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Since 1995 SeaWorld/Busch Gardens Adventure CampsSM have played host to nearly 300,000 campers, hailing from all 50 U.S. states and 22 countries.
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» The Limbe Wildlife Centre, Limbe, Cameroon...
» Entering the Emperor’s Realm in Antarctica
» Vanuatu
» Tesso Nilo National Forest
» The SeaWorld/Busch Gardens/Fujifilm Environmental Excellence Awards: A Local Approach to Conservation
» Tracking Lions in Kenya with Dr. Lawrence Frank
» SeaWorld & Busch Gardens Conservation Fund
» The Galapagos
» An African Adventure to Remember



For more than 30 years researchers from Scripps have investigated emperor penguin natural history and diving physiology. Studies have included work with SeaWorld birds as well as those in Antarctica. Among the best diving birds on the planet, emperor penguins can dive more than 1,500 feet and hold their breath for more than 22 minutes. These extreme diving abilities help them survive in their harsh Antarctic environment.

Studying emperors in Antarctica is no small feat. Our research station is located in the Ross Sea. Our “Penguin Ranch” research area consists of fi ve huts and a corral. The corral has two large holes drilled through the ice, allowing the penguins to dive and swim whenever they want. While there is a fence above the ice, under the ice the penguins are free to go wherever they wish. But the distance from the ranch to the ice edge ensures that the birds will surface back inside the corral.

Not far from the penguin corral there is an underwater observation tube. The tube goes through the ice to a small windowed room just beneath. While in the tube, researchers observed the penguins diving and swimming underwater. Almost as if you’re watching a beautiful ballet, the majesty of these birds and their natural design for swimming astonishes even the most seasoned scientist.

Antarctic research this year focused on penguin diving. Measurements of oxygen levels and blood show that diving penguins have almost no oxygen left in their blood at the low point of their dives. They can survive this situation because of increased oxygen binding in their muscles, and maybe even their brains. Now that it is getting dark in Antarctica, research again will focus on the birds in SeaWorld San Diego’s Penguin Encounter. Experiments correlating heart rate with respiratory rate will help evaluate data collected over the past three years in Antarctica. This spring, penguins will be fi tted with a new type of camera that will help document what penguins see as they dive and the fi sh on which they’re preying. If the cameras work in the Penguin Encounter, they will be deployed in the Antarctic next winter.


 


Entering the Emperor’s Realm in Antarctica

Research in the field and in SWSD’s Penguin Encounter.

By Dr. Judy St. Leger, SeaWorld San Diego

SeaWorld’s commitment to species research and conservation goes a long way. In November 2004, it took me all the way to Antarctica. I made the long journey to this harsh but beautiful continent as part of a team studying emperor penguins. Emperor penguins have been among the most popular species at SeaWorld San Diego’s Penguin Encounter® for more than two decades. This zoological attraction was designed to increase awareness and understanding of Antarctic penguins. In 1972, the National Science Foundation approached SeaWorld to establish and maintain a self-perpetuating colony of Antarctic penguins available yearround for research purposes. Today, SeaWorld San Diego remains the only zoological facility in the world to have successfully bred emperor penguins outside of the Antarctic. Open to guests since 1983, the Penguin Encounter is a testament to SeaWorld’s attention to detail. The exhibit temperature is a chilly 25°F, the water is chilled to 42°F, and the lights simulate the natural light cycle of the southern hemisphere.

Because of the extreme challenges with monitoring penguins in Antarctica during most months of the year, this facility has offered invaluable research opportunities. These include aspects of breeding biology and zoological management including species propagation, artifi cial incubation and hand rearing. But most signifi cant have been studies of diving physiology conducted with the Scripps Institution of Oceanography.