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They are the clumsiest of all birds on land, they live most of their lives underwater and form huge colonies that protect each other's babies and keep from freezing. These are the penguins, one of earth's most fascinating and weird looking animals. This post includes some gorgoues photos of the little cuties, as well as some interesting information! |
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| We will start with this Incredibly cute Emperor penguin chick. |
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| A Gentoo type penguin trying to navigate on the snowy soil of Antarctica. |
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| Oamaru, New Zealnad is one of the only places you'll find a sign like this, because a colony of blue penguins that live a few miles out of town, any come out of the water as the sun sets. |
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| And if we're talking about blue penguins... Here are an adorable couple. The blue penguin is the smallest of all penguins, standing about 40 cm tall (16 inches) and weighing only 1 kg (2.2 lb), which is why it is also known as: The fairy penguin. |
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| An amazing underwater shot of an emperor penguin, the largest of all 17 penguin species. |
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| The Gentoo penguin is the third largest penguin, after the emperor (#1) and king (#2). They stand at about 76 cm (30 inches) and weight about 5.5 kg (12 pounds). |
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| Penguins can't fly, but they can jump out of the water like they were shot out of a cannon. |
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| The unfortuante named Jackass penguiuns, near the Cape of Good Hope. |
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| Penguins are very social birds, and form colonies that reach thousands of members. They usually live in the wild up to 15-20 years (depending on the species). |
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| Adele penguin colony. |
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| The photographer who took this photo said: "Most Humboldt penguin pairs remain faithful to each other for years, rarely choosing new partners unless one of them dies, and they often return to the same site to breed year after year." |
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| Penguins come ashore a lot, but they are in their nature adapted to living underwater, where they are much more agile, can move much faster and can see better than on land. |
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| Loving Emperor penguin families |
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| The funny looking Rockhopper penguins are a smaller, yet more aggressive species of penguins that hop from rock to rock (which explains the name). |
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| Almost all penguin species live in Antarctica, with the exception of the Galapagos penguins. |
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| The king penguin is the second largest penguin, and weigh about 11-16 kg (24-35 pounds). |
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| In penguin society, it is the father that guards the eggs while the mother goes out to find food. It is the father that gives milk to the chick and the one that incubates the egg before it hatches. |
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| At about 9 weeks old, Adelie penguins lose their soft feathers and get the waterproof coat all penguins need to dive underwater. |
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| South Africa - this is the African penguin, also known as the Jackass penguin, for the donkey-like sounds it makes. |
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| A meeting point for emperor penguin chicks. This is like leaving your kids at kindergarden, while you go to work. With the adult penguins, work means fishing. |
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| A chick trying to blend with the adults.. Unsuccessfully. |
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| Penguins walking through a blue ice tunnel. |
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| On the left: A cute rockhopper penguin. On the right: An evil-looking Rockhopper Penguin. |
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| An adorable penguin chick. They need to stay at the warm spot underneath their father, otherwise a chick could freeze to death in under 2 minutes. |
Submitted by: Sven V.
