PENGUINS

The family of penguins have 18 species. They lost the ability to fly and their wings turned into paddles which they use in the water.  They are great swimmers and diving specialists.

On land they waddle and look like waiters with their white front and black back and head. They all look almost the same but for the variation of beaks, white or yellow marking on their faces. Some also have eye crests. They differ very much in size. The emperor penguin is as tall as a child while the blue penguin is the size of a parrot. Their webbed feet are at the end of their body and it is used like rudders for steering.

The Southern Hemisphere, in the ice-cold Antarctic zones, is where most penguins live. The jackass penguin is the exception. It breeds in Africa and feeds in cool waters at the tip of South Africa. Also the Galapagos, Magellanic and Humboldt penguins live in the tropics fed by the cool current from the Antarctic.

GENTOO  PENGUIN

CHINSTRAP PENGUIN

They live most of their time at sea but come ashore at breeding time on isolated coasts which are along the Antarctic current. These currents are rich in squid, fish, krill and others which are the penguin's diet.

The penguin’s feathers are perfect to protect them in those icy cold waters. They are long, thin and turn down towards the bottom.  At the bottom of the feather is a fluffy tuft, this mat together and give a wind- and waterproof layer. They are feathered from head to down their legs. The Adelie penguin has even a feathery beak.

Furthermore, a layer of blubber underneath the coat protects them from the cold as well as when they jump out of the water and crash-land on the ice or rocks. They are very good at leaping. The Adelie penguin leaps up to 2m.

ADELIE PENGUIN

The female has one or two eggs. She lays it in a scrape on the ground or on pebbles with sticks and bones to prevent it rolling off. It also keeps it from the ground of melting ice. In the more northerly area they put the eggs on tussock grass. The eggs are incubated for 1-2 months. The chicks are ready to leave after 10 weeks. The king penguins' chicks are ready to leave after 13 months.

The skuas and other predators take the penguins' eggs and/or attack chicks

EMPEROR PENGUIN

Emperor penguins are the biggest. They can weigh up to 16kg. The larger the penguins the better they keep their body heat. Emperor penguins breed on the coldest of the sea ice and shores of the Antarctic. In March the adults come ashore and travel to their breeding grounds. They mate and lay their eggs in complete darkness of Antarctic winter.

The male incubate the eggs on top of their feet under a fold of skin to prevent it to freeze. The several thousands of penguins which are there huddle together to preserve their body heat. They don't while they are on the egg and live off their fat. To preserve their energy they sit there and huddle together for warmth.

Male emperors do not have a territory and therefore do not fight with each other. The gentoo, chinstrap and adelie penguins are territorial. Their huge breeding colonies are very noisy because they always squabble.

When the female comes ashore with a peak full of squid to feed the chicks; the male leaves to feed himself. The female regurgitates the food at first to feed the chicks and later on they both feed them. The chicks are ready for the open sea in December.

The huge, vicious leopard seal lurks under the ice edge to get hold of one penguin or two.