Snow clearing came to a halt when the Adélie penguin paid a visit to Scott Base. Photo: Supplied / Antarctica New Zealand / Matthew Jordan
A social media post of a penguin stopping traffic at Scott Base has gone viral, with more than five and a half million views in two days.
The project manager working on the Scott Base redevelopment project, Matthew Jordan, captured footage of the Adélie penguin wandering around heavy machinery.
Workers have to observe strict environmental/ wildlife rules in Antarctica, so all machinery had to stop operating when the bird waddled onto the base during snow clearing.
The TikTok post shows a parked digger, with the penguin wandering up and hopping into the bucket for a look.
Jordan started a TikTok account last week to show people what it was like to live and work in Antarctica, and uploaded photos to free up some space on his phone. He had no idea it would be so popular.
"I'm amazed at how quickly this has taken off. The previous post showed what it was like to fly to Antarctica and views were rising by hundreds of thousands right before my eyes," he said.
While that post has now had more than one million views, it has been eclipsed by the penguin.
Among the thousands of comments on Jordan's posts were requests from international media companies offering payments. But his motivation was not money, he said.
"I'm more interested in getting the word out about Antarctica and the science we support.
"Antarctica New Zealand supports world-leading scientists, most of whom are carrying out immensely important research into climate change. If my posts can draw attention to the continent and the work they do, then I'll be happy."
Jordan will return to Scott Base in January to spend a winter as the Scott Base redevelopment supervisor and intends to capture more material for his social media posts.
The post can be found on TikTok @mattykjordan.
The penguin took some time for a good look around. Photo: Supplied / Antarctica New Zealand / Matthew Jordan
