On the 25th of April each year, the Adelie penguins answer nature's call to start their northward migration to fatten up while the winter sets in in Antarctica. They head out to sea to munch on krill and fish, rest on icebergs and do whatever penguins do. Since it gets dark in Antarctica at this time of year, they head north so they can have a better chance of seeing the food their hunting for, and to escape the chilliest part of the year. They'll return in spring to start nesting and having chicks.
Interestingly enough, one year, the penguins in the San Francisco Zoo decided to migrate after the introduction of some new guys into their colony. They started their "migration" in January, thrown off by being in the Northern Hemisphere, I'm sure, and continued to swim in circles around their pool for about 2 months. Read more about it in the Chronicle links here:
Penguins at SF Zoo start migrating
Migration Over
As far as I know, they haven't done that since. I guess once was enough.
What's the story behind this photo you're wondering? Well, I LOVE penguins, because they make me laugh when they walk, they're awesome swimmers, they survive in the worst conditions in the world, and yet they maintain a great attitude towards life. I've noticed more and more these days that penguins have become increasingly popular, and I've started to see their likenesses appearing in the most unusual places. Countries that probably have never even seen a penguin are making penguin tchotchkys (which I of course have to buy). But I love the international interpretation of this bird. In Vietnam, they don't even have a word for penguin, yet they have trash cans in their shape all over the country, and a bar called "the Flightless Bird Bar" with a penguin logo! This photo is of my collection of international penguins.
Put on your tux, waddle about, eat some fish, visit the penguins at the zoo in honor of World Penguin Day today!
