Penguins look different from other birds; they can stand straight like humans and can’t fly. They may look clumsy on land but, they are expert swimmers. You know the word “Penguin” has first recorded in 1577 in the log of Francis Drake’s Golden Hind. It has written by the ship’s chaplain Francis Fletcher. Penguins are interesting and attractive creatures of God. There are about seventeen species of penguins that exist in a variety of locations, but mostly in the southern hemisphere. However, the most famous species of penguins have been known as Galapagos penguins which, can sometimes be seen north of the equator. The shortest penguin is a “Little Blue Penguin” they are around just 16 inches. There are the top 10 interesting facts about Penguins that will increase your knowledge about them.
10: Penguins live in the south of the equator
We often linked them with the Antarctic, but they also occur farther north on beaches and rocky shorelines in coastal South America like the Galapagos Islands, Australia, and South African shores.
09: Giant Penguins
Emperor penguins are the largest species of penguins alive today. Emperor penguins’ interesting facts tell us that these birds can reach up to 4 feet tall and can weigh up to 100 pounds. Giant penguin fossils have been seen in New Zealand. These sorts of penguins lived 40 million years ago and were nearly 6 feet tall and weighed over 170 pounds.
Experts don’t know whether this was a separate lineage of a penguin or only the result of ecological factors. Maybe there was an abundance of food available with few competitors, so that’s why the penguins grew larger. Competition from other marine animals, like the whale species emerging at the time, ultimately displaced the giant penguins and they became vanished around 25 million years ago.
08: Rarest species of penguins
The yellow-eyed penguin considers as rarest penguin species, with only around 5,000 birds surviving in the wild however, population numbers fluctuate. One of the interesting facts is that these penguins only exist along the southeastern coast of New Zealand and smaller nearby islands.
07: Emperor Penguins Can Dive Up to 1,854 Ft. Deep
Many interesting penguin facts are related to the emperor penguins because this species considers as the largest penguin that’s alive today. Their large body size lets them go to extremes than other smallest penguins species.
You know when it comes to diving for searching food, emperor penguins can dive up to a depth of 1,854 ft. Emperor penguins have special adaptations to compensate for the extreme 40 times heavy pressures at these depths. Plus, their bones are solid instead of air-filled, like other birds, to decrease barotrauma. One of the interesting facts about penguins is that during the dive, the emperor penguin’s heart rate drops to 15-20 beats per minute to conserve oxygen. Furthermore, their blood also has unusual properties that let the bird continue its function with very little oxygen.
06: Penguins Can Drink Salt Water
Animals interesting facts show us how in unique ways penguins have developed to survive in extreme coldness and extreme depths. They are some tough birds. They can dive over 1,000 feet deep and endure temperatures of 40 degrees below zero.
The penguins seem like beautiful and sensitive creatures they are also tough inside and out. Their digestive system has unique qualities that let the bird survive and thrive in its marine lifestyle. Penguins have a supraorbital gland, which filters out sodium chloride from the bloodstream. The gland filters salt out from the blood of penguins. This lets penguins drink salt water when they are thirsty. But they are capable of excreting it through their beaks and sneezing. In a desert, don’t try if you get stranded however, it can kill you.
05: Penguins Camouflage While Swimming
As you know, Penguins have black and white plumage that acts as camouflage while they are swimming in the ocean. The black plumage is very difficult to see from above and, the white plumage appears like the sun reflecting off the surface of the water when observed from below.
Read More: Top 10 interesting facts about Whales
04: Small penguins usually feed at the surface of the sea
Due to its small body, the smallest species of penguin rarely dives in the deep water and just for more than a couple minutes. Most get their food from the surface of the sea. The emperor considers as a giant penguin so, it can dive for more than 20 minutes, reaching depths over 1,800 feet to feed on fish, squid, krill, and other crustaceans.
03: Flightless sea birds
The main feature of birds is flying but, Penguins are different as they are flightless sea birds. Over time, their wings have grown like flippers to assist them in swimming. As you know, penguins have short legs that are set low down on their bodies. It means that they can stand upright like human beings. They are not very elegant creatures on land, interesting fact is that penguins are expert swimmers.
02: Penguins are not mammals
Due to their appearance, they have considered mammals it is the penguins stand upright and look a little like humans. That’s why people sometimes think that Penguins are birds as they have feathers and lay eggs like common birds.
01: Penguin parents
Penguin parents, both male and female penguins take care of their young once for several months until their chicks are strong enough to hunt for food on their own.
