Probably the most amazing birds on our planet are penguins. Interesting Facts about these cute creatures we will present to you in this article. This single bird, which swims beautifully, but cannot fly. In addition, the penguin can walk upright. This is a flightless bird belonging to the penguin order.

Habitat

Huge territories, mainly in the cold regions of the Southern Hemisphere, are the places where penguins live. The largest populations are recorded in Antarctica. In addition, they feel quite comfortable in South Africa and southern Australia. Almost the entire coastline of South America is the territory where penguins live.

Name

The origin of the name of these birds has three versions. The first explains it by a combination of the words pen - "head" and gwyn - "white". It once referred to the wingless auk (now extinct). Since these birds are similar in appearance, the name was transferred to the penguin.

According to the second version, the penguin got its name from English word pinwing, which translates as "hairpin wing". According to the third version, the name of the bird comes from the Latin pinguis, which means "fat".

Types of penguins

Do you know how many species of penguins live on our planet? By modern classification, these birds are combined into six genera and nineteen species. We will introduce you to some of them in this article.

emperor penguin

The largest and heaviest bird: the weight of the male can reach 40 kg, and the body length is about 130 cm. The plumage is black on the back, the abdomen is white, and characteristic bright yellow or orange spots can be seen on the neck. Emperor penguins are inhabitants of the Antarctic.

king penguin

Outwardly, it is very similar to the imperial one, but somewhat inferior to it in size: its body length is about 100 cm, and its weight does not exceed 18 kg. In addition, this species has a different color - the back is covered with dark gray, sometimes almost black feathers, the abdomen is white, and bright orange spots are located on the sides of the head and on the breast. These birds live in the coastal waters of the Lusitania Bay, on Tierra del Fuego, the South and Sandwich Islands, Kerguelen and Crozet, Macquarie and South Georgia, Prince Edward and Heard.

Adelie Penguin

Medium sized bird. Its length does not exceed 75 cm, and its weight is 6 kg. The back of Adele is black, the belly is white. A feature of this species is a white ring around the eyes. These birds live in Antarctica, as well as on the islands adjacent to it: Orkney and South Shetland.

Northern crested penguin

A species that is currently under threat of extinction. This is a small bird about 55 cm long and weighs 3 kg. The back and wings are gray-black. The belly is white. Yellow eyebrows merge into tufts of bright yellow feathers located to the side of the eyes. On the head of the penguin is a black crest, which gave the name to the species.

The main part of the population inhabits the islands of Impregnable and Gough, Tristan da Cunha, which are located in the Atlantic Ocean.

Golden-haired penguin

The body length of this penguin varies within 76 cm, weight - just over 5 kg. Color - typical for all penguins, but with one feature: above the eyes there are unusual bunches of golden feathers. Golden-haired penguins inhabited the southern shores of the Indian Ocean, the Atlantic, and are slightly less common in the north of Antarctica, as well as on the islands of the Subantarctic.

External Features

On land this unusual bird, which cannot fly, looks somewhat awkward due to the structural features of the limbs and body. Penguins have a streamlined body shape with well-developed pectoral keel muscles - often it makes up a quarter of the total mass of the bird.

The body of the penguin is well-fed, slightly laterally compressed, covered with feathers. The head is not too large, located on a flexible and mobile, but short neck. The beak of these birds is strong and sharp.

Interesting facts about penguins are related to their structure. In the course of evolution and lifestyle, the wings of the penguin have changed and turned into flippers: underwater, they rotate in the shoulder joint like a screw. The legs are thick and short, with four toes, which are connected by swimming membranes.

Unlike most birds, the legs of the penguin are noticeably shifted back, which forces the bird to keep its body strictly vertical when on land. A short tail, which consists of twenty hard feathers, helps the penguin to maintain balance: the bird leans on it if necessary.

Another interesting fact about penguins is that their skeleton is not made up of hollow tubular bones, which is usually characteristic of birds. Their bones are more similar in structure to the bones of marine mammals. For thermal insulation, penguins have a solid supply of fat, its layer reaches three centimeters.

The plumage of penguins is thick and dense: short, small feathers cover the bird's body like tiles, protecting it from getting wet in cold water.

Lifestyle

Penguins are under water in search of food for quite a long time, plunging to three meters deep and covering distances of about thirty kilometers. It's amazing how fast penguins swim - it can reach 10 km per hour. Representatives of some species can dive to a depth of 130 meters. When penguins do not enter the mating season and do not nurse offspring, they move away from the coast for quite long distances (up to 1000 km).

