Penguins: description of species, features and places where they live. Places of residence of various types of penguins Greenland penguins

In nature, polar bears and penguins live on opposite sides of the equator: bears live in the polar regions northern hemisphere, penguins - in the waters of Antarctica, off the coast of New Zealand, South America.

The similarity between them is that both live in the coldest regions of the Earth.

Where and how do polar bears live?

Polar bears settled on northern territories Russia, Canada, USA, on the coast Barents Sea, Chukotka, Wrangel Island, Greenland, on the lands of Lapland. When the weather is favorable, animals reach the North Pole.

Even the Arctic desert became their habitat - the zone arctic deserts, where in winter the temperature can drop to −60 °C, and in the warmest time of the year, in July, it rises only to +3 °C.

For most of the year, hurricane icy winds blow there, snowstorms are frequent, and in the harsh Arctic summer, with an almost constant 0 ° C, the sky is covered with gray clouds, and the land is shrouded in fog from the ocean. There is no vegetation in the Arctic deserts, with the exception of rare islands of lichen and moss. No animals except polar bear, Arctic fox, lemming on land, and in the sea - walrus and seal.

How do bears survive in the Arctic desert?

They have adapted perfectly to the merciless climate!

The polar bear, also known as polar bear, umka, oshkuy, is the largest land predator on the planet. Scientists and travelers have observed animals up to 3 m in length and weighing more than 1 ton.

Layer subcutaneous fat in a bear it is up to 10 cm, and together with the internal (“internal”, as they say in the north) fat, it makes up about 40% of the body weight. With such a “hot water bottle” and at the same time a “stove” (fat is the main supplier of energy in the body), the mind is not afraid of the monstrous frost of the Arctic, its storms and winds.

The fur of a polar bear matches the fat layer. It has a special structure: white translucent fibers allow only ultra-violet rays and do not transmit infrared radiation, preventing the animal’s body from cooling down. The villi resemble tubes - they are hollow inside and represent air chambers, which serves as another barrier to cold air. Fur even grows on the soles of the animal: in such “felt boots” the animal does not slip and does not freeze.

Unique thermal insulation allows the predator to live quietly in the snow and overcome tens of kilometers of Arctic deserts and literally icy Arctic waters.

Where and how do penguins live?

Seven species of penguins - emperor, Adelie, chinstrap, king, golden-necked, gentoo and crested - chose even more harsh territory as their place of residence - Antarctica, polar regions Southern Hemisphere. The South Pole recorded the lowest temperature on Earth in December 2013 - −91.2 °C. On average, the temperature in Antarctica in winter is −60 °C, in summer - −30 °C.

But, of course, land birds penguins do not live in such monstrous conditions. Thus, the crested penguin lives in Tierra del Fuego, Tasmania, and the islands of the Subantarctic. Endemic to the Snares archipelago, the Snares crested penguin lives on islands that are densely overgrown with bushes and trees. Subantarctic penguin - on the Falkland Islands, South Georgia, Kerguelen, Heard and others.

The largest and fattest birds are emperor penguins, which weigh an average of 40 kg, are distributed as far south as the South Pole, the furthest away, and live on the ice surrounding Antarctica. Only to hatch eggs do they swim away to more warm places.

How do penguins stay warm in Antarctica?

Flightless birds in “black tailcoats” have adapted to live, if not in the bitter cold, like polar bears, but in constant “coolness”, when in summer the temperature often does not rise above + 5 °C, and in winter mostly -30 °C.

They have a thick layer of fat - up to 3 cm, dense waterproof feathers, between which there is a lot of air - an “air chamber”. But the most interesting thing is the penguin paws! They not only do not freeze, but also do not freeze to ice and snow.

Completely naked - without feathers or down - penguin paws have a temperature of only +4 °C. This physiological setting allows you to tolerate severe frost as normal. At the same time, the bird’s body temperature is 39… 40 °C. Wise nature provided penguins with a unique mechanism of blood circulation, organized according to the principle of reverse outflow.

With it, hot arterial blood on its way to the paws passes very close to the veins and gives off part of its heat to the already cold venous blood. Venous blood carries heat back to the heart, and cooled arterial blood goes to the paws, maintaining them at only +4 °C. If the penguins' paws were hot, they would have frozen very quickly, but first they froze into the ice, killing the bird.

Another mechanism of protection against cold is groups. Thus, emperor penguins gather in a dense group, heating the air inside it to +35 °C, when outside it is -20 °C. Penguins “circulate” in the group, moving from the center to the edge and back.

