BiotechMashup

After 35 years, a giant fossil penguin has finally been completely reconstructed, giving researchers new insights into prehistoric penguin diversity.

Three penguin species that share the Western Antarctic Peninsula for breeding grounds have been affected in different ways by the higher temperatures brought on by global warming, according to new research.

Paleontologists have unearthed the first extinct penguin with preserved evidence of scales and feathers. The 36-million-year-old fossil from Peru shows the new giant penguin's feathers were reddish brown and gray, distinct from the black tuxedoed look of living penguins. The fossil shows the flipper and feather shapes that make penguins such powerful swimmers evolved early, while the color patterning of living penguins is likely a much more recent innovation.

Courtship calls help penguin females decide which males are likely to be devoted dads, according to a new study. By listening to male courtship calls, a female can tell how fat a male is and what kind of father he'll be. Fatter males make better fathers because they have the energy reserves to endure long fasts, so are less likely to leave the nest and desert their chicks.

(National Evolutionary Synthesis Center (NESCent)) Courtship calls help penguin females decide which males are likely to be devoted dads, says a study in the journal Behaviour. By listening to male courtship calls, a female can tell how fat a male is and what kind of father he'll be. Fatter males make better fathers because they have the energy reserves to endure long fasts, so are less likely to leave the nest and desert their chicks.

Fluctuations in penguin populations in the Antarctic are linked more strongly to the availability of their primary food source than to changes in their habitats, according to a new study. This research indicates that species often considered likely "winners" of changing conditions, such as large-scale ice melting, may actually end up as the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change.

by Daniel P. Zitterbart, Barbara Wienecke, James P. Butler, Ben Fabry

by Daniel P. Zitterbart, Barbara Wienecke, James P. Butler, Ben Fabry

(Pew Environment Group) Fluctuations in penguin populations in the Antarctic are linked more strongly to the availability of their primary food source than to changes in their habitats, according to a new study published online today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Funded in part by the Lenfest Ocean Program, this research indicates that species often considered likely "winners" of changing conditions, such as large-scale ice melting, may actually end up as the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change.