To speed up movement on land, the penguin lies on its belly and quickly slides over snow or ice, pushing off with its limbs. This method of movement allows birds to reach speeds of up to 6 km / h. Under natural conditions, the penguin lives for about twenty-five years. In captivity, with proper care, this figure increases to thirty.

What do penguins eat?

For one hunt, the penguin makes from 190 to 900 dives. The exact number depends on climatic conditions, the type of penguin, and the need for food. It is interesting that the bird's mouth apparatus is arranged according to the principle of a pump: it sucks medium-sized prey through its beak. During feeding, on average, birds swim about thirty kilometers and spend almost eighty minutes a day at a depth of more than three meters.

The basis of the diet of penguins is fish. But what do penguins eat (other than fish)? The bird gladly eats squids, small octopuses and small mollusks. The young feed on semi-digested food that their parents regurgitate from their stomachs.

How do penguins sleep?

The answer to this question is of interest to many of our readers. Penguins sleep standing up, keeping their body temperature during sleep. Interesting facts about penguins are associated with this state of birds. The time they spend sleeping is directly dependent on the air temperature - the lower the temperature, the shorter the sleep. Birds sleep longer during molting: during this period they eat little, and additional sleep allows them to reduce energy consumption. In addition, penguins sleep while incubating eggs.

It turns out that not all penguins are cute and harmless creatures. For example, stone penguins are endowed with a rather aggressive disposition. They can attack any object they don't like.

Penguins do not need fresh water - they drink sea water because they have special glands that filter out salt.

During the mating season, expressing his tender feelings, the male spectacled penguin strokes his chosen one on the head with his wing.

The legs of penguins do not freeze, because they have a minimum number of nerve endings.

Penguins are represented by many species and are quite common on the planet. Their characteristic gait makes them funny creatures that both children and adults like. This interesting family is associated with several exciting facts.

Penguins lost their ability to fly 62 million years ago

Initially, these birds could fly, but over time they began to swim more actively and as a result lost the ability to take to the air. The most surprising thing is how long ago penguins began to strive for life in the water. Their oldest varieties, discovered during excavations, lived sixty million years ago. And already by that time they could not fly, although they were not as well adapted to life in the water as modern ones. Scientists believe that the ancient penguins moved on the water surface.

Giant penguins weighing eighty kilograms lived in New Zealand forty million years ago

When we look at historical facts about penguins, we can learn amazing details about their ancestors. At the moment, the largest are emperor penguins. They are more than a meter tall and weigh forty-five kilograms. In New Zealand, traces of ancient penguins were found that lived here forty million years ago - they were over one and a half meters and weighed about eighty kilograms! Scientists were unable to establish whether it was a specific species or such dimensions were the result of natural factors, because here the birds did not have natural enemies and there was an incredible amount of food. Over time, whales began to appear here, which became a danger to penguins - as a result, they became extinct twenty-five million years ago.

Penguins are carnivores

The harmless appearance of the animal, as if dressed in a tailcoat, attracts children and adults, so penguins are real favorites of zoo visitors. But not all people who are touched by a cute creature that funny minces with small paws know that they are dangerous predators that feed exclusively on meat. Penguins also catch fish and other sea creatures such as squid and octopus. Such a diet is caused by the place of distribution - most penguins live in Antarctica, where there are practically no plants. At the same time, they are not only predators, but also food for predators, especially in childhood - they are hunted by seals and killer whales.

Penguins can endure minus seventy degrees Celsius cold by gathering closer to each other.

Emperor penguins are able to endure the harsh climate of Antarctica through adaptation. They have a thick layer of feathers to help reduce heat loss, and they can control blood flow by warming certain parts of the body. Most importantly, in order to survive, they work in groups, huddling together in a dense crowd, cuddling up to each other and warming each other. The penguins are not just standing, they are constantly changing places so that no one has to stand all the time at the edge, where it is coldest, and no one stays constantly in the center, where it is warmest.

Penguins can dive up to 500 meters

The largest penguins in existence today, emperor penguins, are capable of doing things that others cannot, precisely because of their size. For example, diving, they are able to dive to a depth of five hundred meters. To compensate for the pressure that they have to withstand, their body has certain features. For example, they have dense bones - in other birds they are filled with air. This helps to minimize barotrauma. During the dive, the pulse is reduced as much as possible to conserve oxygen, and the blood of the emperor penguin has a special composition that allows the body to function longer without breathing.

Penguins can drink salt water

The digestive system of these birds is ideally adapted to life by the sea. An interesting fact: in their throat there is a gland that filters salt from the bloodstream. This allows the penguins to drink salty sea water if they are thirsty. It could kill a man!

Penguins live in colonies of 200,000 birds.

