PENGUINS. Marine Discovery Centre, Henley Beach, S.A. MDC 1

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1 PENGUINS Marine Discovery Centre, Henley Beach, S.A. MDC 1

2 The common features of all penguins is that they cannot fly. They use their wings to help them swim. There are 17 different species of penguin and they all live south of the Equator. Their body is smooth and streamlined, so it can move through the water with speed. On land, penguins shuffle along rather slowly on their short legs. Some penguins will often slide headfirst down an icy hill to gain extra MDC speed. 2

3 Penguins can t fly even though they are birds but they are very good swimmers. Penguins are warm blooded with a normal body temperature of about 39 degrees C. Penguins have a layer of fat under their skin called blubber. Over the top of this they are covered with fluffy down feathers and then they have their outer feathers which overlap to seal in warmth. To make the feathers waterproof and windproof penguins rub oil from a gland onto their feathers. Penguins are often seen in groups huddled shoulder to shoulder with their wings tight against their body. This is another way to help stay warm. Penguins, like the Galapagos, which live in tropical weather get too hot. These penguins spread out their wings and fluff out their feathers to help them cool off. MDC 3

4 Penguin Family CRESTED GROUP (6) Rockhopper Penguin Snares Penguin Royal Penguin Erect-Crested Penguin Macaroni Penguin Fiordland Penguin MDC 4

5 Crested Group COMMON NAME AVERAGE LENGTH WEIGHT RANGE Rockhopper 55 cm kg Fiordland 55 cm kg Snares 56 cm kg Erect-crested 67 cm kg Macaroni 70 cm kg Royal 70 cm kg MDC 5

6 Penguin Family BANDED GROUP (4) Magellanic Penguin Galápagos Penguin Humboldt Penguin African or Jackass Penguin MDC 6

7 Banded Group COMMON NAME AVERAGE LENGTH WEIGHT RANGE Magellanic 70 cm kg Humboldt 65 cm kg Galápagos 53 cm kg African or 70 cm kg Jackass MDC 7

8 Penguin Family BRUSHED-TAILED GROUP (3) Chinstrap Penguin Gentoo Penguin Adélie Penguin MDC 8

9 Brushed-tailed Group COMMON NAME AVERAGE LENGTH WEIGHT RANGE Chinstrap 68 cm kg Adélie 70 cm kg Gentoo 78 cm kg MDC 9

10 Penguin Family LARGE GROUP (2) King Penguin Emperor Penguin MDC 10

11 Large Group COMMON NAME AVERAGE LENGTH WEIGHT RANGE King 95 cm kg Emperor 115 cm kg MDC 11

12 Penguin Family OTHERS Yellow-eyed Penguin Little or Fairy Penguin MDC 12

13 Others COMMON NAME AVERAGE LENGTH WEIGHT RANGE Yellow-eyed 72 cm kg Little or Fairy 42 cm kg MDC 13

14 More Penguin facts Penguins eat three main foods: fish, squid and crustaceans. Kings and Emperor Penguins lay only a single egg. All other penguins lay two eggs about four days apart. The incubation period varies with the size of the penguin. In the little penguin, it lasts roughly 33 days; in the medium-sized species, it varies between 35 and 40 days and in the largest species, it varies between 54 to 66 days. Penguins have relatively long life spans. It s possible that an emperor could live for 50 years. The life span records for most other species are around 20 years. Most emperors can live for 20 to 30 years. Little penguins can live between 6 and 7 years. The oldest known little penguin lived to be 21 years old. MDC 14

15 Penguin Terminology BLUBBER: A thick layer of fat stored under the skin. COLONY: A gathering place for breeding animals. CRECHE: A group of young animals. CROP: A place in the penguin s body where food is held so that can be digested. DOWN: A layer of fine, soft feathers. INCUBATION: The period when the egg is kept warm before it hatches. KRILL: Shrimp-like sea animals. MAMMAL: A warm-blooded animal, the female of which gives birth to young that are fed on their mother s milk. MOULTING: When a penguin moults, its old feathers drop out and are replaced by new feathers. REGURGITATE: To bring up food from the stomach to the mouth. MDC 15

16 BIBLIOGRAPHY Lynch, Wayne, Penguins of the World, Firefly Books Ltd, 1997 Love, John, Penguins, Colin Baxter Photography Ltd, 1997 Pyers, Greg, Life Cycles of Australian Animals Little Penguin, Echidna Books, Australia, 2002 Noonan, Diana, Life Cycles- The Emperor Penguin, Macmillan Education Australia Pty Ltd, Australia, MDC 16