When it comes to penguins - these flightless seabirds– the imagination usually pictures the white expanses of Antarctica and icy waters ocean. However, the continent is south pole is not the only habitat of these cute birds. About eighteen species settled in different parts southern hemisphere of the planet. The most famous among them is the imperial one - the largest in the family.

It grows up to 110-120 cm. The smallest is the little penguin. Compared to the imperial one, it is simply a dwarf with a height of 30-45 cm. In prehistoric times, there were about 40 more species that are now extinct.

You don't have to go on a polar expedition to meet black and white waterfowl. Test yourself to see if you know where penguins live and what they are like, why they are not afraid of polar bears and who is the main enemy of flightless birds.

In Antarctica and nearby islands live emperor penguin And Adele. The ocean is a kind of dining room. Although these birds are excellent swimmers, they feed on fish and crustaceans in coastal waters, they don’t swim far. Being social creatures, they sometimes gather in huge colonies, some of which number about tens of thousands of individuals. IN large group it is easier to survive and raise offspring.

Apart from Antarctica, penguins are home to:

New Zealand;
Australia (south);
South America (west coast);
southern Africa;
The Galapagos Islands, located, by the way, closer to the equator.

It's unlikely you'll ever get to Kerguelen, Macquarie, Heard, or the South Sandwich Islands to see king penguin. Most available space for observation - the Tierra del Fuego archipelago. There you will meet golden-headed And Magellanic penguins.

Falkland Islands - territory gentoo penguin.

The Galapagos is the northernmost point of the range where the species of the same name lives.

Once in Tasmania or on the South American coast, you can meet crested penguin. It also lives on the islands of the Subantarctic. The species got its name from its bright yellow feathers that resemble bushy eyebrows. This feature sets it apart from other members of the family.

South Australia and New Zealand are suitable for observing little penguin. In addition to him, in this area you can also meet him white-winged relative The south of New Zealand sheltered Victoria penguin.

Africa is traditionally associated with deserts and heat. However, from the south it is surrounded by the cold Bengal Current, thanks to which they settled in South Africa and Namibia and the nearby islands spectacled penguins . They are also called donkey because of the characteristic cry, Blackfoot or African.

When wondering where penguins live, people often confuse the names of regions. Without hesitation, they say that these birds live in the Arctic. However, the mentioned area is adjacent to North Pole and includes coastal zone North America, Eurasia, waters of the Arctic Ocean. If you suddenly become interested in ornithology and decide to watch amazing birds in nature, don’t look for them in the Arctic!

Some people are easily confused by the question of whether polar bears eat penguins. The answer is simple - no. Polar bears live in the Arctic, i.e. they are common at the opposite pole of the Earth. The polar bear and the emperor penguin never wildlife have not met and do not suspect each other’s existence. The natural enemies of black and white birds in Antarctica and other regions are leopard seals, lions and seals, killer whales and sharks that lie in wait for prey in the ocean depths. On land, the greatest danger to the young is the brown skua and some gulls. But polar bears hunt sea animals - seals, walruses, bearded seals - in their Arctic.

After the release of the cartoon “Penguins of Madagascar”, users began to wonder whether cold-loving birds really live on this island? There are no penguins in Madagascar, located east of the African continent. They were sent there by the imagination of DreamWorks studio animators, and even then as adventurers, and not aborigines.

In the Soviet-Japanese cartoon “The Adventures of Little Penguin Lolo,” the action of which takes place in Antarctica, the heroes meet king penguins. However, you already know that only the emperor penguin and the Adelie penguin live there.

Threat of extinction

It is human nature to first mindlessly destroy and then try to preserve what remains. Once upon a time, penguins were killed en masse for their subcutaneous fat and their eggs were collected. Now, although the hunt has stopped, new dangers have arisen. Because of human activity Where penguins live, the habitat of these amazing birds is reduced and the balance of the ecosystem is disrupted. Feathered fish hunters have to compete with fishing boats. Penguins are suffering due to oil spills. As a result negative influence civilization, three species (crested, magnificent, Galapagos) were declared endangered at the beginning of our century. Another seven species are considered endangered. Only the inhabitants of Antarctica, as well as the royal one, are out of danger. Their numbers have even increased due to the decline in the population of baleen whales due to active hunting for them.

