Desktop images

 

Desktop images

My current desktop image is of penguins processing towards the ocean. They look so purposeful.

I have identified them as either Magellanic penguins (Spheniscus magellanicus) or African penguins (Spheniscus demersus) but could well be wrong on both counts.

Although I like penguins, and enjoy seeing them cavorting on rocks and in the sea, my knowledge of them is not extensive and I have to turn to the internet to try and discover more about them. The desktop image is not clear enough to make a decisive identification.

                        Magellanic penguin  (Spheniscus magellanicus) 

Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons

The Magellanic penguin is native to South America and was named after Ferdinand Magellan, the Portuguese explorer who first observed them in 1520. These penguins can have a lifespan of 25 years in the wild, and longer in captivity. One individual, called Captain Eo, lived at San Francisco Zoo and was 40 when he died in 2022.

Magellanic penguins are known to be monogamous and raise their two chicks collaboratively. Young males seeking a mate have a call that sounds like a braying donkey. They are sometimes called ‘jackass penguins,’ because of this distinctive cry, along with some other penguins, like the African penguin.

Their diet consists of ocean fish, squid, krill, crustaceans, and jelly fish and they regularly dive 50 metres in search of their prey.

                            African penguin (Spheniscus demersus)

                                        Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons

The African penguin (Spheniscus demersus) is the only penguin native to the Old World. (The Old World refers to those parts of the globe known before the 15^th century - Europe, Asia, and Africa. The New World references  North America, South America, and the Caribbean, which were discovered by European explorers during the late 15^th century and afterwards.)

The African penguin, in common with most penguin species, is monogamous, but is also critically endangered. Both parents share the upbringing of their two chicks. They feed on sardines, mackerel, anchovies, squid, and shrimps. Their life expectancy is up to 25 years, increasing to 34 years in captivity.

African penguin eggs were considered a delicacy into the middle 1960s, being collected in the thousands. At the same time, guano was being removed to be used as fertiliser, thus depriving nesting birds of material for burrowing.

More penguins

 

More penguins

Obsessed? Me? Never!

The following is a nursery rhyme from Saskatchewan Rivers School Division.

 I don’t know who wrote it.

 Their suits are black and their vests are white,

They waddle to the left and they waddle to the right,

They stand on the ice and they look very neat

As they waddle along on their little flat feet.

Saskatchewan, Land of the Living Skies, is the world’s leading exporter of lentils and dry peas and also exports more than a third of the world’s durum wheat. There's a lot of oil there, too.

 The penguin in the photograph is a cushion left behind by one of my grandchildren. It was made by Sass & Belle, a brand based in the UK.

The company was founded by Richard Stone in 1998. He named the brand after his two elder daughters, Saskia and Alma Belle. He had been working in Bombay and went to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival where he sold every one of his one thousand homemade juggling balls. That success helped him to decide that there was a future in ethically produced gifts and home decor. 

Sass & Belle designs and sells a multitude of things for the home, including mugs and cushions, stationery and coasters, photo frames and vases as well as rugs and lampshades and a range of attractive, appealing items for children. Simply browsing through their online catalogue brings a smile to the lips.

Penguins again . . .

 

Penguins again . . .

                            African penguins (Spheniscus demersus)
                                        Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons

This post is compiled from others I have written with additional facts gleaned at a later time.

There are about five million penguins in Antarctica. If I were to create a collective noun for penguins, I would choose ‘a perfection.’ The standard collectives are colony, crèche, formality, huddle, parade, parcel, raft (if they are in the water) rookery and waddle. 

However, not all penguins live in the frozen wastes of Antarctica. The Galápagos penguin lives near the equator in the Galápagos Islands, while the Little Blue or Fairy penguin inhabits the coastal areas of Australia and New Zealand, and the Fiordland crested penguin is endemic to the temperate coastal forest of New Zealand’s South Island. The African penguin can be found along the southwest coast of Africa, while the Humboldt and Magellanic penguins live along the South American coasts, particularly in Chile and Argentina. 

Some penguins, like the Adélie, mate for life, while others, the Emperor, for example, are serially monogamous.

                Adélie penguins in the South Shetland  Islands, Antarctica

                                        Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons

Same-sex behaviour is common among penguins and has been observed more closely in zoos, which allow easier scrutiny. King penguin males at Berlin Zoo, Magellanic male penguins in San Francisco, a male Gentoo pair at Sea Life Aquarium in Sydney, a female Gentoo pair at L’Oceanogràfic in Valencia in Spain, male Chinstraps in Central Park Zoo, and a male Humboldt pair in London are just some of the pairings that have been recorded. Some have successfully incubated eggs and raised chicks. One male African penguin in the Netherlands stole an egg to incubate from a female pair.

The parents share responsibility for feeding and raising their chick, so, apart from the biological technicalities of mating, same sex couples are as adept at rearing chicks as their heterosexual peers.

When a penguin dies, members of the colony gather and use their wings and beaks to dig a deep hole. Then they roll the body into the grave and bury it, after which they congregate in a circle and sing, ‘Freeze a jolly good fellow, freeze a jolly good fellow . . . ‘

In fact, dead penguins are scavenged by skuas and petrels. The few that die on land rather than ice do not decay but gradually dry out. Fierce winds progressively ablate the corpses, turning them into dust.

The following photograph by cameraman Daniel J. Cox shows a colony of Emperor penguins bowed down in grief after their chicks died.

The next photograph, also copyright of Daniel J. Cox, shows the chicks’ bodies strewn across the Antarctic ice. The cause of death was unknown.

Unusually for wild animals, most penguins die of old age. Adélie penguins can live for up to fifteen years, while the much larger Emperor penguins can live for forty years. Unfortunate individuals fall prey to seals, sea lions, sharks, or orcas.

