| |
- SeaWorld San Diego has the world’s only successful emperor penguin breeding colony outside the Antarctic. Since 1980, the aviculture department has witnessed the hatching of 20 emperor penguins, the most recent on Sept. 21, 2002. The fluffy black-and-white chick is being hand-raised in a nursery at the park’s Penguin Encounter and will be on display with the adults soon.
- Emperor penguins are the largest of all penguin species. Adults can reach 3 feet tall and may weigh as much as 90 pounds.
- Unlike other polar penguins that build nests of rock, emperor penguins incubate their eggs on their feet. After an egg is laid, the male takes charge of it while the female goes off to feed in the sea. During this incubation period, which can last as long as 72 days, the male does not eat and may lose half of his body weight. After the chick hatches, the female returns to care for the chick while the male goes off to fish and gain weight.
|
|
