Heritage Expeditions teams up with iconic zoologist Nigel Marven

Expedition cruise company Heritage Expeditions announced that it recently partnered with legendary wildlife television presenter, producer, author, zoologist and naturalist Nigel Marven on his new wildlife documentary The Last Penguin.

Commissioned by leading online documentary streaming service MagellanTV, the 60-minute wildlife documentary will chart Marven’s journey from New Zealand down to Antarctica’s Ross Sea, via the Subantarctic Islands, in search of the Emperor Penguin on Heritage Expeditions’ In the Wake of Scott & Shackleton voyage departing 7 January 2025.

The Last Penguin will be hosted on MagellanTV, widely considered Netflix for documentaries, for 10 years and pushed out through international partners. 

During this time, it is anticipated the documentary will educate millions of viewers on this very special part of the world.

A great passion project

Marven, whose indelible career in wildlife filmmaking spans more than 30 years, described the upcoming documentary as an “important passion project”.

As he puts it: “While The Last Penguin will culminate with the Emperor Penguin, wildlife and heroic history of the Ross Sea, it will also shine a spotlight on all the other rare, endangered and wonderful wildlife and otherworldly flora we encounter along the way, highlighting their importance and the need for their ongoing conservation and protection.”

The former Sir David Attenborough collaborator and National Geographic and Animal Planet regular said it was a privilege to share these rarely-visited, unique wildlife havens with Heritage Expeditions guests and his viewers.

Marven added: “The Last Penguin will provide guests travelling with us a fascinating insight into how a wildlife documentary is made, and viewers with the opportunity to join us on the ultimate bucket list adventure as we explore the world’s last true wilderness.”

As far as possible 

The zoologist pointed out that the expedition will be sailing as far south as possible, crossing the Antarctic Circle and into ‘the heart of Antarctica’ and realm of 24-hour daylight. There, the team will visit the world’s largest and oldest Adelie Penguin colony; observe Orca hunting along the Ross Ice Shelf, Weddell Seals, Chinstrap Penguins and Sea Lions.

Adventurers will also get to step inside the historic huts of Scott, Shackleton, and Borchgrevink, then take a walk on the ice with Emperor Penguins.

Visiting the Subantarctic Islands on the way to, and from, Antarctica provided the unique opportunity to film additional rare penguin species as well as tap into a regal-themed penguin storyline combining Royal, King and Emperor Penguins.

As Marven explains: “These wild and windswept islands are home to some incredible diversity including the endemic Snares Crested Penguin on the Snares Islands, Royal Penguin on Macquarie Island and Eastern Rockhopper Penguin throughout these islands, the only places in the world you can see these species, along with Yellow-eyed Penguin on the Auckland Islands and the hundreds of thousands of King Penguins which call Macquarie Island home.”

Marven, who is also joining Heritage Expeditions on its Birding Down Under, Galapagos of the Southern Ocean and Beyond Fiordland Subantarctic Island voyages will also have the opportunity to film and observe Little, Fiordland Crested, Gentoo and the elusive Erect Crested Penguin which is only found on New Zealand’s Bounty and Antipodes Subantarctic Islands

He said: “That’s 12 of the world’s 18 species of penguin; it’s little wonder these islands and region are filled with Nature Reserves and bestowed UNESCO World Heritage status.”