Emperor penguins unite in groups for survival, but other species prefer to live together. Golden-haired penguins love company more than others - they can live in colonies of several hundred thousand birds. As a result of this habitat, penguins have developed a unique way to communicate with other birds. They do not have a complex language, but there is a certain vocal system with which males and females can communicate.

Emperor penguins lay only one egg during the breeding season.

During the cold Antarctic months, emperor penguins begin to breed, and each female can only lay one egg. This is due to the fact that protecting it from the cold is already so difficult, so more eggs would simply be lost. The emperor penguin is the fifth largest bird on the planet. During the incubation of eggs, males lose a quarter of their weight. At the same time, only a fifth of all chicks survive in the first year of their life.
On average, emperor penguins live up to twenty years, while scientists believe that some can live up to fifty. As a result of high juvenile mortality, the average age of 80% of the penguins in the population is five years or more.

Penguins do not live in the northern hemisphere

Penguins can only be found in one hemisphere of the planet. When these birds were first discovered, they were confused with loons. These are northern birds that may be somewhat similar to penguins, but are a completely separate genus. Modern loons can fly, although they do not show brilliant results in this matter. All their common features with penguins are explained by the joint development and survival in similar territories.

Penguins can swim at speeds up to forty kilometers per hour.

The penguin cannot fly, but it swims just fine. Tiny wings turn into powerful engines in the water. Usually these birds move no faster than fifteen kilometers per hour, but in case of danger due to the attack of a seal or killer whale, they can accelerate significantly - even up to forty kilometers per hour!

Amazing penguin birds seem to many to be very funny creatures. And indeed, how can one resist tenderness, watching their clubfoot gait? But in fact, evolution adapted them to life in harsh conditions, and these funny birds do a great job. Only now the influence of technogenic civilization is gradually destroying their habitat, and soon there may be a threat to their population.

Penguin Facts

• In total, there are 18 species of these birds in the world.
• The first penguins appeared on Earth so long ago that they caught the dinosaurs.
• Up to 30% of the entire penguin mass falls on a very developed musculature of the chest. They need such strong muscles to swim fast.
• When on land, penguins sit leaning on their short tail. And when swimming, he serves as a rudder for them.
• Unlike all other birds, penguins have dense bones, not hollow ones, and are more reminiscent of mammalian bones ().
• Nearly half of all flightless bird species on Earth are penguins. But they are not the largest of their kind - there are also ostriches ().
• Since killer whales often prey on penguins, these birds do not always risk diving into the water. If one dives, the most courageous, and remains alive, the rest of the flock follows him.
• Galapagos penguins, living on the islands of the same name, live in a warm, even hot climate, and they are generally not adapted to the cold.
• The largest of the penguins, emperors, spend up to 10 months annually in Antarctica.
• Penguin feathers resemble hairs or hairs.
• During the molt, these birds cannot swim, and therefore starve until the feathers grow back if they are not fed by relatives.
• Penguins are the only birds in the world that can swim without being able to fly.
• Of all the birds, only penguins walk standing up like people.
• To keep warm, penguins huddle in dense heaps. In the center of this gathering, the temperature can be 40-45 degrees higher than outside, and the birds constantly change places to keep everyone warm.
• In order not to fall into the snow, penguins lie on their stomachs and glide like skiers, pushing off with their wings. Moreover, they can move quite quickly in this way.
• Penguin paws do not feel cold due to the fact that there are very few nerve endings in them.
• They are able to survive at temperatures down to -60 degrees. Such cold can quickly kill most other living beings.
• Emperor penguins are monogamous, pairing for life.
• A case was recorded when, after a group of exploration geologists stole a penguin egg, the whole flock began to pursue them, without trying, however, to attack them. After conferring, the kidnappers returned the egg to the birds, and they fell behind.
• The swimming speed of penguins reaches 30-35 km/h.

