I decided to do penguins this week because octopuses went over well last week, and penguins are also animals. Sea creatures, even, you could say. I’m sure you’re following my logic here.
Also, in the course of my research for an article this week
I came across this picture of the Second Coming of the Penguin Jesus, and I had
to use it:
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| HE IS RISEN. Image by Marc Heiden from Wikitravel.org. |
I’m sure you’re all aware that penguins live most in
Antarctica, not at the Arctic, because you’re all so smart (and talented and
attractive). The northernmost species of penguin is the Galapagos penguin,
which may venture onto the north side of the equator when feeding.
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| Image by derekkeats |
It can survive in the tropic climate of the equator thanks
to the cool waters of the Humboldt and Cromwell currents, and also of course
thanks to the grace of the Penguin Jesus.
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| AND LO VERILY HE SAID UNTO THEM, "SQUAWK." |
Penguins are the fastest swimmers of any bird species, and
can dive deeper than any other birds. They’ll emerge from the water to leap
into the air while swimming, a process that coats their feathers with miniscule
bubbles. These bubbles cut friction, allowing them to swim as fast
as 20 mph (32 kph). The leaps also allow them to escape from predators.
The penguin’s distinct coloration camouflages them in the
water. If you happened to see a swimming penguin from above, you’d see that its
dark back blends in with the dark water, and from below, its white belly is
hard to detect against the sunlight.
Unlike other bird species, penguins molt
all of their feathers at once, in what’s known as a “catastrophic molt.” The
process takes two to three weeks and the penguin must fatten itself up
beforehand to survive, because they can’t swim or hunt without all of their
feathers. The molting penguin will lose about half its total body
weight in the process.
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| And will look awful. Image by David Monniaux |
Most penguin species live in such large, tightly compacted
colonies that scientists can spot where penguin colonies from space by the
swaths of penguin-shit-stained ice.
Some penguin species are dwindling – such as the yellow-eyed
penguin of New Zealand, of which there are only 4,000 remaining; the
erect-crested penguin of New Zealand, which has experienced population declines
of 70 percent over the past two decades; and the aforementioned Galapagos
penguin, which has experienced population declines of 50 percent since 1970. A
few species are thriving, however; the Macaroni penguin boasts a population of
more than 11.6
million breeding pairs, and Adelie penguin populations are growing as polar
ice cap melt has freed
up more of the rocky land on which these creatures thrive. In general,
penguins that live closest to the South Pole are surviving in the largest
numbers, which penguins that live closer to the equator are more vulnerable to
climate change.
Emperor penguins are the fifth heaviest bird species and the
largest penguins; they can reach a height of four feet (1.2 m) and weigh 100
pounds (45.3 kg). The second largest penguin, the King Penguin, is almost three
feet (0.9 m) tall and 35 pounds (15.9 kg). Ancient penguins, which emerged
about four or five million years after the extinction of the dinosaurs, were almost human-sized.
When hot, a penguin will pant like a dog, spread its wings
and fluff out its feathers to cool down.
Baby penguins are not waterproof.
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| Aw. |
