#Emperor Penguins 🐧🐧🐧

[xtruss]

Why Are These Emperor Penguin Chicks Jumping From a 50-Foot Cliff?

The First-of-Its-Kind Footage, Taken in January 2024 Via Drone, Captures a Rare Event that May Become More Common as Sea Ice Declines and Penguins are Forced to Adapt.

— Photographs and Video By Bertie Gregory | By Rene Ebersole | April 11, 2024

Emperor penguin chicks jump off a 50-foot cliff to take their first swim in Atka Bay, Antarctica. Photographer Bertie Gregory used his drone's powerful zoom lens to maintain distance from the captivating scene.

Like a group of teenagers crowding at the top of a cliff, waiting to see if someone will be brave enough to jump into the lake first, hundreds of months-old emperor penguins gather at the top of an Antarctic ice shelf towering roughly 50 feet above the sea.

Motivated by hunger, the fledglings peer over the edge, as if considering whether they might survive a polar plunge from such a height.

Then one bird goes for it

For the first time, experts have filmed emperor penguin chicks leaping 50 feet off an Antarctic cliff. The incredible footage will appear in the series "Secrets of the Penguins," which will debut on Earth Day 2025 on National Geographic and Disney+.

Some of the onlookers crane their necks to watch it plummet and splash into the icy water below. Seconds later, the chick surfaces and swims away—off to fill its belly with fresh fish, krill, and squid. Gradually, other fledglings follow, tumbling and flapping wings built for traversing water, not air.

Filmmakers producing a documentary series called Secrets of the Penguins, which will debut on Earth Day 2025 on National Geographic and Disney+, captured the extraordinarily rare scene by drone in January in Atka Bay, on the edge of the Weddell Sea in West Antarctica. It’s the first video footage of emperor penguin chicks leaping from such a high cliff, according to scientists.

As climate change melts sea ice in Antarctica, more emperor penguin chicks are breeding on the permanent ice shelf—forcing them to jump from higher heights into the ocean.

“I cannot believe they caught it on film,” says Michelle LaRue, a conservation biologist based at the University of Canterbury in Christchurch, New Zealand. LaRue, who did not witness the jump, had visited Atka Bay to consult on the film crew’s third year of documenting emperor penguin behavior, from egg laying to chick fledging.

Ordinarily, emperor penguins nest on free-floating sea ice that thaws and blows away each year, not on the ice shelf, which is firmly attached to the land. But lately, some colonies have been nesting on the shelf. Scientists theorize that the shift could be related to increasingly earlier seasonal thawing of the sea ice caused by climate change.

At about five months old, Emperor Penguin chicks began to shed their down and grow their adult feathers, preparing for a life spent partially at sea.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature lists the world emperor penguin population, estimated to be about 500,000 birds, as near threatened due in large part to how climate change is impacting its icy realm.

In early January 2024, in the final weeks before the sea ice broke up at the end of the Southern Hemisphere summer, filmmakers spotted a group of chicks that LaRue thinks were likely raised on the ice shelf waddling north toward the cliff. Curious about where they were headed, the filmmakers dispatched a drone for a bird’s-eye view. Gradually, more chicks joined the dawdling group, growing in numbers until there were a couple hundred standing at the top of the bluff.

‘I’m Gonna Have To Go’

Gerald Kooyman, a research physiologist who has spent more than five decades studying emperor penguins in Antarctica, says he has only seen such an event once—more than 30 years ago.

“Drifting snow had formed a gently sloping ramp from the sea ice onto a grounded iceberg, and a flock of departing chicks had marched up the ramp onto the berg,” Kooyman writes in his book Journeys with Emperors, published in November 2023.

“They were stopped by a 20-meter [roughly 67-foot] cliff over a sea that was sometimes open water and other times crowded with ice floes.” Over the course of a couple days, almost 2,000 chicks assembled at the ledge.

“Finally, they started walking off the cliff,” writes Kooyman, an Emeritus Professor with the Center for Marine Biotechnology and Biomedicine at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in California.

“Not jumping or leaping, just stepping out and falling head over heels, sometimes doing two flips before hitting the water with a resounding plop.”

Most of the fledglings survived the jump into the icy waters. The chick on the left that fell into a crevasse used its beak to climb out and leap the rest of the way.

