#sphenisciformes

Adelie penguins (Pygoscelis adeliae) at Cape Denison, Commonwealth Bay, Antarctica

King Penguin (Aptenodytes patagonicus), family Spheniscidae, order Sphenisciformes, Tierra del Fuego, Chile

Of course!! It looks like rockhopper penguins (Eudyptes chrysocome) are a different species from macaroni penguins (Eudyptes chrysolophus), so I'll queue up rockhopper penguins too after this one.

(Sources - 1, 2, 3, 4)

Our next order of birds are the Sphenisciformes, which contain one family, Spheniscidae, commonly called “penguins”.

Penguins are one of the most aquatic birds, highly adapted for life at sea. About half of their life is spent on land, while the other half is spent in the ocean. They are flightless, with wings modified into flippers for swimming. Their feathers are very dense, which help to both insulate the birds in cold water and trap a layer of air to ensure buoyancy. They can drink salt water because their supraorbital gland filters excess salt from the bloodstream, which is then excreted in a concentrated fluid from their nasal passages. On land, penguins either waddle on their feet or slide on their bellies across the snow while using their feet to propel and steer themselves. They also jump with both feet together if they want to move more quickly or cross steep or rocky terrain. Most penguins feed on krill, fish, squid, and other forms of sea life which they catch and swallow whole while swimming, using a spiny tongue and powerful jaws to grip their slippery prey. They live almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere; only one species, the Galápagos Penguin (Spheniscus mendiculus), is found north of the Equator. Larger penguins generally inhabit colder regions, while smaller penguins inhabit regions with temperate or tropical climates.

Penguins mostly breed in large colonies, the exceptions being the Yellow-eyed Penguin (Megadyptes antipodes) and Fiordland Penguin (Eudyptes pachyrhynchus). Penguin colonies may range in size from as few as 100 to as many as several hundred thousand, depending on species. Penguins form monogamous pairs for a breeding season, though the rate the same pair recouples the next year varies. Penguins lay one to two eggs in a clutch. Both parents share incubation duties, with the exception of the Emperor Penguin (Aptenodytes forsteri) (image 1), where the male does it all. Incubation shifts can last days and even weeks as one member of the pair feeds at sea. Penguin eggs are smaller than any other bird species when compared proportionally to the weight of the parent birds, but the shell is thick and the yolk is large. Some yolk may remain when the chick hatches, helping to sustain the chick if their parent is delayed in returning with food.

Penguins evolved in the Early Paleocene, around 62 million years ago. There is molecular evidence of an even earlier origin, in the Late Cretaceous.

Propaganda under the cut:

MAGELLANIC PENGUINS MAY RIDE OCEAN CURRENTS TO SAVE ENERGY ON LONG JOURNEYS

New research published reveals that Magellanic penguins (Spheniscus magellanicus) may be far more sophisticated navigators than previously thought. By tracking 27 adult penguins from a colony in Península Valdés, Argentina, scientists discovered that these seabirds adjust their travel routes in response to ocean currents. In calm waters, the penguins swim directly toward their colony. But when facing stronger currents, they shift their paths to move with the flow, even if it means taking a longer route, ultimately conserving energy during long-distance foraging trips.

The study suggests that Magellanic penguins can detect current drift and correct their trajectories even when the coastline is out of sight. This implies a remarkable ability to integrate environmental cues and maintain efficient navigation over open ocean. While the findings are based on a single foraging trip per bird, they raise important questions about how other marine animals might also exploit dynamic ocean features like tidal flow to optimise their movements.

Photo by Frank Dietze

Dinosaur Kumimanu fordycei, of Early Paleogene, New Zealand!

For a few million years after the K–Pg mass extinction, the last remaining avialans, the birds, began to “experiment” more with their forms as the larger dinosaurs died off. With all these new niches opened up, someone had to fill them. One of these experimental forms were the Sphenisciformes, the “penguins”. These semi-aquatic dinosaurs spread across much of the Southern Hemisphere, from the tropics to the subantarctic, developing unique adaptions for life in the ocean, and are successful to this day. One of the oldest and largest was Kumimanu, meaning “monster bird" in Māori. There were two species, K. biceae and K. fordycei, with Kumimanu fordycei being the larger of the two, with an estimated weight of 148–159.7 kg (326–352 lb). This large size would have allowed Kumimanu to take advantage of larger fish and squid, diving deeper and surviving colder waters than its relatives. This is eventually what allowed giant penguins to spread farther north into the Antarctic. The extinction of giant penguins seems to coincide with the spread of seals around the Southern Hemisphere, as both large aquatic predators would have had to compete for prey and breeding sites.

Kumimanu fordycei was found in the Moeraki Formation, 55.5–59.5 million years ago in New Zealand. It would have lived alongside other penguin species like its relative Kumimanu biceae, as well as another penguin that was about half its size (but still a bit taller and heavier than today’s Emperor Penguin), Petradyptes stonehousei.