Facts about Emperor Penguins
- 08
Reaching lengths of up to 1.3 meters and weighing as much as 45 kilograms, emperor penguins are the tallest and heaviest living penguin species on Earth.
- 07
The Antarctic ice shelf where emperor penguins breed can shift and break apart, causing entire colonies to lose access to their breeding habitat within a single season.
- 06
Emperor penguins can swim at speeds up to 9 miles per hour and travel distances of 500 kilometers during their annual migration to breeding grounds.
- 05
At birth, emperor penguin chicks weigh approximately 315 to 350 grams and are completely dependent on their parents for food and warmth for their first 50 to 65 days of life.
- 04
Emperor penguin chicks develop a fluffy gray down plumage that is replaced by adult feathers after approximately four months of growth.
- 03
Colonies of emperor penguins can number up to 20,000 individuals huddled together in formations that rotate members from the cold exterior to the warm interior every few minutes.
- 02
Male emperor penguins fast for up to 4 months while incubating their single egg on their feet during Antarctic winter, losing approximately 45 percent of their body weight.
- 01
During Antarctic winters, emperor penguins dive deeper than 500 meters and hold their breath for up to 22 minutes while hunting fish.