17. All Hail The King!

Image source: www.dailykos.com

Let's talk about the king penguin, the second largest species of penguin with a height of 70-100 cm and weighing 11-16 kg. These penguins feed mainly on small fish and squid, diving more than 300m underwater while foraging, and their stomachs have adapted to completely separate salt from water, allowing them to drink the salty Antarctic water without becoming dehydrated.

When the chicks of these penguins reach around six weeks old, they join a group of chicks known as a creche, which keeps them warm, protects them from potential predators, and allows both parents to go foraging at the same time to bring back enough food for them.

Sadly, some king penguin colonies were completely exterminated as a result of people hunting the penguins for their skin, oil, blubber and eggs in the 19th and 20th centuries. Currently, the Antarctic Treaty makes it illegal to hunt, harm or interfere in any way with a penguin or its eggs, and the king penguin populations in the sub-Antarctic Oceans appear to thriving and increasing in numbers - let's keep it that way!

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Love, Donna