Page 61 - Digital Cornice Grade 9

Behold The Waddlers

By: Suhani Ranjitkar

Behold the waddlers, the belly-gliders, the flightless which allows them to reunite in a large, noisy crowd.
seabirds of the South, the penguins. With their There are 18 different species of the penguins. Most
stocky, short legged appearance, penguins have penguins live in the Southern Hemisphere with an
charmed people worldwide. Most penguins have exception of one species, the Galápagos penguin, that
black backs and white fronts, with streaks or spots is found in the North. They live half of their life on
of black or white on the chest or breast. Any other land and the other half in the sea. The largest living
color is rather rare, red and yellow being limited species of penguin is the Emperor penguin swhich
to some species, in the form of irises, beaks, brow weigh up to 35 kg and are 1.1 m tall on average. The
tufts etc. The colour of the penguin is an excellent smallest species of penguin is the little blue penguin,
camouflage as their black backs help them blend which is also known as the fairy penguin. They weigh
in with the dark ocean when viewed from the top about 1.2-1.3 kg and are 30-33 cm tall on average.
while their white bellies are similar to the bright Larger penguins tend to live in the colder regions,
surface when viewed from the bottom. while the smaller penguins live in the temperate or
Though penguins may not be able to use their tropical climates. Some prehistoric penguins were
wings to fly, they are extremely agile in water. Their said to be as tall and as heavy as a human adult.
swimming is similar to the flight of a bird in the air.
Unlike most bird species that have hollow bones,
penguin’s bones are solid which enables them to
sink in and dive through water at incredible speed.
Gentoo penguins are the fastest swimmers of all
penguin species. When on snow, penguins either
waddle on their feet, or slide on their bellies in
order to conserve energy. They also have a thick
layer of insulating feathers which keeps them
warm when in water.
Penguins are known to be carnivores. They feed on
krill, fish, squid and other marine life which they Some extra facts about penguins:
catch with their bill and swallow whilst swimming. 1. A group of penguins in the water is called a raft,
Just like other birds, penguins do not have teeth. and on land, that group is called a waddle.
Instead, a spiny tongue with powerful jaws to grip 2. Males can be extremely aggressive and violent
slippery prey is present. trying to get the female’s attention.
Penguins come ashore to lay eggs and raise their 3. If the female loses its baby or its egg won’t hatch,
chicks. Most stay with their mates for years, laying it is known to steal the babies of other mothers.
one to two eggs at a time. The parents take turns in 4. When penguins go into the water, they go in
warming the egg. Each year, hundreds of newborn large groups. They will shove one of their own
birds wait in groups as their parents hunt for food to check whether there are predators and if the
for a few weeks. Chicks recognize the unique audio waters are safe for the rest of them.
frequency of their parents’ call when they return,

References:
https://www.visitsealife.com/sydney/information/news/5-fun-facts-about-penguins/
worldanimalprotection.us/blogs/10-facts-about-penguins
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penguin
https://www.britannica.com/animal/penguin/Natural-history