Penguin Facts
• The first of the penguin facts is that penguins are consider to be water birds even though they live on water and land.
• There are 17 species of penguins.
• Penguins can drink both saltwater and freshwater.
• Penguins reproduce by laying eggs.
• Both penguin males and females help incubate the eggs.
• Penguins only live south of the equator.
• Some penguins mate for life.
• ¾ of a penguin’s life is lived at sea.
• Penguins go onto land only to breed and molt.
• Penguins can’t fly in the air but they can fly underwater.
• Penguins protect themselves from the cold with layers of blubber and waterproof feathers.
• Penguins can stay underwater for up to twenty minutes.
• Penguins breed in colonies of up to 180,000 each.
• Penguins always travel in groups.
• Seals and killer whales are the penguin’s biggest threat to life.
• Penguins make their nests out of stone.
• Penguins have only one or two eggs in each brood.
• Some penguins can go as far down as 1000 feet underwater.
• Penguins can swim up to speeds of 25 mph.
• Penguins look awkward on land because they walk erect.
• Penguins start to breed for the first time when they reach four years of age.
• There are only four penguin species that live in the arctic--all the rest live in the sub arctic.
• Penguins eat fish, shrimp and other crustaceans.
• The smallest species of penguin is the fairy--on average 16 inches high and weighing 2.2 pounds.
• The emperor penguin is the largest penguin, weighing between 60 and 100 pounds.
• Penguins have many ways to communicate with one another. Some of these are gesturing, waving head or flippers, bowing and preening.
• The average length of the life of a penguin is ten years.
• Penguins are warm-blooded just like all other birds.
• Penguin facts show the penguin population to be around 100,000 birds world-wide.
• The population of penguins is on the increase.
• Penguins feed their young by regurgitating stored food.
• A penguin may sleep for a few minutes at a time--any time of the day or night and in any position.
• Early explorers who discovered penguins originally classified them as fish.
• When penguins swim they leap out of the water every few minutes to breathe. This is called porpoising.
• Penguins live in several places, including the Antarctic Circle, Australia, New Zealand, the shores of South America, and South Africa.
• Penguins have very short legs.
• Penguins can leap quickly from water to land if in danger.
• Some penguin facts can be useful, such as penguins are not naturally afraid of humans but they don’t like being approached.