In the northern hemisphere, penguins can only be seen in the zoo, and only here do polar bears become their neighbors. In captivity, birds are provided with appropriate conditions for life. On the one hand, due to the lack natural enemies they are able to live to their maximum age. On the other hand, zoos pose a different kind of danger - a fungal infection that affects the respiratory system. To protect penguins from this scourge, they are kept behind glass. Only with careful observance of all conditions of detention, which only professionals can provide, can we guarantee long life penguin in captivity.

Memory poem

If, after everything you've read, you still can't remember where polar bears live and where penguins live, read this short poem:

This is the continent of Antarctica.

There are two types of penguins here.

The largest is the imperial one,

He hunts fish expertly.

Others, smaller ones - Adele,

What black tailcoats they wore.

But if you are very brave,

You dream of white bears -

Then you are in the north, in the Arctic,

Get to know them in practice.

Remember - polar bears and penguins live in opposite hemispheres of the Earth!

Video about where penguins live

Everyone knows penguins - these unusual birds.

With what appears to be a tailcoat on their body and red legs and beak, these beauties are very popular and loved.

Moreover, the vast majority of people think that penguins live exclusively in Antarctica.

However, this is not entirely true, the whole point is that there are as many as 18 species of penguins and only 3 of them live directly in Antarctica and its coastal waters. But first things first.

Penguins living today are flightless but good swimmers. In water, penguins move very quickly - about ten kilometers per hour. But on land they are clumsy, and although their webbed feet help penguins stay upright, they move on the ground at a speed of only a few kilometers per hour, but at the same time they are able to cover distances of up to 100 kilometers.

The harsh conditions in which some species of penguins live force them to form numerous flocks and even colonies. During severe cold and blizzards, birds cling to each other, keeping warm.
These birds feed mainly on fish - sardines, anchovies, and silverfish. And some species prefer shrimp and shellfish. Birds drink sea water.

Where do they live?

And so where do they live, these same penguins? Many of us, sometimes even for a minute, still have doubts: where in the Arctic or Antarctic? But there should be no doubt - penguins live in the Southern Hemisphere and only the Southern Hemisphere, and not only in the icy Antarctica and its coastal waters. Their habitat is a very large area - this is South part Australia, and New Zealand, and South Africa, the coast of Peru, and even the Galapagos Islands, where it is more than warm. But to be more precise...

In our time, only two species of penguins live directly in Antarctica and its coastal waters - Adelie, Antarctic and Emperor.
King penguins, as well as Magellans, inhabit the islands - South Georgia, South Sandwich Islands, Tierra del Fuego, Macquarie, Heard, Crozet.
Crested penguins live on the islands of Tasmania and off the coast of Peru.
Victoria or thick-billed penguins live on the Stewart Islands and the South Coast of New Zealand.
Golden-headed - inhabits the southern part of Chile, as well as the islands Tierra del Fuego and Falkland.
Little penguins live on the coasts of South Australia and New Zealand.
The main habitat for the Magnificent Penguins was the Campbell Archipelago, Bounty Island and Macquarie Island.
Schlegel penguins also live there on Macquarie.
Galapagos penguins, as the name suggests, live on the Galapagos Islands.
Humboldt penguins live on the coasts of Chile and Peru.
Papuans live in the Falkland Islands, South Georgia and the Kerguelen Archipelago.
Spectacled penguins - coast of South Africa and Namibia.

Does a penguin live in captivity?

Penguins exist magnificently and breed very well in zoos. Moreover, it has been established that in captivity, these birds live much longer. Most likely, simply because in the wild penguins have a very harsh lifestyle, which clearly does not contribute to prolongation of life - prohibitively low temperatures, difficulties with food and simply an incredible number of enemies - predators for whom penguins are a source of food.

This is why special nurseries have begun to be created these days, the main purpose of which is to help increase penguin populations.

The penguin is the only bird that can swim but cannot fly. In addition, it is the only bird that walks standing. In this topic I will tell you about these amazing creatures. Penguins are wingless waterfowl that live in their natural environment only in the lands of the southern hemisphere. Most penguins spend half their lives in the ocean and the other half on land. Basically, most penguin species are found in Antarctica and some of the other coldest areas of the hemisphere. Some few species can survive in temperate and even tropical latitudes. In general, penguins are created for life in the sea. Some species spend as much as 75% of their lives in water; they come to land only to lay eggs and wait for offspring. The heavy, hard bones act like a heavy diver's belt in the water, allowing penguins to stay underwater. Their wings, shaped like fins, help them “steer” underwater at speeds of up to 15 mph. The streamlined body, paddle-like legs, insulating layer of fat and waterproof feathers all serve to make them efficient and comfortable underwater. They also have the remarkable ability to dive deeply (discussed below). In addition, in order not to lose heat, penguins have hard, very compactly arranged feathers (up to 70 per sq. cm), which provide waterproofing.

