The only work that went ahead as part of this ASAC project was to look at Penguins restraint and stress level (see the referenced paper below). From the paper: During most research on penguins it is necessary to temporarily immobilise the birds at some time (to weigh, mark, or attach instruments). Although many penguin species seem unconcerned about a human's presence, a single approaching person has been shown to increase the birds heart rate, suggesting that the animal is aware and may be stressed. Corticosterone is one of the hormones regulating the stress reaction in birds, and in turn regulates that stress caused by immobilisation. As captured and bag restrained Adelie penguins show a three fold increase in heart rate, we can presume that this is a very stressful immobilisation technique. Restricting the stress reaction is particularly important during the breeding season to avoid nest desertion, or loss of eggs and chicks. The subject of this paper is to present a less stressful method for restraining penguins. 38 mature, male Gentoo penguins in good physical condition were used to test bag restraint methods. Resting animals were caught on the Macquarie Island Isthmus. 59 animals were used to test the effect of hood restraint methods. There was a significant increase in corticosterone concentrations in the blood of bag restrained penguins within 10 minutes of restraint. Between 10 and 15 minutes, further changes were not significant. After 20 minutes, however, there was a second significant increase, when compared to the levels at 15 minutes. Upon release all birds were unconscious; they then showed symptoms of hysteria, such as disorientation and shaking of the head. Corticosterone levels in the blood of hooded penguins rose significantly after 5 minutes. After 10 minutes, the mean concentration showed a tendency to decrease, when compared to the 5 minute levels. This, however, did not differ significantly to concentrations immediately after restraint. After 20 minutes concentrations rose again, and were again significantly higher than at the same time of restraint and after 15 minutes. Both groups showed the same levels of corticosterone upon restraint. Hood restraint led overall to a lower increase in corticosterone levels than restraint with a bag. After 5, 10, 15 and 20 minutes, statistically significant lower levels in the blood were detected in hood restrained birds. The penguin's reaction to both restraint methods was identical in two respects: There was no significant increase in corticsterone concentration between 10 and 15 minutes. Secondly, concentrations were significantly higher after 20 minutes than at 15 minutes.

This dataset comprises the actual video footage and audio recordings made during a number of experiments made as part of ASAC project 1148 (ASAC_1148). The primary objective was to measure the responses of Antarctic wildlife to various human disturbance stimuli. An excel spreadsheet of a catalogue of the video and audio tapes is available for download from the url given below. The video and audio tapes themselves are stored at the Australian Antarctic Division. For descriptions of (and access to) processed data see the metadata records with the following titles: Measuring the effects of human activity on Weddell Seals (Leptonychotes weddellii) Effects of helicopter operations on emperor penguin chicks Effects of helicopters on Southern Antarctic Fulmars Effects of helicopters on Antarctic wildlife Effects of human activity on Gentoo penguins on Macquarie Island Effects of human activity on King penguins on Macquarie Island Effects of human activity on Royal penguins on Macquarie Island Behavioural responses of Weddell seals to human activity. A copy of the full dataset of video and audio files, as well as another Excel spreadsheet catalogue is available for download from the provided URL. These data were digitised in 2021, and the excel spreadsheet created from the available files.

This study aimed to quantify the effects of helicopter operations on Antarctic wildlife, with an emphasis on determining minimum safe over-flight altitudes and landing distances for a range of species. An experimental approach was adopted whereby wildlife were exposed to helicopters either over-flying or landing at specific altitudes or distances while the behaviour, and in some cases physiology, of individual animals were recorded. Two types of helicopters were used in the study: a Sikorsky S-76 (twin engine) and a Squirrel AS350 (single engine). This metadata record relates to the responses of Adelie Penguins (Pygoscelis adeliae) over a number of phases of their breeding cycle. The fields in this dataset are: Time Action Date

Creching emperor penguin (Aptenodytes forsteri) chickswere exposed to two overflights by an S-76 twin engine helicopter at 1000 m: a current operational guideline for helicopter activity in Antarctica. The flights were conducted on the same day but under different wind conditions: a morning flight with a 10 kt (18 km.hr-1) katabatic blowing perpendicular to the direction of helicopter travel and an afternoon flight with virtually no wind. Background noise levels recorded in the morning, before the helicopter flight, were significantly higher than in the afternoon, but these differences were not detectable when the helicopter was overhead. There were also no significant differences in the way chicks responded to helicopters between the morning and afternoon flight. All chicks became more vigilant when the helicopter approached and 69% either walked or ran, generally moving less than 10 m toward other chicks (i.e. not scattering). Most chicks (83%) displayed flipper-flapping, probably indicating nervous apprehension. This behaviour was seldom displayed in the absence of disturbance. Although all effects were relatively transitory, results support the introduction of more conservative guidelines for helicopter operations around breeding localities of this species. The fields in this dataset are: Time Action Date Lying Standing Walking Preening Flapping