posted October 01, 2008 01:54 PM         

There are presently 19 known species of Penguin. Penguins seem to have no fear of humans and have always approached groups of explorers without hesitation. This is unusual for animals in the wild, as most animals have an innate fear of man.

Physical Appearance: Penguins are superbly adapted to aquatic life. Their wings have become flippers and are useless for flight in the air. In the water, though, penguins are very agile. Within the smooth plumage of their wings is a layer of air that gives them buoyancy. The air layer also helps insulate them in cold waters. On land, Penguins use their tails and wings to maintain balance for their upright stance. All Penguins are countershaded; they have a white underside and a dark (mostly black) upperside. This is for camouflage. A predator looking up from below has difficulty distinguishing between a white Penguin belly and the reflective water surface. The dark plumage on their backs also camouflages them from above. Penguins either waddle on their feet or slide on their bellies across the snow, which allows them to conserve energy and move relatively fast at the same time. Penguins have an excellent sense of hearing. Their eyes are adapted for underwater vision and are their primary means of locating prey and avoiding predators, but in air, they are nearsighted. Their sense of smell has not been researched so far. They are able to drink salt water safely, because their glands filter excess salt from the bloodstream. The salt is excreted in a concentrated fluid from the nasal passages.

Habitat: Although all Penguin species are native to the southern hemisphere, they are not, contrary to popular belief, found only in cold climates, such as Antartica. In fact, there are only a few species of Penguins that live in Antartica. Three different species actually live in the tropics, and one species lives as far north as the Galapagos Islands. The largest living species of Penguin is the Emperor Penguin; adults average about 3 feet and 7 inches tall and weigh 75 pounds or more. The smallest Penguin species is the Little Blue Penguin (also known as the Fairy Penguin), which stands around 16 inches and weighs 2.2 pounds. Generally larger Penguins retain heat better, and thus inhabit colder regions, while the smaller Penguins are found in temperate or even tropical climates. Some prehistoric species attained enormous sizes, becoming as high as an adult human!

Diet: Most Penguins feed on krill, fish, squid, and other forms of sealife caught while swimming underwater. They spend half of their life on land and half in the oceans.

Mating Habits: Some Penguins mate for life, while others mate for just one season. They generally raise a small family, and the parents cooperate in caring for the eggs and for the young. During the cold season, the mates separate for several months to protect the egg. The male stays with the egg and keeps it warm, and the female goes out to sea and finds food so that when it comes home, the baby will have food to eat. Once the female comes back, they switch. Many of you may have seen this rare activity in the acclaimed movie, The March of the Penguins. In early February of 2004, a male pair of Chinstrap Penguins in the Central Park Zoo in New York City formed a partnership, and when they were given an egg which needed incubation, they successfully hatched it. Other Penguins in New York have also been reported to have formed same-sex pairs. Zoos in Japan and Germany have also documented male penguin couples. The couples have been shown to build nests together and use a stone to replace an egg in the nest. Researchers at Rikkyo University in Tokyo, found 20 such pairs at 16 major aquariums and zoos in Japan. Bremerhaven Zoo in Germany attempted to break up the male couples by importing female penguins from Sweden and separating the male couples, but they were unsuccessful. The zoo director stated that the relationships were too strong between the older couples.

posted October 03, 2008 01:14 PM         

I love that movie! It was very sad at parts, though.