This phenomenon is rare, say scientists who monitor penguins from satellites in space. Peter Fretwell, a British Antarctic Survey Scientist who has studied Satellite imagery of the Atka Bay emperor colony for several years, occasionally sees penguin tracks going north toward that cliff. He theorizes that the chicks in January may have followed one or two vagrant adults that “went the wrong way, basically.”

Juvenile emperors usually fledge from the sea ice, hopping just a couple feet into the ocean. But these fledglings found themselves in a tricky location for entering the water while likely feeling extremely hungry, the scientists say. Their parents had already gone to sea, sending the message that it’s time for them to fish for themselves, and the chicks had been sitting tight waiting for their sleek, waterproof adult feathers to grow in, replacing their down.

“When they get to this cliff face, they’re like, ‘Alright, I see the ocean and I need to get in there,’” LaRue says. “This does not look like a fun jump, but I guess I’m gonna have to go.”

Resilient Birds

While the scientists do not think the cliff-jumping incident was directly related to climate change warming Antarctica, Fretwell says the continuing decline of sea ice on the continent may force more emperors to breed on ice shelves, therefore making the behavior more common in the future.

Scientists have been concerned about the sudden decrease in Antarctic Sea ice since 2016 and the likely dire consequences for emperor penguins’ long-term survival.

“We estimate that we could lose the whole population by the end of the century,” Fretwell says. “It’s heartbreaking to think that the whole species may be gone if climate change continues on the path that it’s on at the moment.”

LaRue remains hopeful about the emperors’ ability to adapt, and she considers the recent high dive caught on film a testament to their hardiness.

“They’re incredibly resilient,” she says. “They have been around for millions of years; they’ve seen lots of different changes in their environment. It’s a question of how rapidly they’re able to deal with the changes that are happening—and how far they can be pushed.”

[afeelgoodblog]

The Best News of Last Week 🐧

1. ‘Robin Hood’ energy strikers give free power to French schools, hospitals, low-income homes

Amid national strikes in the energy sector, some workers in France have found a novel way to protest. On Thursday, "Robin Hood" operations – unauthorised by the government – provided free gas and electricity to schools, universities, and low-income households throughout the country.

Among the facilities provided free energy were public sports facilities, daycare centers, public libraries, some small businesses and homes that had been cut off from power. 

2. UK scientists discover method to reduce steelmaking’s CO2 emissions by 90%

Researchers from the University of Birmingham have developed an innovative method for existing furnaces that could reduce steelmaking’s CO2 emission by nearly 90%.

The iron and steel industry is a major cause of greenhouse gasses, accounting for 9% of global emissions. That’s because of the inherent carbon-intensive nature of steel production in blast furnaces, which currently represent the most-widely used practice.

3. Watch this cargo ship fly a giant kite to save fuel and cut emissions

The 2,700-square-foot parafoil is helping to tow the cargo ship and lessen the workload of the massive diesel engines — reducing the ship’s use of dirty fuel.

4. Scientists discover emperor penguin colony in Antarctica using satellite images

A newly discovered emperor penguin colony has been seen, using satellite images of one the most remote and inaccessible regions of Antarctica.

The colony, home to about 500 birds, makes a total of 66 known emperor penguin colonies around the coastline of Antarctica, half of which were discovered by space satellites. Emperor penguins are the only penguins that breed on sea ice, rather than land, and are located in areas that are very difficult to study because they are remote, inaccessible and can experience temperatures as low as −60C

Kowalski, analysis!

5. Dungeons & Dragons Scraps Plans to Update Its Open Game License

Wizards of the Coast, publisher of Dungeons & Dragons, announced yesterday that it will no longer be pursuing deauthorization of the Open Gaming License 1.0a. The deauthorization of the OGL 1.0a was a huge sticking point for fans and third-party publishers who made a living using a license that was granted nearly two decades ago.

6. Turning problem sea algae into a replacement for plastic

Excessive outbreaks of seaweed and microalgae are clogging up waters from the Caribbean to the Baltic. Now both are being harvested alongside farmed crops to create ingredients for cosmetics and food products.

7. German parliament officially commemorates LGBTQ victims of Nazi regime for first time.

The German parliament for the first time on Friday focused its annual Holocaust memorial commemorations on people persecuted and killed over their sexual or gender identity during World War II. Campaigners in Germany have worked for decades to establish an official ceremony to commemorate the LGBTQ victims persecuted under the Nazi regime.