Penguins coat their feathers with fat from a gland near the tail to increase impenetrability. Their black and white coloring makes them almost invisible to predators both above and below. Like most birds, penguins have little or no sense of smell (good for them in their crowded colonies). Like other birds, penguins have limited taste buds. It is believed that their vision is better when they are underwater. Scientists suspect penguins may be nearsighted on land. Penguins are considered by scientists to be the most social birds. Colonies can contain thousands of individuals. (As many as 24 million penguins visit Antarctica!) Even at sea, they tend to swim and feed in groups. Most species of penguins build nests, but nests may only consist of rock piles, scraps, or voids in the mud. Emperor penguins do not build nests; they store the egg between their legs under a loose fold of skin called a brood pouch.

The entire body of the penguin is covered with small scale-like feathers, most of which consist of only rods, without fans. The head of some species is decorated with tufts of long, bristly feathers, and in others the tail feathers are also long. The head is small, the beak is as long as the head, straight, strong, hard, laterally compressed; the neck is of medium length, passing into an almost cone-shaped body; the legs are short, almost entirely enclosed in the skin of the body, as a result of which they allow only short steps; the fingers are highly developed, all four are directed forward, but only three of them are connected by a membrane. On the ground, the bird stands vertically, resting on the back surface of the metatarsus, but when walking, the latter stands almost vertically. Penguins walk with great difficulty, waddling; wanting to avoid danger, they lie down on their belly and glide with their wings and legs so quickly that it is difficult to catch up with them, especially on a snow-covered surface. Penguins swim and dive excellently and overcome stormy waves with amazing ease. open ocean- their real sphere. Unlike other birds, penguins swim using only their wings, using them alternately; the legs serve solely as a rudder and are extended straight back. Penguins' food consists of fish, crustaceans and soft-bodied animals. Penguins devote a significant part of the year to breeding and at this time tens and hundreds of thousands gather on the most secluded islands of the Antarctic ocean. At this time, even non-brooding birds live on land. They nest as they generally live - in societies. They lay two white or greenish-white eggs, which are watched by both parents in turn, since penguins have a strong habit of stealing other people's eggs. This explains the frequent fact that chicks are in the same nest. various types. The chicks hatch thickly covered with down and grow quickly, thanks to the extremely plentiful food constantly supplied by the parents. Towards the end of hatching, the plumage of the latter is torn off to the last extent and they begin to molt, often retiring to secluded corners for this. Molting, judging by observations in captivity, proceeds very quickly, ending in about two weeks. At the same time, penguins do not go into the water and, therefore, do not feed, which is obviously easy for them, thanks to the thick layer of subcutaneous fat.
Penguin meat is very tasteless. The most northern border penguin distribution takes place in Atlantic Ocean through the island of Tristan d'Acuña, in Indian through Amsterdam Island, and in the Pacific through the Galapagos Islands; they are also found near the coasts of New Zealand, South Australia, the southern tip of Africa and along the Pacific coast of South America. This family can be divided into three groups, well characterized not only by external, but also by anatomical characteristics. The first embraces forms that are large in size, have a long, thin, slightly curved beak and includes the genera Aptenodytes and Pygoscelis. This includes the Patagonian penguin (A. patagonica) and the long-billed penguin (A. longirostris). The second group - the genus Eudyptes - has a shorter beak, but high and is easily recognized by the beautiful yellow superciliary tufts of feathers. This includes the golden-haired penguin (E. chrysocome). In the third group, the beak is very short, strongly compressed from the sides, the upper jaw is bent with a hook, the lower jaw is straight cut; there is no Ukrainian. This includes the Cape penguin (Spheniscus demersus) from South Africa, Spheniscus minor from Australia and the most northern of all species - Spheniscus mendiculus from the Galapagos Islands. Fossil remains of penguins are scarce, but from the Upper Eocene strata of New Zealand it is known large form P. (Palaeeudyptes antarcticus), proving the antiquity of this group of birds.

