Jack the Lizard Wonder World
Residence of Animals

Japanese

Penguins 

All species of penguins live in the South Hemisphere except Galapagos penguin and all of them depend on the sea for their food. They are carnivore and feed on the prey such as squids, krill, crustacean, and fish. Since cold water brings those preys to the surface for penguins, penguins stay closer to cold water current.

Over the past decades penguins have been changing their natural habitat due to climate change. Warming temperature affects every which way of their life. Crack of ice sheet prevent them to walk around and their walking distance from the breeding ground to sea shore is getting greater. That makes hard for them to bring food for their chicks and partners.

The population of penguins is declining. Probable cause of the decrease is climate change. The impact is severe especially in Adelie penguins, emperor penguins, and rock hopper penguins. All of them are krill eater, but krill are in decline because of melting sea ice. Antarctic krill feed on algae on the ice in spring and use pack of ice for shelter during the young age.

Not all penguins are suffering from climate change. Some penguins such as the chin strap and gentoo take advantage of retreating ice. Since they feed in open sea, they expand their habitat to the south as sea ice recede. Perhaps other penguins could adapt to the new environment by changing their breeding and feeding place, unless the pace of climate change is not too fast.

Nevertheless penguins are not able to stop climate change, but humans can.

Penguins, Jack the Lizard Wonder World
Actual size of krill, red shrimp like creature, are much smaller, about 6 cm (2.5 in).