• Usually these birds search for prey in surface waters, but if necessary, they can dive to a depth of 100-200 meters. And emperor penguins - up to 500 meters.
• Most penguins are quite indifferent to everything around them, unless they are in danger. But stone penguins have a rather angry disposition, and they are often the first to attack any uninvited guest.
• The layer of fat in penguins living in cold regions reaches 2-3 cm in thickness.
• They often lose weight and gain weight. So, emperor penguins hunt 2-3 times a month, overeating to satiety. By the next hunt, they can lose 30-40 percent of their mass.
• The litter of gentoo penguins is pink.
• The weight of small penguins is only 1-2.5 kg, and growth usually does not exceed 30-40 cm.
• Penguins have a flat cornea of ​​​​the eyes, which allows them to see perfectly underwater, but on land they are short-sighted because of this ().
• For more successful diving to greater depths, penguins swallow stones.
• Under water, they can stay up to 25-30 minutes.
• The eggs are incubated by the males of these birds, and not by the females who are hunting at this time.
• The walking speed of penguins on land does not exceed 2-3 km / h, but if necessary, they are able to walk a hundred kilometers without stopping to rest.
• Patagonian penguins can swim for several weeks in a row, covering a distance of several thousand kilometers.
• All penguins, except emperor penguins, build nests.
• They do not require fresh water to drink. The penguins are taking it easy sea ​​water, and excess salt is excreted from their bodies with the help of special glands.
• Of all the penguin species in the world, the most golden-haired. Now there are about 20 million of them on Earth.
• The magnificent penguins living in New Zealand are the only ones that spend most of their lives on land.
• The number of penguin colonies can reach 10-20 thousand individuals.
• Female penguins sometimes kidnap someone else's cubs if their own dies.
• These birds easily recognize each other by their voice.
• Most penguins are not afraid of people, as they are used to the fact that danger can lie in wait for them only in the water.
• Unlike most other birds, penguins are not sexually dimorphic, and it is very difficult to visually distinguish females from males.
• The ancestors of modern penguins lived in a different geological era, when Antarctica was not yet at the pole, and the climate there was quite warm. Millions of years passed, Antarctica moved to the South Pole, and most of the local animals either migrated or died out. But the penguins stayed and adapted.
• During the mating season, individual penguin colonies huddle into one, and up to 5 million of these birds can be found in one place.

Southern Hemisphere- an exceptional habitat for all 17 species of the penguin family.

The largest penguin- the emperor penguin, whose height reaches 120 cm, and the smallest is the small, or blue penguin. His average height is only 33 cm.

The fastest of the penguins- subantarctic, or gentoo penguin. Under water, it can reach speeds of up to 36 km / h.

Color, as usual in the animal kingdom, helps penguins to mimic under environment: black back merges with the dark and gloomy seabed, and the white belly merges with the light surface of the water.

penguin ancestors survived the mass extinction of dinosaurs - this is evidenced by the fossilized remains of the earliest relative of penguins, whose age, according to scientists, is about 60 million years.

Specialized supraocular gland, which penguins have, filters salt water from the bloodstream. The fact is that when hunting for fish, penguins swallow a lot of sea water. With the help of this gland, they excrete salt water through their beak or by sneezing.

Molting penguins, unlike other birds, large-scale. If other birds drop a few feathers, then the penguins do not waste time - they get rid of huge amount feathers at a time, which is why they cannot swim and are forced to stay on land (read - without food) until new feathers grow.

In the colonies, the number of which can reach thousands of birds, almost all penguins are brought up - with the exception of just a few species.

Penguins are monogamous and monogamous. It depends on the specific species, but most penguins mate for life.

Nest, which create penguins, as a rule, also becomes permanent: in most cases, penguins nest where they themselves were born.

emperor penguins, unlike other brethren, do not make nests of pebbles and feathers. The female emperor penguin lays only one egg, which is incubated in a brood pouch - a special fold in the underside of the belly. First, the female incubates the egg, then, rolling, gives it to the male (who also has a brood bag).

plump males have advantages over slender penguins - they have enough fat to survive several weeks without food, incubating the egg while the female goes to feed.

About chicks cared for by both parents, male and female. As a rule, it takes several months for the baby to be strong enough for independent hunting.

Kidnapping not news for emperor penguins: if a female dies, she can kidnap someone else.

Excellent hearing almost all types of penguins can boast, despite the lack of visible ears. They easily recognize by the voice of their comrades among hundreds of other penguins in a populous colony.

"Strange Geese"- so called the penguins Antonio Pigafetta, who traveled with Magellan in 1520 and was the first person to tell the world about the mysterious birds.

In 1487 on board Vasco da Gama's ship among the entries of the anonymous diary there are descriptions of flightless birds in the area of ​​the Cape of Good Hope. Perhaps it was also about penguins.

No fear penguins do not experience people in front of people, because they are not used to danger on earth. Don't be surprised when you hear stories of someone petting or hand-feeding penguins.

The air in the layers of feathers is the tool that protects penguins from heat loss, especially when swimming (in very, very cold water).

The word "penguin" itself has been used since the 16th century in relation to the great auk (lat. Pinguinus impennis), an extinct species that once lived off the eastern coast of Canada. When the researchers traveled to the Southern Hemisphere and encountered black and white birds that looked like great auks, they dubbed them penguins.