Types of penguins:

The African penguin, Spheniscus demersus, is also called the Blackfoot penguin. This penguin was found off the coast of southern Africa. African penguins They can swim at speeds of approximately 4.3 to 15 miles per hour (7-24 km/h), and they also make sounds reminiscent of donkeys. The number of African (donkey) penguins has decreased so much that it is time to take urgent action. Last year in South Africa there were only 26 thousand pairs of penguins compared to 121 thousand in 1956, and at the beginning of the last century the population of these birds reached two million individuals. Scientists are calling for urgent measures to be taken - this is the only way to stop further population decline. In addition, experts must establish what reasons caused such a sharp decline in the number of penguins. According to Peter Barham, from the University of Bristol (UK), the main factor here may be a reduction in food resources. In particular, it is likely that this was due to overfishing of sardines and anchovies or the movement of fish to other areas due to global warming. It is also possible that the penguins were simply weakened by pollution environment, which affected their ability to obtain food. Among other negative factors are those who hunt penguins seals, oil spills and the reduction of cool breeding sites in colonies due to climate change.

Falkland Islands penguins

The Magellanic penguin is a summer resident of the islands (with an estimated population of 100,000 pairs) that arrives to breed on the islands in September. These penguins nest in burrows dug to a depth of 4 to 6 feet. It is locally nicknamed "donkey" because of its loud and harsh call, often uttered upon entering a burrow and also used to receive news from birds swimming in the sea some distance from the shore. This species feeds on small crustaceans, small fish and smaller varieties of squid than those caught by humans for sale. However, their food diet may still be a source of potential conflict with commercial fishing and other marine operations. Magellan penguins leave their nests in April, apparently heading to the Patagonian shelf waters for the winter, or perhaps migrating far north to Brazil. Here they face problems such as poaching and oil pollution. An estimated 20,000 adults and 22,000 teenagers die along the Argentine coast each year. Research in the Falkland Islands recently showed a decline in Magellan penguin numbers of 10% each year, but because the species is highly secretive, its numbers are difficult to estimate. The Falkland Islands are one of the most important breeding grounds for birds in the world and, given the challenges faced by the species in Chile and Argentina, the survival of healthy Falkland Islands populations may be unexpectedly important to the survival of the species in general.

The Galapagos penguin is unique among other penguins in that its habitat is not the Antarctic and subantarctic regions, not even temperate ones, but the Galapagos Islands, located just a few tens of kilometers from the equator. The air temperature in their habitats ranges from +18-+28°C, water temperature - +22-+24°C. About 90% of penguins live on the islands of Fernandina and Isabela. Adults reach a height of about 50 cm and a weight of about 2.5 kg. The main diet is small fish and crustaceans. Galapagos penguins have a black head and back and white stripe goes from the throat up to the head and reaches the eyes, the front of the penguins is white. The mandible and the tip of the mandible are black, the mandible and the skin around the eyes are pinkish-yellow. Birds usually incubate eggs for 38-40 days, alternating male and female. At the age of 60-65 days, the chicks go to sea with the adults. Galapagos penguins nest near the water. The number of individuals is estimated at 1500-2000 adult birds. The GALAPAGOS PENGUIN species is listed in the International Red Book.

The magnificent penguin. The magnificent penguin is also called the yellow-eyed penguin. It belongs to the penguin family. Also known as the Antipodean penguin and Hoiho.

The emperor penguin is the largest penguin species. If he just stands hunched over on land, his height will be 90 centimeters. If he moves, then his height is as much as 110-120 centimeters. The weight of this penguin reaches 20-45 kilograms. Emperor penguins have the following differences in color: the dorsal side is dark or grayish-blue; on the head this color usually turns black. There are round yellowish-orange spots near the ears, which extend to the underside of the neck, and which gradually become White color. When is the emperor penguin born? Its body is covered with white or grayish-white down. Emperor penguins nest along the shores of Antarctica, south to 78 degrees south latitude. The nesting site of emperor penguins, unlike others, occurs during a very harsh time of year - the Antarctic winter, and already at the end of the Antarctic summer the first emperor penguins are born. Usually at first they do not behave very actively, they slouch. They lead a passive lifestyle, but then the situation changes, and penguin pairs begin to form in April.

