Антарктиданың императорлық пингвині

Large flightless seabird endemic to Antarctica
the bird

The emperor penguin (Aptenodytes forsteri) is the tallest and heaviest of all living penguin species and is endemic to Antarctica. The male and female are similar in plumage and size, reaching in length and weighing from Feathers of the head and back are black and sharply delineated from the white belly, pale yellow breast and bright yellow ear patches. Like all penguins, it is flightless, with a streamlined body, and wings stiffened and flattened into flippers for a marine habitat. Its diet consists primarily of fish, but also includes crustaceans, such as krill, and cephalopods, such as squid. While hunting, the species can remain submerged around 20 minutes, diving to a depth of It has several adaptations to facilitate this, including an unusually structured haemoglobin to allow it to function at low oxygen levels, solid bones to reduce barotrauma, and the ability to reduce its metabolism and shut down non essential organ functions. The only penguin species that breeds during the Antarctic winter, emperor penguins trek over the ice to breeding colonies which can contain up to several thousand individuals. The female lays a single egg, which is incubated for just over two months by the male while the female returns to the sea to feed; parents subsequently take turns foraging at sea and caring for their chick in the colony. The lifespan is typically 20 years in the wild, although observations suggest that some individuals may live to 50 years of age.

Emperor penguins were described in 1844 by English zoologist George Robert Gray, who created the generic name from Ancient Greek word elements, ἀ πτηνο δύτης [a ptēno dytēs], "without wings diver". Its specific name is in honour of the German naturalist Johann Reinhold Forster, who accompanied Captain James Cook on his second voyage and officially named five other penguin species. Forster may have been the first person to see the penguins in 1773–74, when he recorded a sighting of what he believed was the similar king penguin (A. patagonicus) but given the location, may very well have been A. forsteri. Together with the king penguin, the emperor penguin is one of two extant species in the genus Aptenodytes. Fossil evidence of a third species—Ridgen's penguin (A. ridgeni)—has been found in fossil records from the late Pliocene, about three million years ago, in New Zealand. Studies of penguin behaviour and genetics have proposed that the genus Aptenodytes is basal; in other words, that it split off from a branch which led to all other living penguin species. Mitochondrial and nuclear DNA evidence suggests this split occurred around 40 million years ago.

Adult emperor penguins are in length, averaging according to Stonehouse (1975). Due to method of bird measurement that measures length between bill to tail, sometimes body length and standing height are confused, and some reported height even reaching tall. There are still more than a few papers mentioning that they reach a standing height of instead of body length. Although standing height of emperor penguin is rarely provided at scientific reports, Prévost (1961) recorded 86 wild individuals and measured maximum height of Friedman (1945) recorded measurements from 22 wild individuals and resulted height ranging Ksepka et al. (2012) measured standing height of according to 11 complete skins collected in American Museum of Natural History. The weight also varies by season, as both male and female penguins lose substantial mass while raising hatchlings and incubating their egg. A male emperor penguin must withstand the extreme Antarctic winter cold for more than two months while protecting his egg. He eats nothing during this time. Most male emperors will lose around while they wait for their eggs to hatch. The mean weight of males at the start of the breeding season is and that of females is After the breeding season this drops to for both sexes. Chicks weigh around after hatching, and fledge when they reach about 50% of adult weight. The average yearly survival rate of an adult emperor penguin has been measured at 95.1%, with an average life expectancy of 19.9 years. The same researchers estimated that 1% of emperor penguins hatched could feasibly reach an age of 50 years. In contrast, only 19% of chicks survive their first year of life. Therefore, 80% of the emperor penguin population comprises adults five years and older. They use a complex set of calls that are critical to individual recognition between parents, offspring and mates, Chicks use a frequency modulated whistle to beg for food and to contact parents. Dense feathers provide 80–90% of its insulation and it has a layer of sub dermal fat which may be up to thick before breeding. While the density of contour feathers is approximately 9 per square centimetre (58 per square inch), a combination of dense afterfeathers and down feathers (plumules) likely play a critical role for insulation. Muscles allow the feathers to be held erect on land, reducing heat loss by trapping a layer of air next to the skin. Conversely, the plumage is flattened in water, thus waterproofing the skin and the downy underlayer. Preening is vital in facilitating insulation and in keeping the plumage oily and water repellent. The emperor penguin is able to thermoregulate (maintain its core body temperature) without altering its metabolism, over a wide range of temperatures. Known as the thermoneutral range, this extends from Below this temperature range, its metabolic rate increases significantly, although an individual can maintain its core temperature from 38.0 °C (100 °F) down to Movement by swimming, walking, and shivering are three mechanisms for increasing metabolism; a fourth process involves an increase in the breakdown of fats by enzymes, which is induced by the hormone glucagon. At temperatures above , an emperor penguin may become agitated as its body temperature and metabolic rate rise to increase heat loss. Raising its wings and exposing the undersides increases the exposure of its body surface to the air by 16%, facilitating further heat loss.

