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Calculations of the heat loss and retention ability of marine endotherms [52] suggest that most extant penguins are too small to survive in such cold environments. [53] In 2007, Thomas and Fordyce wrote about the "heterothermic loophole" that penguins utilize in order to survive in Antarctica. [54]
Penguins have both feathers and blubber. Penguin feathers are scale-like and serve both for insulation and streamlining. Endotherms that live in very cold circumstances or conditions predisposing to heat loss, such as polar waters, tend to have specialised structures of blood vessels in their extremities that act as heat exchangers. The veins ...
The Galápagos penguin (Spheniscus mendiculus) is a penguin endemic to the Galápagos Islands of Ecuador. It is the only penguin found north of the equator. [4] Most inhabit Fernandina Island and the west coast of Isabela Island. [5] The cool waters of the Humboldt and Cromwell Currents allow it to survive
The emperor penguin (Aptenodytes forsteri) is the tallest and heaviest of all living penguin species and is endemic to Antarctica.The male and female are similar in plumage and size, reaching 100 cm (39 in) in length and weighing from 22 to 45 kg (49 to 99 lb).
Birds from the north are on average 700 g (1.5 lb) heavier and 10 cm (3.9 in) longer than the southern birds. Southern gentoo penguins reach 75–80 cm (30–31 in) in length. [22] They are the fastest underwater swimmers of all penguins, reaching speeds up to 36 km/h (22 mph). [23] Gentoos are well adapted to extremely cold and harsh climates.
The African penguin (Spheniscus demersus), also known as Cape penguin or South African penguin, is a species of penguin confined to southern African waters. It is the only penguin found in the Old World. Like all penguins, it is flightless, with a streamlined body and wings stiffened and flattened into flippers for a marine habitat. Adults ...
Penguins and many arctic birds use these exchangers to keep their feet at roughly the same temperature as the surrounding ice. This keeps the birds from getting stuck on an ice sheet. Other animals, like the leatherback sea turtle , use the heat exchangers to gather, and retain heat generated by their muscular flippers. [ 5 ]
The flightless penguins are almost all located in the Southern Hemisphere (the only exception is the equatorial Galapagos penguin), with the greatest concentration located on and around Antarctica. Four of the eighteen penguin species live and breed on the mainland and its close offshore islands.