Golden-haired penguin(lat. Eudyptes crysolophus) is a genus of crested penguins. Characteristic. Having, as is typical of all penguins, a dark dorsal side with an almost black head and a white belly, they are distinguished by the presence of tufts of golden-yellow feathers above the eyes, forming a crest. The body length of golden-haired penguins is 65-76 cm. Golden-haired penguins are distributed throughout the southern part of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. Golden-haired penguins nest on South Georgia, South Shetland, South Orkney and some other subantarctic islands. Their colonies are very numerous - up to 600 thousand nesting individuals. In total, there are at least 2 million adult golden-bellied penguins on the coasts and valleys of Macquarie Island alone. Golden-haired penguins nest on the ground, making very primitive nests. 2 eggs are laid, the second four days after the first. Both eggs are fertilized, but the first is always smaller than the second, and the bird usually does not incubate it. The duration of incubation is 35 days, with changes of parents characteristic of penguins. Adult birds raise their chicks for about two to three weeks, after which a “nursery” is formed, followed by molting and going to sea around the end of January. A specific feature of golden-haired penguin colonies is a strong smell, reminiscent of rotten fish, which can be smelled several kilometers from the colony. The species GOLDEN-HAIRED PENGUIN is listed in the International Red Book.

Humboldt Penguin. This type of penguin is found only along the west coast of South America, in the zone of influence of the Peruvian Current (Foc Island). A separate colony of these penguins exists on the Punihuil Islands. In total, there are about 12,000 pairs of individuals of this species left in the world. 8 of them nest in Chile, 4 in Peru. The Humboldt penguin is listed in the Red Book as one of the endangered species. Due to the fact that there is now overfishing, the size of this population is significantly reduced. Also contributing to the population decline is the fact that some birds simply get entangled in fishing nets and die there. The size of an individual Humboldt penguin is approximately 70 centimeters. Its weight is about 4 kilograms. The Humboldt Penguin is very similar to the Magellanic Penguin. The coloration of female Humboldt penguins is similar to that of males, but the females are slightly smaller in size than the males. Penguins of this species lay eggs from March to December. Depending on where the colony is located, the peak may occur either in April-May or in September-October. This is a completely possible situation. When Humboldt penguins raise two broods per year, if environmental conditions support this.

King Penguin(lat. Aptenodytes patagonicus) is a flightless bird from the penguin family (Spheniscidae). The king penguin is similar to the emperor penguin, but is slightly smaller in size and brighter in color. The body length of the king penguin is from 91 to 96 cm. Adult birds have a gray back, large bright orange spots on the sides of the black head and on the chest. The belly is white. The chicks are brown in color. Spreading. The king penguin nests on the islands near Tierra del Fuego: South Georgia, South Sandwich Islands, Marion, Crozier, Kerguelen (island), Heard, Macquarie.

The penguin can be considered a highly unusual and mysterious animal, so it is not surprising that it attracts the attention of many people. So the penguin can be found in many literary works, including Gorky and Semenov-Spassky. Several animated films were also filmed, for example, “The Adventures of Little Penguin Lolo” and “Catch the Wave!”, because penguins used special attention from the children. Other interesting facts include the existence of the Pittsburgh Penguins hockey team, which plays in the strongest hockey league on the planet, and the fact that the penguin is one of the official symbols of the Linux company.

Interesting Facts about penguins:
All penguins live in the southern hemisphere, sometimes going far to the north (to the Galapagos Islands, almost at the equator) or to densely populated cities (the North Harbor area in Sydney, Australia). Cody's homeland is Shiverpool in Antarctica, but he is happy to live on the tropical island of Pen Gu.

Penguins can stand upright because their webbed feet are located at the very end of their bodies. This is also what makes them such fast and strong swimmers, especially when combined with their oar-shaped wings. This is how Cody manages to catch up with Mikey the whale and get a ticket to the Big Z tournament.

King penguins like Jik are very good divers. In search of fish and other food, they constantly dive to a depth of 100 meters, and sometimes even 200 meters. However, Jik is lazy and would rather wait until Lani brings him edible shellfish.

Cody is a rock penguin with a fiery temperament and long yellow feathers near his eyes. They are full of energy and often jump on rocks - that's how they got their name!

Gentoo penguins, to which Lani belongs, swim the fastest of all other penguins, sometimes reaching speeds of 36 km/h. Such speed helps Lani to be an excellent rescuer.

King penguin chicks - like Katie and Chumaz - hatch naked and develop feathers within a few weeks. The chick cannot live without its parents until it grows waterproof feathers, and this can happen up to 13 months after its birth.

Can swim, but cannot fly. The penguin is the only bird that can swim but cannot fly. In addition, it is the only bird that walks standing.

Penguins have feathers that grow evenly. Only a few birds have feathers that grow evenly throughout their body; These are usually flightless species such as penguins.

Which feet should you use to walk on water? Birds that walk in shallow water, such as herons and stilts, have long legs. Birds that walk on carpets of floating leaves and bogs are characterized by long fingers and claws to prevent them from falling through. Penguins have short, thick legs located far behind their center of gravity. For this reason, they can only walk with their body upright and in short steps. If it is necessary to move faster, they lie on their belly and glide, as if on a sleigh, pushing off the snow with flipper-like wings and legs.

