Did you know that penguins do not fear humans? And that emperor penguins bow to each other before mating? Penguins do not communicate through sound but through body language. Penguins are amazing creatures for having the ability to adapt to their living environment and climate changes. If you are interested in learning more about penguins, then here are some more facts to keep you interested.
Interesting Facts
Types Of Penguins
There are sixteen different species of penguins including African, Chinstrap, Emperor, Erect-Crested, Galapagos, Humboldt, Macaroni, Rock Hopper, Royal, Snares, and Yellow-Eyed. They all live in the southern hemisphere from Antarctica all the way to New Zealand, Galapagos Islands, Africa, and Australia.
Penguin Activities
Penguins are very social animals and a large colony is called a Rookery. As social animals, they have activities they do together including tobogganing, surfing, and diving. They also work as a group to keep warm, raise babies, find food and avoid predators.
Penguin Predators
Penguins have a long list of predators, and since they live in many different locations, their predator’s list is long and variable. This list of predators includes leopard seals, sea lions, orcas, Australian Sea Eagle, ferrets, cats, snakes, and foxes. Not only do penguins have predators, but they are also predators. Penguins hunt fish, squid, krill, and crustaceans for food.
Penguin Bodies
Penguins spend most of their lives in water. They have a thick layer of blubber that keeps them warm with swimming. They are able to control blood flow through their fat. They have the most feathers per square inch than any other feathered creature; this helps them to keep warm when swimming. They can leap out of the water while swimming and can hold their breath up to twenty minutes. Baby penguins are born with soft down feathers and rely strictly on their parents for food until they get their waterproof juvenile feathers. Penguins may waddle when they walk but they can walk faster than humans.
Non-animal Threats
The penguin’s predators are not the only ones that threaten their lives, there are human factors as well. Penguins are endangered by oil spills, water pollution and over-harvesting of ocean fish.
Fun Facts
Do penguins have knees?
Penguins do have knees, you just can’t see them hidden away under all those fluffy feathers. They don’t even have particularly short legs, so why do penguins waddle?
Scientists think it’s because penguin legs have evolved to help them swim more efficiently, which has resulted in them being set further back on the body than you might expect. That makes walking more difficult, and the classic penguin waddle is the result.
Do penguins get frozen feet?
Penguins lose a lot of heat through their feet and flippers, so they have a highly developed vascular system to minimize this heat loss.
More Facts
- No penguins live at the North Pole.
- Penguins can drink sea water.
- Like other birds, penguins don’t have teeth. Instead, they have backward-facing fleshy spines that line the inside of their mouths. These help them guide their fishy meals down their throat.
