The Penguins' Survival

In the southern hemisphere of the planet and the Galapagos Islands live some curious animals that vary in size and colors; penguins are a group of flightless seabirds; there are currently about 21 different species.

Penguins live an aquatic life; nature adapts them for that; emperor penguins can dive to more than 500 meters in seawaters. What used to be wings have changed over time to become fins, useless to fly in the air but give them great ability to move in the water, even to make giant jumps from water to ice.

Inside the soft surface waterproof plumage of penguins, there is a layer of air, which ensures buoyancy and temperature control in cold waters. They use their feet and tail as a rudder and propel themselves with their flippers. On land are not as agile; penguins use their tail and wings to balance and stay upright.

Emperors (and other penguins) have their distinctive black and white tuxedo look because they camouflage them in the water; as they swim, their white bellies hide them against the light above, and their dark backs camouflage them against the depths below.

Image 1: The southern hemisphere is home to penguins, located in many countries.

Their diet involves Krill, squid, cuttlefish, and small fish. Penguin populations are highly vulnerable to climate changes and ocean temperature; they are sensitive to depletion of ice and local fish populations by humans. Penguins that allow them to ingest salt from seawater through saline glands above the eyes; can purify seawater.

Penguins live in the Arctic, contrary to popular belief where penguins are confused with the Atlantic puffin, colorful and charismatic birds that can fly. The puffins, nicknamed the 'sea parrot,' wear their black and white plumage with an orange beak and legs, resembling a parrot, can drink seawater and breed in large colonies along the coast.

The principal penguin populations are Angola, Antarctica, Argentina, Australia, Chile, Namibia, New Zealand, and South Africa.

New species of penguins keep appearing, recently increasing their number from 18 to 21 thanks to DNA manipulation techniques. These "hidden" species may look a lot alike among them; these discoveries occur in molecular genetics laboratories.

Survival threat

Macaroni penguins are the most abundant species in the wild today, yet they are in a vulnerable situation; their survival in the wild is a threat. You can imagine how the other ten species of penguins are in danger of extinction.

Studies report that climate change is one of the main reasons. However, in recent years, human hands contribute vastly to this damage.

With the blocking of tourism caused by the coronavirus pandemic, night-time disturbances increased more than 25%. Human interferences include unauthorized dogs (which are a great danger to penguins), bicycles, and people roaming or actively searching for penguins with torches or white flashes as poaching tourism.

Image 2: Climate change reduces the penguins' food supply and exposes them to extreme weather.

In one particular region (New Zealand) where lives the population of "Little Penguin," Fox attacks increased vastly, leaving only 16 animals; this could relate to the stoppage of tourism in the region. Many times these consequences force the penguins to migrate from their natural habitat.

"We have been studying behaviors and ecology of marine megafauna. But there are still many mysteries," said lead author Tomoko Narazaki, a marine scientist at the University of Tokyo,

Additionally, other human activities have threatened penguins throughout history, including oil spills, human exploitation for products and food, entanglement in fishing gear, human invasion, and introduced predators such as dogs.

Oil spills near these environments wide affect the animals in the area; historical reports indicate that only one oil spill put at risk nearly 40,000 penguins, depending on the spill size.

The penguins are victims of the animal entertainment industry. Some zoos and aquariums rescue them to save endangered species, but most animals in zoos were taken from the wild or bred in captivity for public display, not species protection.

Single-celled algae and phytoplankton are vital for penguins; warming climate can reduce sea ice, meaning less food for penguins. Climate change can also make ice more extreme, forcing penguins to travel great distances on foot from their rookery to their foraging grounds in the sea.

Simultaneously, extreme weather events can be deadly for eggs or young chicks that are not yet in their waterproof adult plumage. Changing ocean currents can affect the krill distribution, a principal food source.

Image 3: The southern hemisphere is home to penguins, located in many countries.

On the other hand, king penguins produce carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide in their poop, also known as happy or laughing gas, with uses in sedation and pain relief. "Penguin guano produces significantly high levels of nitrous oxide around its colonies. Peak emissions are about 100 times higher than in a recently fertilized Danish field. A truly intense experience," said Elberling, University of Copenhagen.

In Patagonia "Tierra del Fuego," Argentina, the penguin environment is contaminated with plastic. The pandemic goes further and generates environmental damage due to the incorrect disposal of personal protection elements. They found reports of apes chewing on face masks, birds, and marine animals trapped with latex gloves and face masks in penguins' stomachs.

Latex masks and gloves, two types of wastes directly related to the Covid-19 pandemic, are very harmful to all animals in nature by having elements of the plastic and textile industry. Scientists are sounding the alarm and calling on the public to deal with their pandemic waste more responsibly or switch to reusable masks. Although animals are not affected by COVID, it is not advisable to let them interact as it is happening. The world cannot underestimate the adaptation skills of COVID to other animals; since if it adapts easily to people, it could also be for other species.

References

• Nat Geo. Brian Handwerk. Penguins don't live at the South Pole, and more polar myths debunked. Febrero 3, 2020. Link https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/arctic-antarctica-wildlife-myths-explained.

• Australian Antarctic Program. Penguins. Antarctica. Oct 13, 2020. Link https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/animals/penguins/.

• Gill, Frank and Prevost, Jean. "Penguin". Encyclopedia Britannica, 4 Feb. 2021, https://www.britannica.com/animal/penguin. Accessed 10 June 2021.

• The Star. By Agency. Scientists sound the alarm on the deadly impacts of corona waste on animals. Thursday, 08 Apr 202110:00 AM MYT. Link https://www.thestar.com.my/lifestyle/living/2021/04/08/scientists-sound-the-alarm-on-the-deadly-impacts-of-corona-waste-on-animals

• Flinders University.  Newsdesk. Safety signs help little penguin colony. March 16, 2021. Link https://news.flinders.edu.au/blog/2021/03/16/safety-signs-help-little-penguin-colony/.

• Aurora Expeditions. Nina Gallo. How can we help endangered penguins in Antarctica?. May 05th, 2021. Link https://www.auroraexpeditions.com.au/blog/endangered-penguins-in-antarctica/.

• BirdLife International (2012) Spotlight on seabirds. Presented as part of the BirdLife State of the world's birds website. Available from: http://www.birdlife.org/datazone.

• CNet. Amanda Kooser. Scientists suffer headaches when penguin poop turns into laughing gas.  May 19, 2020, 2:10 p.m. PT. Link https://www.cnet.com/news/scientists-suffer-headaches-when-penguin-poop-turns-into-laughing-gas/.

• Nat Geo. Helen Scales. As the ice melts, emperor penguins march toward extinction.  May 12, 2020. Link: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/article/as-ice-melts-emperor-penguins-march-toward-extinction-feature.