The best diver. What do penguins do at a depth of one and a half kilometers? Japanese biologists installed cameras on the backs of animals, which for a long time carried out in the depths of the sea. As the authors of the project explain, the sun's rays penetrate only 150 meters deep into the ocean, so it is still unknown what, for example, emperor penguins or elephant seals, which can dive one and a half kilometers.

Can swim for three weeks. The Patagonian penguin can swim for two to three weeks and cover a distance of up to 1,500 km.

The fastest swimmer. The Gentoo penguin (Pygoscelis papua) can swim at speeds of up to 27 km/h.

Diving from the surface of the water. Penguins, loons Gavia immer, grebes, diving ducks Clangula hyemalis and many other birds dive from the surface of the water. Lacking the inertia of diving divers, they use the movements of their legs and (or) wings to dive. In such species, the legs are usually located at the rear end of the body, like a propeller under the stern of a ship. When diving, they can reduce buoyancy by pressing their feathers tightly and squeezing their air sacs.

The most evil penguin. Rock penguins have a very angry character, are noisy and aggressive.

general characteristics

The largest of the modern representatives is the emperor penguin (height - 110-120 cm, weight up to 46 kg), the smallest are representatives of the species Eudyptula minor- small penguin (height 30-40 cm, weight 1-2.5 kg). Such significant differences are explained by Bergmann's rule, of which penguins are a common example. Bergmann's rule states that animals living in cold regions have big sizes body, since this contributes to a more rational ratio of the volume and surface of the animal’s body and thereby reduces heat loss.

Emperor penguins in Antarctica

Body structure

Penguins are distinguished from all other birds by a very special body structure. Penguins have a streamlined body shape, which is ideal for moving in water. The forelimbs of penguins are nothing more than flippers. The musculature and structure of the bones allows them to work underwater with their wings almost like propellers. Unlike other flightless birds, penguins have a sternum with a clearly defined keel, to which powerful muscles are attached. Swimming underwater differs from flying in the air in that the same energy is expended in raising the wing as in lowering it, since water resistance is greater than air resistance, therefore the shoulder blades of penguins have a larger surface area on which the muscles are attached, compared to other birds. responsible for lifting the wing. The humerus and forearm bones are connected at the elbow straight and motionless, which increases the stability of the wing. The pectoral muscles are unusually developed and sometimes account for up to 30% of body weight, which is several times greater than the muscles of the most powerful flying birds. The femurs are very short knee-joint motionless, and the legs are noticeably shifted back, which causes an unusually straight gait. Large feet with a swimming membrane are relatively short - when on land, animals often rest, standing on their heels, while the rigid tail feathers serve as additional support for them. The tail of penguins is greatly shortened, since the steering function, which it usually has in other waterfowl, is performed primarily by the legs in penguins. The second obvious difference between penguins and other birds is bone density. All birds have tubular bones, which makes their skeleton lighter and allows them to fly or run fast. But in penguins they are similar to the bones of mammals (dolphins and seals) and do not contain internal cavities.

Thermoregulation

Within their habitat, penguins are exposed to extreme climatic conditions and have different anatomical features that allow them to adapt to these conditions. Thermal insulation is primarily served by a thick - from 2 to 3 cm - layer of fat, above which there are three layers of waterproof, short, tightly adjacent feathers and evenly distributed throughout the body. Penguins do not have apteria - areas of skin devoid of feathers, unlike almost all other birds; The exception is some tropical species, which have apteria on the front part of the head. The air in the layers of feathers also effectively protects against heat loss when in water. Penguins also have a well-developed “heat transfer system” in their fins and legs: the arterial blood entering them transfers heat to the colder venous blood flowing back to the body, thus keeping heat loss to a minimum. This process is called the "reverse flow principle". On the other hand, penguin species living in tropical waters have to cope with overheating. Their fins, in relation to their body size, are large area, thus the surface from which heat transfer occurs is increased. In addition, some species also lack facial plumage, which speeds up the process of heat transfer in the shade.

