Fast Facts:

The penguin is a flightless bird.

 

Seventeen species of penguins exist in this world.

 

Penguins have salt glands that filter the salt from their blood.

 

Penguins are found in the Antarctic, Australia, Africa, New Zealand and South America.

 

Penguins are divided into six groups – big, little, crested, banded, brush-tailed, yellow-eyed penguins.

 

Male penguins are a little larger than the female penguins.

 

Penguins have a thick layer of feathers which they preen daily.

 

Preening keeps the penguin feathers waterproof and wind-proof.

 

Penguin swim with their flippers (ie wings) and can average about seven to ten kilometres per hour.

 

Penguins find food in the sea.

 

Penguins eat squid, fishes and krill. Krill are shrimp-like marine animals which move together in large numbers (ie a school of krill)

 

Penguins spot their prey deep underwater by their bioluminescence.

 

The penguin’s natural predator includes eagles, sea lions and seals, especially leopard seals.

 

Penguins swim together in large numbers to guard against predators.

 

Penguins try to escape from their predators by porpoising.

 

A penguin colony is also called a rookery. A colony can have hundreds, thousands or even more than a million penguins living in it.

 

Penguins toboggan and walk back to their colony from the shoreline.

 

Penguins make a lot of sounds and can distinguish from each other by their voice.

 

Penguins build their nests and keeps intruding penguins out by pecking their bills and flapping their flippers.

 

Penguins mate, lay eggs and take turns to incubate them. The eggs are incubated for one to two months depending on the species.

 

Penguins chicks hatch and group in a creche. Being together in a creche protects the chick from predators.

 

Skuas spot lone penguin chicks and prey on them.

 

Penguins replace their worn-out feathers by molting.

 

Penguins can live for ten to twenty years. Some penguins species can live even longer.