As Lower Levels Melt, Penguins Climb Ice Cliffs To Breed
Emperor penguin chick Antarctica: Some emperor penguin colonies are finding their way up towering coastal glaciers to hatch chicks, apparently because warmer temperatures are delaying sea ice formation at ocean level. Peter Fretwell, British Antarctic Survey Antarctic emperor penguins are showing an unexpected ability to adapt to the unstable climate. Using aerial surveys and satellite images, an international research team has discovered four breeding colonies of emperor penguins that have re-located from sea ice floating on the ocean's surface to the tops of ice shelves: thick glaciers that extend from Antarctica's interior to the coast. It's an amazing finding because ice shelves can tower over 300 feet above the ocean's surface, and emperor penguins are fairly clumsy creatures on land. How did they do it? The study found that two of the bird colonies...