WILD WORLD
Amazing Penguins!
Each year on January 20th, Penguin Awareness Day is celebrated in honor of the quirky, flightless bird found mostly in the Southern Hemisphere. On April 25 each year, people globally celebrate World Penguin Day, which marks the annual northward migration of penguins. Both holidays are a great opportunity to learn more about these fascinating swimming birds. On the back cover of this magazine, you can test your penguin knowledge by completing the Kids Across, Parents Down crossword puzzle ("It's a Penguin Party") with a parent or teacher. Did you know that there are 17 different species of penguins? Penguins are found on every continent in the southern hemisphere. Most penguins live in Antarctica, while others live on the shores of South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, on the coasts of South America, and on the Galapagos Islands of the Pacific. The Emperor penguin is the largest penguin species. Emperor penguins grow to be four feet tall and weigh up to 60 pounds. Emperor penguins live in the Antarctic, and they make a long journey to their breeding grounds, called rookeries, on sea ice near the Antarctic shore. The female Emperor penguin lays one egg, and the male penguin tucks the egg between his legs on top of his feet, under a flap of his belly. The male keeps the egg warm until it hatches, which takes about 64 days. He is very careful not to drop the egg. The male Emperor penguins huddle together to keep warm. Temperatures are as low as -70ºF! While the male Emperor penguin takes care of the egg, the mother makes the long journey back to the sea to find food. When she returns, it is time for the baby to hatch, or it may have already hatched by the time the mother penguin returns. Then the male penguin heads for the sea to eat. He has fasted (had no food) while keeping the egg warm for more than two months!
Some of the other penguin species can lay more than one egg. For example, the Adélie penguin lays one or two eggs. Before laying the eggs, the female and male Adélie penguins make a nest by gathering stones in their beaks and making them into a pile. Like the Emperor penguin, the male Adélie penguin guards the nest while the female journeys to the sea to find food. The female returns after two weeks and then changes places with the male, taking her spot on the nest. They will switch places one more time, before the baby penguins hatch from the eggs. Male and female adult Adélie penguins look alike; they both have a black tail that looks like a tuxedo! Penguins are birds, but they don’t fly in the air. They spend most of their life "flying" under water! They can swim at speeds of up to 30 miles per hour. Their wings are flippers, which help them dive. They can dive 30 feet underwater before returning to the surface of the sea. Sometimes, they come out of the sea with such speed and power that they soar into the air, like porpoises. When they are on land, penguins stand up like a person and waddle around. Sometimes they lay on their bellies and use their flippers and feet like oars to row around on the ice — this is called tobogganing.
To learn more, families may enjoy watching documentary movies about penguins, including The March of the Penguins (2005), and Adventures of the An Emperor penguin keeping his baby warm. Penguin King (2013).
Penguins in Antarctica have black backs and white stomachs, which helps them regulate their body temperature. When they are cold, they face their backs toward the sun to help warm themselves; if they feel warm they turn their white stomachs toward the sun, which reflects the heat and helps them cool down. Many antarctic fish and sea creatures have a special kind of protein in their blood that acts as a kind of antifreeze to prevent them from freezing! A group of Adélie penguins in Antarctica. Images: Creative Commons.
12 www.ChillKids.com/news January 2016