“Today’s hour of remembrances focuses on a group of victims which had to fight for a long time to achieve recognition: people who were persecuted by the National Socialists because of their sexual orientation or their gender identity,” Baerbel Bas, president of the Bundestag lower house, said while opening a ceremony marking International Holocaust Remembrance Day, the anniversary of Auschwitz’s liberation.

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Have a great week ahead :)

[arthistoryanimalia]

PenguinAwarenessDay tea party, anyone? 🐧☕️

ArtDeco 3-piece tea service (teapot, creamer, sugar bowl), penguin-form Indian, c.1920–1930 silver w/ Bakelite handle Museum of Fine Arts, Boston 2013.628.1,2,3

“This tea service, delightfully comprised of emperor penguins (endemic to Antarctica), bears the arms of Ganga Singh, Maharaja of Bikaner from 1888–1943, on the left wing of each piece. The royal arms includes the motto (in Hindi): ‘Victory to the King of the Desert.’ Ganga Singh was one of many Indian maharajas who developed a taste for Art Deco in the early 20th century. The modern lines of this tea service would not have been out of place in his palace, which also featured an Art Deco swimming pool.”

[lynxindisguise]

since i'm suspecting i'll get a trick, this is definitely-not-cat dressed up as an emperor penguin humbly saying: trick or treat!!! 🐧🐧🐧🐧

I don't know why you think I, the friendly neighborhood humble forest cat, would give you a trick! Silly penguin!!

Remus rolls forward to take them, but Sirius soars upward with such force that it sends him flying backwards. He hits the ground with a sickening clang, a dull ache vibrating through him. “Moon?” Sirius sounds distraught. He ignores him, focussing on putting himself right again. It feels a bit like popping his joints back into place after the full. “Moon?” Sirius repeats. “I Sor-E.” It’s undeniably adorable, this round little robot hovering over him with concern. If anything, it only irritates him more. Because Sirius isn’t actually a cute little robot, and he shouldn’t be a cute little robot because he shouldn’t be this far out in the first place.

trick or treat 😈

[apolalfa]

🐧 sgdk Animal Au : penguins

Interesting fact: Emperor penguins' father incubates the egg during the winter while the mother goes out to sea for the fishing season. The father incubates the egg by placing it between his legs,he needs to keep you warm during the freezing cold . Couples stay together for life. Emperor penguins are also the largest and most famous species of penguin.

Warning: Emperor penguins are unfortunately at risk of extinction. If global warming continues, it is estimated that 98% of the species will be extinct by 2100. The survival of this magnificent species does not depend solely on government action, but on us too. We can do our part too!

https://earth.org/over-90-of-emperor-penguins-will-be-quasi-extinct-by-2100-if-current-antarctica-sea-ice-loss-rates-persist-study/

[beefcake-penguin]

Pretty sure you’re the tallest penguin to ever live. What are they feeding you?

Beefhaps (beefcake perhaps) I'm an emperor penguin? 💪🏼🐧

Or some kind of strange, beefy-penguin/sasquatch hybrid? 💪🏼🤔

[rilu-artblog]

I like drawing birds :)

Stan is a Pekin Duck 🦆

Kyle is a Silkie/Polish rooster 🐓

Kenny is an owl 🦉

Cartman is an emperor Penguin 🐧

And Ike is a Loon

[stellartusks]

I must know:

Pls reblog and fight for your champion in the tags! I'd love to see why you choose your fighter!

[parakaryote]

Bird doodles from class 🐧🦅🐤🦉

[Image descriptions:

Image 1: Very simple and small doodle of an emperor penguin on lined paper, standing facing left.

Image 2: Similar doodle of a lappet-faced vulture.

Image 3: Similar doodle of a sparrow.

Image 4: Similar doodle of a barn owl.

End ID.]

[borbology]

penguin and bat facts but cursed edition? 🐧🦇 i need some shitty hcs for my metadede vault 👀

*CRACKS KNUCKLES*

Buckle up guys, it's going to be a wild ride.