Emperor penguin (Aptenodytes forsteri) with chick

Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons

The Emperor penguin is the largest of the penguins and can attain a height of more than four feet.

Little Blue penguin family (Eudyptula minor) emerging from burrow, Bruny Island, Tasmania

Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons

By contrast, the Little Blue or Fairy penguin, at thirteen inches, is just over one foot. Fairy penguins return to their burrows at night after a day spent at sea.

Pumpkin Mice Tales (3)

 

Pumpkin Mice Tales (3)

When the colder weather came, the Pumpkin Mice decided to move to a warmer shelter. They found a lovely hole deep underground between the roots of an old oak tree.

One morning, White Mouse with the exceedingly long and beautiful green tail peeped out of the den. She squeaked with excitement. The other Mousekins scurried across to look.

They saw that visitors had arrived on the Tall Tower. Big Brown Mouse joined them. He had eaten a lot of books in his life and digested a lot of information. He told the Mousekins about the new inhabitants.

‘They have travelled from Antarctica,’ he said. ‘The black and white birds are penguins and the white animals are seals.’

The Mousekins gazed at Big Brown Mouse in awe, wondering if they would ever be as wise as him.    

       Big Brown Mouse continued, ‘Seals and penguins don’t like each other because seals eat penguins.’

 

 In this, though, Big Brown Mouse was mistaken for these particular penguins and seals were great friends. There are exceptions to every rule.

The penguins were brothers. The oldest, the one with the bobble hat, was called Bob Bobble. The first thing he and his brothers did was to build an igloo. They chipped the ice off the puddles and fashioned a rather fine dwelling just big enough for all the penguins to live in.

Mysteriously, the seals created a pond and stocked it with fish. They enjoyed watching Blue Scarf hauling fish from the icy pond. He was generous and shared his catch with them.

His brother, Rufus Red, was the youngest penguin and he was excited every night by the coloured lights that twinkled so brightly on the Tall Tower, lighting up the snowman he had built. ‘They’re better than the Northern Lights,‘ he said.

Little Grey, the smallest Mousekin, asked, ‘How long will they stay?’

Big Brown Mouse smiled kindly at him and answered, ‘I think they will stay until the weather starts to get warmer, then they will return to Antarctica.’ Seeing the disappointment on the Mousekins’ faces he added gently, ‘That will be a long time.’

White Mouse with the exceedingly long and beautiful green tail said, ‘How did they get here?’

Big Brown Mouse sighed and said, ‘Nobody knows, ‘Tis a secret never to be told,’ and they all wiggled their whiskers and skittered back into the warmth and safety of their nest.

Penguins

 

Penguins 

Macaroni penguins

Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

There are about five million penguins in Antarctica. When a penguin is found dead, members of the colony use their beaks and wings to dig a big hole. When the hole is deep enough, the dead body is rolled into it and buried. The rest gather round in a circle and sing, ‘Freeze a jolly good fellow, freeze a jolly good fellow . . . ‘

Actually, dead penguins are scavenged by skuas and petrels. The few that die on land rather than ice do not decay but dry out. Strong winds erode the bodies, gradually turning them into dust.

Penguins Three

Emperor Penguins

Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons

Image copyright Daniel J Cox

I decided to research penguins and death and came across this extraordinary image, captured by cameraman Daniel J Cox. It shows a colony of Emperor penguins bowed down in grief after their chicks died.

Image copyright Daniel J Cox

The chicks' bodies lie strewn across the Antarctic ice

Penguins have relatively few predators and can, unusually for wild animals, die of old age. They can live for many years, up to 15 years for Adelie penguins, and remarkably, 40 years for Emperors.  Dead penguins are consumed by scavengers like skuas and petrels. Those few that die on land not covered by ice do not decay but dry out. Eventually thy are ablated by strong winds and become dust. Occasionally penguin fossils are found.

The oldest penguin fossils, from 10 million to 12 million years ago, have been discovered in South Africa. Of the 17 species of penguins found today 13 are threatened or endangered, with some, like the Galapagos penguins, on the edge of extinction. You can read more about penguins here and here.

Penguins Two

It seems that penguins are the theme for me today. Some penguins, like the Adelie penguins, mate for life while others, like the Emperor penguins, are serially monogamous. For some penguins, the Humboldts for example, there is a degree of same sex activity, even though there may be sufficient partners of the opposite sex to choose from.

The following video clip shows Adelie, Gentoo and Chinstrap penguins in Antarctica. Some sections have been speeded up.

The second video is an information animation designed for children but we can all learn from it;-)

There are many collective nouns for penguins: colony, creche, formality, huddle, parade, parcel, rookery and waddle. If I had to make up a collective noun I'd choose 'a perfection of penguins.' What would you choose?

I've just read the following in a recent copy of our Community magazine.
Do you ever wonder why there are no dead penguins to be seen in Antarctica? If a penguin is found dead, members of the colony dig a hole in the ice, using beaks and wings. When the hole is deep enough the dead penguin is rolled into it and buried. Then the penguins gather round in a circle and sing, 'Freeze a jolly good fellow, freeze a jolly good fellow . . . '

Don't believe everything you read . . . ;-)

Penguins

My daughter Susannah is working with Humboldt penguins today.

Images courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

This started me thinking about penguins in general. Susannah's younger sister Bethan has always loved penguins and used to draw them all the time when she was about seven. 

This is a Christmas card Bethan made for her grandmother, my mother.

Bethan reminded me that she used to sing a song called, 'I'm a penguin.' I've searched for it but can't find it. However, I found the following clip from 'Happy Feet' and it's fun so I thought I'd share it here.