Plumage

The numerous small, undifferentiated, rather hair-like feathers that make up the plumage, in almost all species of penguins, are grayish-blue on the back, turning into black, and white on the belly. This coloring is camouflage for many marine animals (for example, dolphins). Males and females are very similar, although males are slightly larger. Most crested penguins (Eudyptes) have a very noticeable orange-yellow head decoration. The plumage of the cubs is often gray or brown, but in some species the sides and belly are white. After hatching eggs and raising chicks, penguins begin molting - changing their plumage. During molting, penguins shed a large number of feathers at the same time and for this time are not able to swim in water and remain without food until new feathers grow. New feathers grow under the old ones and seem to push them out. During this period, which lasts from two to six weeks in different species, birds use fat reserves twice as fast. Subantarctic penguins (Pygoscelis papua) and Galapagos penguins (Spheniscus mendiculus) do not have a clear molting period; in these species it can begin at any time between hatching chicks. In birds that do not hatch chicks, molting almost always begins earlier than in others.

Vision and hearing

Penguins' eyes are perfectly adapted to the conditions of swimming underwater; The cornea of their eyes is very flat, as a result of which birds are slightly myopic on land. Another means of adaptation is the contractility and extensibility of the pupil, which is especially pronounced in Emperor penguins that dive to great depths. Thanks to this feature, penguins' eyes very quickly adapt to changing light conditions in water at a depth of up to 100 m. Analysis of the pigment composition allows us to conclude that penguins see in the blue part of the spectrum better than in the red, and probably even perceive ultraviolet rays. Since light from the red part of the spectrum is scattered already in upper layers water, this visual feature is likely the result of evolutionary adaptation. Penguin ears, like those of most birds, do not have a clear external structure. When diving, they are tightly closed with special feathers, so that water does not penetrate inside the ear. In Emperor penguins, the edge of the outer ear is also enlarged so that it can be closed, thereby protecting the middle and inner ear from pressure damage that can be caused by diving to great depths. Underwater, penguins make almost no sounds, but on land they communicate through calls that resemble the sounds of a trumpet and rattle. It has not yet been established whether they use hearing to track prey and detect their natural enemies.

Nutrition

Penguins feed on fish - Antarctic silverfish (Pleuragramma antarcticum), anchovies (Engraulidae) or sardines (in Clupeidae), as well as crabs such as krill, or small cephalopods, which they hunt by swallowing directly under water. If different types share the same habitat, their diet tends to be different: Adélie penguins and chinstrap penguins prefer krill of different sizes.

Movement

The average speed that penguins develop in water is from five to ten kilometers per hour, but short distances Higher rates are also possible. The most in a fast way movement is “dolphin swimming”; while the animal is on a short time jumps out of the water like a dolphin. The reasons for this behavior are not clear: it probably helps to reduce current resistance, or is intended to confuse natural enemies.

In diving, some penguins break records: smaller species such as the subantarctic penguin (Pygoscelis papua) can stay underwater for one or (rarely) more than two minutes and dive to depths of 20 meters, but Emperor penguins can stay underwater for 18 minutes and dive to more than 530 meters. Although it is precisely the superpowers of Emperor penguins that remain poorly understood to this day, it is known, however, that when diving, the animal’s pulse is reduced to one-fifth of its resting heart rate; Thus, oxygen consumption is reduced, which allows you to increase the duration of stay under water with the same volume of air in the lungs. The mechanism for regulating body pressure and temperature when diving to great depths remains unknown.

When leaving the water, penguins can jump to overcome the height coastline up to 1.80 m. Due to their relatively short legs, penguins move on land by waddling from side to side - this method of movement, as biomechanical studies have proven, saves a lot of energy. On ice, penguins can also move quickly - they slide down mountains while lying on their stomachs. Some species travel many kilometers between the sea and the place where their colony has settled.

Habitat

Penguins live in the open seas of the Southern Hemisphere: in the coastal waters of Antarctica, New Zealand, southern Australia, South Africa, along the entire west coast of South America from the Falkland Islands to Peru, as well as on the Galapagos Islands near the Equator. Penguins prefer cool weather, so in tropical latitudes they appear only with cold currents - the Humboldt Current on the west coast of South America or the Benguela Current, which arises at the Cape of Good Hope and washes the west coast of South Africa.

Most species live between 45° and 60° south latitude; the largest concentration of individuals is in Antarctica and on the adjacent islands.

The most northern place Penguin habitat is the Galapagos Islands, located near the equator.

Reproduction

Penguins in folklore

There is a joke among Russian fans of Formula 1 driver Kimi Raikkonen that during the years of his performances for the McLaren team, penguins (unexpectedly jumping onto the track or sitting in the car) were the cause of technical breakdowns and piloting errors.
There is another joke: “ Pengu And we are swallows, only very fat ones».