WHAT ARE PENGUINS Penguins are a group of flightless birds that split their time between land and sea Penguins are chubby with short legs and wings shaped like flippers They have dark feathers over their backs and pale ones on their bellies A group of penguins can be called a waddle on land or a raft in the water Depending on which biologist you ask there are between 17-20 species of penguin and these can be split into six distinct groups Royal penguin King penguin Chinstrap penguin Humboldt penguin Yellow eyed penguin Little penguin Crested penguins have red bills red eyes and yellow feathered crests on their heads Great penguins are the king penguin and the emperor penguin They have thin beaks and colourful patches on either side of their head Brush tailed penguins have long tail feathers that sweep the ground as they walk Banded penguins are named after the black band on their chest They also have spots on their bellies and black beaks with a little white mark on them The yellow eyed penguin is the only remaining species in this group It is named after the distinctive colouring around its eyes Little penguins have blue tinged feathers and their scientific name Eudyptula means good little diver
Nom Nom Penguins are carnivores which means they eat other animals They hunt in the sea and most commonly prey on fish Penguins also eat squid lobsters crabs eels jellyfish seahorses and tiny shrimp like creatures called krill Home Sweet Home The equator is an imaginary line dividing the north and south of our planet Nearly all penguins live below the equator but Galápagos penguins sometimes venture north of it Some species live as far south as icy Antarctica but penguins live in lots of other habitats including rocky areas beaches and coastal forests People often imagine penguins and polar bears hanging out together but they would never meet in the wild Polar bears only live in the very north of the Earth known as the Arctic Circle Polar Region C North Pole Northern hemisphere Polar Region C Southern hemisphere South Pole Arctic Circle Equator Antarctica 7
BY DESIGN Penguins spend most of their lives in the sea They are specially adapted to this aquatic lifestyle Take a closer look at some of the features of this Humboldt penguin to see how these birds thrive in our oceans Feet Their webbed feet are positioned at the back of the body to help with steering and movement in water The placement of the feet forces penguins to stand in a distinctive upright position on land Most penguins have three forward facing toes and one pointing backwards Each toe has a claw for helping penguins to dig or to grip ice and rock when on land Black & White Feathers Having a dark back and light front is an example of countershading This helps penguins hide from both predators and prey If a penguin swims above you its white belly blends in with the surface of the water which looks pale from the light of the sun If a penguin is below you it is hard to spot its dark back against the ocean below Gentoo penguin Body Shape Penguins have an incredibly streamlined shape in water which tapers at both ends This helps them move with less effort through water 8 Tail Their short stiff wedge shaped tails can be used to help steer when swimming or balance when walking Humboldt penguin Blubber Penguins have thick layers of fat to help keep them warm even in freezing cold waters This blubber can be several centimetres thick and can account for a third of a penguin's overall weight
Wings The wings are stiff and flat to act like fins While these are useless for any attempt at flight they make penguins fast and agile in water On land penguins use their wings to help them balance while they walk Penguin wing and bones Pigeon wing and bones Ears Penguins have holes for ears They are on either side of their head and covered by feathers Supraorbital Gland The ocean has a lot of salt in it and so does the food penguins eat Too much salt is bad for them so they use their supraorbital gland to filter excess amounts from their blood This is excreted as a fluid from their beak Bones Most birds have hollow air filled bones to help them fly but penguins are designed to sink Penguins have dense skeletons which reduces how much they naturally float and makes it easier for them to swim and dive Mouth Penguins don't have teeth instead they have fleshy spines on their tongues and the inside of their mouths The spines point towards the back of the throat which helps them swallow prey Eyes Their eyes are specially adapted for seeing underwater and on land They rely on their eyesight to find food Beaks Hook shaped beaks help penguins grab and keep hold of slippery sea creatures 9
