT JUST HAVEN'T GOTTEN THE MESSAGE YET
BECAUSE I DON'T THINK THEY'VE HEARD IT NECESSARILY THE RIGHT
WAY.
>> NOW GENTLEMEN JUST CALM DOWN. >> HEATHER LYNCH SAYS THE ADELIE
PENGUIN POPULATION HERE HAS DECLINED BY SEVENTY PERCENT
SINCE THE 1980S. AND THE CHINSTRAP POPULATION IS
DOWN FIFTY PERCENT IN SOME PLACES.
INCREDIBLY AT THE SAME TIME THE GENTOO PENGUIN POPULATION IS
ACTUALLY GROWING. >> SOME OF THESE BIRDS, SOME OF
THESE PENGUINS HAVE THRIVED THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS.
>> OH THEY HAVE, THESE GUYS RIGHT BEHIND US THE GENTOO
PENGUIN, THEIR POPULATION GROW THREE, FOUR, FIVE PERCENT A
YEAR. THE SECRET, ADAPTABILITY.
THE GENTOOS ARE ADJUSTING THEIR DIETS AND MOVING THEIR NESTS TO
MORE SUITABLE PLACES. >> THEY ROLL WITH THE PUNCHES.
IN A WAY THAT THESE OTHER SPECIES JUST CAN'T.
AND IN THAT THERE IS A BIG LESSON FOR US, YOU KNOW, THAT WE
HAVE TO ADAPT OR WE'RE NOT GOING TO MAKE IT.
>> AT STONY BROOK DR. LYNCH ANALYZES DRONE FOOTAGE AND EVEN
SATELLITE SHOTS. >> SO THE TECHNOLOGY THAT WE'RE
USING NOW ISN'T JUST TELLING US HOW MANY PENGUINS THERE ARE,
IT'S TELLING US ALL SORTS OF THINGS ABOUT PENGUIN BEHAVIOR.
>> IT'S THE WAY TO GET THE BIG PICTURE.
>> SO WHAT ARE THE PENGUINS TELLING US?
>> I THINK THEY'RE TELLING US THAT THINGS ARE CHANGING.
AND I CAN'T SAY WHY. WE HAVE SOME -- WE HAVE SOME
SUSPECTS HERE. YOU KNOW, CERTAINLY CLIMATE
CHANGE IS ONE OF OUR MAJOR SUSPECTS.
FISHING. WE HAVE A VERY ACTIVE FISHERY IN
THE ANTARCTIC. SO SOMETHING IS GOING ON NOW
THAT HASN'T BEEN GOING ON IN THE PAST.
WE KNOW THAT. AND THAT MAKES THE WORK THAT WE
DO NOT JUST IMPORTANT, BUT REALLY URGENT.
>> AND AS FOR CLIMATE CHANGE DOUBTERS?
REMEMBER THE ANTARCTIC PENNINSULA IS THE PLACE WHERE
THE AVERAGE WINTER TEMPERATURE HAS GONE UP NINE DEGREES.
AN UNPRECEDENTED INCREASE. HERE THE EARTH IS GETTING WARMER
FASTER THAN ANYWHERE ELSE, CHANGING THE ENVIRONMENT AND
FORCING THE PENGUINS TO ADAPT TO SURVIVE AND THE PENGUINS ARE
TELLING US SOONER THAN WE THINK WE WILL HAVE TO ADAPT TOO.
>> I THINK THAT PEOPLE WANT TO DENY THE REALITY OF CLIMATE
CHANGE, WHICH IS THAT, YOU KNOW, IF WE JUST DON'T -- I JUST CLOSE
OUR EARS TO IT, IF WE JUST CLOSE OUR EYES, THAT SOMEHOW IT'S NOT
GONNA HAPPEN. AND THEN BEFORE YOU KNOW IT,
YOU'RE LOOKING AT A FOOT OF WATER OUT YOUR FRONT DOOR, AND
YOU'RE THINKING, YOU KNOW, WE REALLY SHOULD HAVE INVESTED IN
SOME REAL ESTATE, YOU KNOW, FURTHER UPHILL, AND EVEN THE
PENGUINS ARE GOING TO HAVE TO DO THAT TOO.
>> RON HAS BEEN TO ANTARCTICA SO MANY TIMES, IN ALL HE'S SPENT
EIGHT YEARS OF HIS LIFE HERE. HIS HOPE, HIS WORK WILL MAKE A
DIFFERENCE, BUT IT PAINS HIM TO SEE WHAT'S HAPPENING TO THE
PLANET. >> WHEN DO YOU CRY?
>> I CRY WHEN I THINK ABOUT LEAVING THE ANTARCTIC.
I CRY WHEN I THINK ABOUT MY GRANDKIDS, MAX AND CHARLIE.
AND I THINK ABOUT WHAT THEY'RE GONNA BE FACING WHEN THEY'RE
10 OR 15 YEARS OLDER THAN THEY ARE RIGHT NOW.
THAT REALLY CHOKES ME UP A LOT. THEY REPRESENT TO ME WHAT THIS
IS ALL ABOUT. IT'S ALL OF US ON THIS PLANET