Penguins and Tussock Grass at Chennai Inlet

Wet, glistening tussock grass dominates the foreground, its yellow-green blades standing thick against the grey water of a tidal inlet. A colony of penguins clusters along the muddy bank, their black and white plumage stark against the damp earth. The sky hangs low and flat, diffusing the noon glare into a soft, even light that reflects off the ripples in the water. Leaves skitter across the wet ground in sudden gusts, caught in the movement of the air. The birds stand in patient stillness, their heads turning slowly as they scan the water. One penguin stands apart on a patch of exposed mud, its shadow stretching short and sharp beneath its feet.