Emperor Penguins

Penguins are a distinctive group of pelagic seabirds, widely distributed in the cooler waters of the southern oceans. The largest concentrations and greatest numbers of species occur in cold temperature, polar and subpolar waters. Emperor penguins are the largest of the sixteen species of penguins. Emperor penguins were discovered over 100 years ago by Johann Reinhold Forster, a naturalist who lived from 1729-1798. Aptenodytes forsteri, the scientific name of Emperor penguins, was derived from Johann Forster's name. Forster was on Captain J. Cook's circumnavigation voyage when he discovered these furry friends. Emperor penguins are close relatives of King penguins. An estimated two dozen colonies are known, ranging in size from less than 200 pairs to over 50,000 pairs. The Emperors are particularly interesting because they are the only living species to reproduce during the Antarctic winter.

Description:

Emperor Penguins stand one meter tall and are located exclusively in the high Antarctic. The penguins weigh from 42 to 101 pounds. The average Emperor penguin weighs in at 66 pounds. Distinguishing features of the penguins are their size and bright yellow upper part of breast. This yellow coloring connects to another yellow patch on the ears. This element is a unique feature for the species. The remainder of head and throat are black, contrasted with light blue gray black. When viewed from behind, white areas can be seen on the sides of the head and neck. The feet and the base of the bill are feathered as well as the outer side of the tarsus. This is unlike any other penguin. The under side of the flipper is white. Emperors have an unusual circulatory system of veins and arteries that run throughout their feet and flippers. Their blood vessels are woven together and wrap around each other so that the cold blood captures heat from blood surging from the heart. This elaborate system minimizes loss of energy.

Habitat & Ecology

All penguins live in the southern half of the world; however, many people are surprised to learn that not all penguins live in cold places. Some penguins live in very warm places such as the Galapagos Islands near the equator. Penguins live on four different continents. There are at least 16 different kinds of penguins. Emperor penguings inhabit the Antarctic Continent. Only two groups of penguins (Adelies and the Emperors) stay in the same environment all year long. Both Adelie and Emperor penguins can stay alive in cold weather longer than any other animal in the world. Emperor penguins are not migratory. Their diet consists of crustaceans, shoaling fish, and squid. Emperors are preyed upon by Killer Whales, Leopard Seals, and the Giant Petrel. The most dangerous enemy is the Leopard Seal. The Leopard Seal eats about 15 penguins a day. Leopard Seals normally catch only the weak or the very sick. A healthy penguin can usually swim faster than a Leopard Seal.

Penguins walk upright due to the location of their feet. Their gait is slow and awkward because of their weight and size. The maximum speed of Emperors on land is 2.8 km per hour. When walking up steep slopes their beaks are used as ice picks to maintain balance. On a slight slope they practice what is known as "tobogganing". This is perfomed by sliding on their bellies using their flippers to keep their balance. Their feet are used to propell them.

Under the Water

Emperor Penguins are the largest of all diving birds. They are able to dive up to 870 feet deep. An average dive is 60-70 feet deep. Average duration of dive is three minutes. The longest recorded dive is eighteen minutes. Due to their size they are able to dive to greater depths. Emperor Penguin swimming ablities are also impressive. They can swim 1,450 kilometers on their expedition (for food, etc...). Despite their amazing aquatic skills, Emperor Penguins are the least agile penguin. Emperor penguins are the only bird that does not need to live on solid land for its entire lifespan.

Under the water the penguins can swim about 15 miles per hour, (24 kilometers). This is the same as the fastest human runner, and four times as fast as the fastest human swimmer. Penguins can swim almost as fast as the Bottlenose Dolphin. Penguins get all of their food from the ocean. Penguins dive deep for their food. They eat squid, fish, and krill.

Breeding Facts

Emperor penguins inhabit the Antarctic Continent and are confined to the open pack ice surrounding the shoreline. Current estimates put the number of breeding pairs at 150,000. They are the only penguin species that lays it's eggs during the Antarctic winter in late May or June.

Emperor penguins are highly colonial with most known colonies on fast shelf ice; two known colonies are on shingle beaches. Colonies are situated in the shelter of icebergs, islands, costal ice cliffs, or steep hills.

Because of their large size, raising Emperor chicks takes longer than other penguins. They overcome this problem by grouping together in autumn, as soon as new sea ice forms, in the sheltered bays of Antarctica's coast. In these rookeries, male emperor penguins fast for 3-4 months and lose nearly one-half of their body weight during courtship and incubation, which regularly takes place under bitter winter conditions. The adults incubate a single egg by balancing it on top of their feet. This keeps the egg up off the snow while a fold of skin on the Emperor's belly hangs over the top of the egg to keep it warm.

The extreme winter weather during their breeding season, forces Emperors to be more socially tolerant and less territorial than other penguins. To survive these conditions while they are incubating eggs, Emperors huddle together with their backs to the wind and thereby expose only one-sixth of their body surface. Each adult bird takes its turn on the outside of the group in a constant shuffle of individuals from the center out. An early spring breakup of the ice may result in the total loss that season of a rookery. Blizzards may kill exposed chicks directly, and prolonged bad weather, which hinders adults from finding food, may indirectly result in the death of chicks through undernourishment.

Audio files of Emperor penguins

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