Did you know? Some female penguins are prostitutes. They offer sex in exchange for pebbles(rocks for nests).
Interesting, isn’t it? Penguins are not only one of the cutest animals in the world. But they are also filled with several interesting facts that you should know.
1-5 Fun Facts about Penguins
1. Scientists estimate there are 17-19 species of penguins. Most of this moppets are found in South Africa, New Zealand, Chili, Antarctica, Argentina, and Australia.
But only the Galápagos penguin lives above the southern hemisphere.
2. Growing only to a height of 10 to 12 inches, blue penguins are the smallest penguins in the world. And these tiny moppets are native to Australia, New Zealand, and Tasmania.
3. On the contrary, Emperor penguins are the largest species of penguins. These species with their regal stature can grow up to 50 inches tall and are only Native to Antarctica.
4. However, In 2014, scientists uncovered the 37-million-year-old remains of a colossus penguin species on Seymour Island in the Antarctic Peninsula. According to their findings, the massive bird would have stood 6.5 feet tall and weighed more than 250 pounds.
In fact, if it were alive today, this penguin could have looked basketball superstar LeBron James square in the eyes.
5. Penguins are monogamous creatures. The majority of penguin species will mate exclusively with each other for the duration of mating season and it is the female birds who try to compete for their male’s attention.
6-10 Interesting Facts about Penguins
6. Many male penguins gift female penguins with rocks to woo them. Meanwhile, The ladies use these rocks to build a nest.
7. Some female penguins are prostitutes. They offer sex in exchange for pebbles(rocks for nests).
8. In the species of emperor penguins, the males incubate the eggs while the female’s hunt. The female will typically stay on a two-month hunting trip while the male protects the newly laid eggs. Now what’s truly fascinating is male penguins will not eat until the female returns. When she does return, she regurgitates the food into the baby chick’s mouth.
Because of the intense fasting involved, the females often prefer chubbier guys who can go weeks without food as the ladies take a turn to hunt for fish. Damn, male penguins are lucky AF.
9. Penguins don’t have teeth. They catch prey with their bills and swallow it whole while swimming.
10. Since they have a supraorbital gland, which allows them to filter out salt, Penguins can drink salt water.
11-15 Surprising Facts about Penguins
11. Approximately 1 in 50,000 penguins is born with brown plumage rather than black. These are called Isabelline penguins. They live shorter lives than other penguins because they are less camouflaged and often do not mate.
12. Surprisingly! penguins don’t wear tuxedos because they’re trying to make a fashion statement. In fact, their coloring helps them camouflage. While swimming from the sky, their black backs blend with the dark ocean water, and from below the water, their white bellies match the bright surface light, which helps them in avoiding predators.
13. Penguins sadly can’t fly, but they happen to be great swimmers. Gentoos, the speediest penguins, can top 20 mph, but most species dart around at a more modest 4 to 7 mph.
14. Penguins’ main predators (seals, sea lions, whales, and sharks) reside in the water, so these birds feel much safer on land around researchers and tourists, for better or worse. In fact, if you stay still they’ll probably come and investigate you.
15. The northern rockhopper penguin, erect-crested penguin, yellow-eyed penguin, African penguin, and Galápagos penguin are among the five species on the IUCN Red List that are considered endangered.
That’s it for this post guys, I hope you had fun while reading 15 Mind-Blowing Penguin facts for kids.
And in case you’re interested in reading other articles:
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