PENGUINS:

Penguins have knees, but they're high up in their body. They are also about 50% neck:

They shit like this:

Because they are flightless and do not need hollow bones, being hit by a penguin flipper is surprisingly painful. They can barrage you with up to 8 slaps a second and will use their beak to hold you in place while they do it.

The instinct to parent is so strong in penguins that it was observed if emperor penguins find an orphaned chick, any adult without a chick will pursue them in an effort to claim them as their own, and the horde winds up just crushing the chick to death.

Nearly a third of all female humboldt penguins cheat on their mate, often with other females.

Female humboldt and adélie penguins will prostitute themselves to get paid in stones that they use for their own nests.

And (this is the best one) In 1911 a scientist by the name of George Murray Levick spent a year in Antarctica to study the breeding cycle of adélie penguins. What he observed was that the behavior of the "hooligan" penguins showed so much "sexual depravity" that he felt the need to write his findings in Greek code. When he presented his findings, it was deemed so obscene that the public should never see it, and it wasn't published until 100 years later. I won't go into detail here, but if you want to read about it you can.

BATS:

Their nipples are in their armpits:

The males have big 🥜

They can eat 50% of their body weight every day.

Vampire bats regurgitate blood directly into the mouths of other members of the colony.

Dense bat colonies in caves were responsible for both of the only two known cases where rabies was spread through airborne pathogens.

Bat guano can be used to make gunpowder. It is also very effective fertilizer.

Bat urine crystalizes very quickly upon contact with air, and when bats pee while hanging upside down it forms a stalagmite on the roof.

Some bats have huge babies. The free-tailed bat has babies that are 1/3 the size of the mother, which would be like a 120lb woman having a 40lb baby.

As part of a courtship ritual, some species of male bats will bite the female's neck to tell them they're ready to mate.

Bats lick each-other A LOT before mating. There's also this.

[mermen]

i keep thinking about the story my afternoon professor told a few weeks ago about his friend who worked in antarctica for a few summers fixing planes, sleeping in a tent during the night, and woke up one morning to an emperor penguin standing right outside his tent 🐧

anyway, if i was single, i would absolutely be spending my summers in antarctica and hanging out with penguins im crazy jealous of this guy

[xxheyjude]

this is kinda unfinished, but it did well on Twitter so posting this here too cause I love clout

VERY rough Ozzie redesign

the vest was supposed to be way lighter (I used the wrong marker.....) so that his color scheme would resemble an emperor penguin (🐧<- this fella), also explaining the golden fur lining in the coat

also it's not visible in the photo but he has a scar going over his eye

I'll probably redo it in digital so everything is like. better

ok bye

[sylwritesstuff]

I can't believe I'm going to read a penguin AU for you but you got me with the pebble nest... I love penguins tbh Emperor penguins are my favorite animals but never thought I would read a fanfic where my fave characters are penguins 😭

Adèlie penguins are my favs, but you imagine those goofballs however you like! 💖🐧💖

I hope you thoroughly enjoy it!! And the pebble nest 💖💖💖

[grogusmum]

I have nothing to add. I just love emperor penguins 🐧

MEEE TOOOOO!

Here's a postcard of the day Grogu met some!

[oddballcobblebot]

🐧 Intro Post 🐧

~ Hi<3 i'm the Penguin, or Oswald Cobblepot, though I prefer to be called Penguin over anything else. - i use she/it/ze/flipper/bird pronouns!! - i am a fictive alter in an osdd system, i am our host <3 we are called the iceberg lounge! (our sys account @penguintriumphant ) - i hate doubles, so pleaseee dont interact with me, same with other Ed's<3 i know my wife and i love her so very much (psst her blog is @enigmareduxx) - some of my interests are: penguins (especially emperor penguins), fight club, godzilla, music (will wood, radiohead, animal collective, weird al, joji, etc), dickie dibella/robin lord taylor, great white sharks, dogs, guinea pigs, smile for me, dc comics, batman: arkham, doctor who, lupin the iii, and more!! - dni if u: support endos, participate in lgbt discourse, are anti recovery, use names not from your culture (this includes alters), shota/loli/etc, anti neopronouns/xenopronouns (and genders), anti mogai

ALSO!!! i have npd, bpd, and autism<3

im a bpd symptom holder, anxiety holder, and host

i luv my source and my wife !!

thats allllll thanks for reading<3 🐧☂️