A careful study of satellite imagery has revealed four previously unknown colonies of emperor penguins along the edges of Antarctica, a promising discovery in a region increasingly endangered by climate change.
A careful study of satellite imagery has revealed four previously unknown colonies of emperor penguins along the edges of Antarctica, a promising discovery in a region increasingly endangered by climate change.
The loss of sea ice has forced emperor penguins around Antarctica to seek out new breeding grounds, with some colonies traveling more than 20 miles in search of stable ice. Scientists from the British Antarctic survey were scanning satellite images for such breeding areas when they happened upon the four new colonies.
Emperor colonies are easy to spot from above. Measuring up to four feet tall, emperors are the largest of all penguins, and their voluminous brown excrement stands out against the white snow. The new discoveries, first reported in Antarctic Science, bring the total number of known colonies to 66.
Read more at: Yale Environment 360
Emperor penguins near Halley Research Station in Antarctica. (Photo Credit: Christopher Walton/British Antarctic Survey)
