Poseidon Expeditions backs South Georgia Heritage Trust

Poseidon Expeditions will donate £100 to the Dundee, Scotland-based charity every time a new passenger books a cruise featuring South Georgia. This will help fund South Georgia Heritage Trust's conservation efforts.

Iconic wildlife

The sub-Antarctic island of South Georgia is famed for its iconic wildlife, particularly the vast colonies of king penguins that have featured in the BBC’s 'Frozen Planet,' 'Blue Planet' and 'Planet Earth.' The great explorer Ernest Shackleton died on South Georgia in 1922 and is buried in Grytviken Cemetery.
 
The South Georgia Heritage Trust delivered the world’s largest rodent eradication project, which against all odds removed invasive rats and mice (accidentally introduced by whalers 200 years ago), which were predating the eggs and chicks of millions of native birds and had almost pushed one species, the South Georgia pipit, to extinction.

Recovering ecosystem

Since the island was declared rodent-free in May 2018, the charity has been supporting ongoing efforts by the government of South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands to make sure that South Georgia’s 10,000 to 15,000 annual visitors don’t inadvertently undo this amazing feat and that South Georgia remains a recovering ecosystem. .
 
'As a small charity we need as much support as possible for our work to continue and grow. Donations from Poseidon Expeditions will enable us to further protect and preserve the island’s special environment and wildlife for future generations through conservation work,' said Luke Smith, director of development, South Georgia Heritage Trust. 

Scientific research and more

'This support will also contribute towards scientific research, help run the South Georgia Museum and deliver major cultural projects on or related to the island, such as saving Shackleton’s heritage at Stromness and a major art installation which will act as a whale memorial at Grytviken,' Smith continued.

'We are extremely grateful for Poseidon Expeditions’ generosity, and we are very much looking forward to working together for the benefit of South Georgia, and all its beauty.'