Have you heard that penguins mate for life? Not only are penguins really cute, but they are a great symbol of loyalty, love and commitment. With Penguin Awareness Day coming up I pulled together some of my favourite facts about penguins inspired by this beautiful penguin necklace from Jana Reinhardt.
penguins are amazing birds, but they are at risk due to the threat to their habitats |
12 Great Penguin Facts
🐧 While the claim that penguins mate for life might be an over simplification they are generally monogamous within a mating season and some species (like Gentoos, Rockhoppers and Chinstraps) are believed to find the same mates year after year.
🐧 Both male and female penguins get involved in creating a nest and caring for the chicks, which is rare in the animal world.
🐧 Male Emperor penguins keep the eggs warm by resting them on their feet with a fold of warm skin over the top. And yes I mostly love this fact particularly because I like the idea of the men hanging around with the responsibility of looking after the egg.
🐧 Groups of baby penguins often form small groups called creches which make them easier to look after, protect them from predators and help to them to keep warm.
🐧 While your first thought when you think of a penguin might be the image of an emperor penguin, as seen on penguin chocolate bars, there are actually over 17 types of penguins (the exact number is up for debate as scientists can’t decide if some groups are one or two separate species). Sadly many penguins are endangered due to the threat to their habitats.
🐧 Penguin Awareness Day 20th January is a special day for raising awareness of penguins and the threats to their population numbers thanks to climate change.
🐧 Some of the early penguins, which are now extinct, grew taller than some humans at 1.6 metres, but the tallest penguins today can still grow to an impressive 1.1 metres. I’m not sure if I would love to chat to a me size penguin or if I would be worried about it pecking me in the face. Fossils suggest that these birds existed before dinosaurs died out and I love the idea of them waddling around with an Anklyosaurus.
Can you imagine penguins being friends with dinosaurs? |
🐧 The fastest penguins (Gentoos) can swim at 22 miles per hour.
🐧 Penguins are normally black on top and white underneath like quite a few aquatic animals. This provides great camouflage in the water so looking from above they blend in with the dark depths and from underneath they blend more with the bright sky.
🐧 Penguins can drink seawater and are able to get rid of the excess sodium through sneezing.
🐧 Groups of penguins are called rookeries or huddles, but on land they can also be called a waddle. What a beautiful a perfect collective noun for these birds who can hang out in groups of 1000s. In water a group of penguins is also known as a raft.
🐧 Penguin poo is called guano (as is the accumulated excrement of other seabirds and bats) and new colonies have been found when large areas of guano were spotted from space.
A Tiny Penguin Necklace from Jana Reinhardt
The tiny penguin from Jana Reinhardt is handcrafted in the UK from Sterling Silver (it's also available in gold and platinum) and it measures a super cute 9mm high. Jana Reinhardt have a huge range of animal jewellery and they are all beautifully designed. As animal lovers they really care about the world and try to make a difference by using recycled metals in their jewellery, recycled materials in their plastic free boxes and a percentage of profits are given to animal charities. Some products like their orangutan and their pangolin necklaces raise money specifically for particular causes (in these examples Ovaid and Fauna & Flora International).
If you are a big fan of penguins or you are buying a gift for one then this beautiful wooden penguin jigsaw is worth checking out too.
(I received the necklace from Jana Reinhardt for a giveaway which was completed and the prize sent out in March 2022)
What a brilliant blogpost! My 9 yr old daughter wants to be a penguinologist when she grows up so has been doing a lot of penguin research lately - so I found myself nodding along and felt quite proud of her when I realised that I knew so many of those facts already! She's plotted on a map where all those 18 species live (we're going with 18 because the Northern Rockhopper penguin and Southern Rockhopper penguins don't only live in different places but have specific features that are different about them.) Penguins really are amazing! We loved watching "Meet the family" recently which was a documentary about the different types of penguins. Will tell her about the facts that you have here that we didn't already know like being called a "waddle" of penguins!
ReplyDeleteOh I love this. Penguins really are great and I think a penguinologist would be a great job
DeleteThis penguin is so cute and Jana Reinhardt is just such a lovely small business who support of a lot great causes!
ReplyDelete