In addition to the cold, the emperor penguin encounters another stressful condition on deep dives—markedly increased pressure of up to 40 times that of the surface, which in most other terrestrial organisms would cause barotrauma. The bones of the penguin are solid rather than air filled, which eliminates the risk of mechanical barotrauma. While diving, the emperor penguin's oxygen use is markedly reduced, as its heart rate is reduced to as low as 15–20 beats per minute and non essential organs are shut down, thus facilitating longer dives. Its haemoglobin and myoglobin are able to bind and transport oxygen at low blood concentrations; this allows the bird to function with very low oxygen levels that would otherwise result in loss of consciousness.

The emperor penguin has a circumpolar distribution in the Antarctic almost exclusively between the 66° and 77° south latitudes. It almost always breeds on stable pack ice near the coast and up to offshore. one on a headland at Taylor Glacier in Victoria Land, and most recently one at Amundsen Bay. The northernmost breeding population is on Snow Hill Island, near the northern tip of the Peninsula. South Georgia, and occasionally in New Zealand. The total population was estimated in 2009 to be at around 595,000 adult birds, in 46 known colonies spread around the Antarctic and sub Antarctic; around 35% of the known population lives north of the Antarctic Circle. Major breeding colonies were located at Cape Washington, Coulman Island in Victoria Land, Halley Bay, Cape Colbeck, and Dibble Glacier. Colonies are known to fluctuate over time, often breaking into "suburbs" which move apart from the parent group, and some have been known to disappear entirely. and the later visits by the Terra Nova Expedition in 1910–11; it was reduced to a few hundred birds, and may have come close to extinction due to changes in the position of the ice shelf. By the 1960s it had rebounded dramatically, Along with nine other species of penguin, it is currently under consideration for inclusion under the US Endangered Species Act. The primary causes for an increased risk of species endangerment are declining food availability, due to the effects of climate change and industrial fisheries on the crustacean and fish populations. Other reasons for the species's placement on the Endangered Species Act's list include disease, habitat destruction, and disturbance at breeding colonies by humans. Of particular concern is the impact of tourism. One study concluded that emperor penguin chicks in a crèche become more apprehensive following a helicopter approach to
Population declines of 50% in the Terre Adélie region have been observed due to an increased death rate among adult birds, especially males, during an abnormally prolonged warm period in the late 1970s, which resulted in reduced sea ice coverage. On the other hand, egg hatching success rates declined when the sea ice extent increased; chick deaths also increased; The species is therefore considered to be highly sensitive to climatic changes. In 2009, the Dion Islands colony, which had been extensively studied since 1948, was reported to have completely disappeared at some point over the previous decade, the fate of the birds unknown. This was the first confirmed loss of an entire colony. Beginning in September 2015, a strong El Niño, strong winds, and record low amounts of sea ice resulted in "almost total breeding failure" with the deaths of thousands of emperor chicks for three consecutive years within the Halley Bay colony, the second largest emperor penguin colony in the world. Researchers have attributed this loss to immigration of breeding penguins to the Dawson Lambton colony south, in which a tenfold population increase was observed between 2016 and 2018. However, this increase is nowhere near the total number of breeding adults formerly at the Halley Bay colony. A Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution study in January 2009 found that emperor penguins could be pushed to the brink of extinction by the year 2100 due to global climate change. The study constructed a mathematical model to predict how the loss of sea ice from climate warming would affect a big colony of emperor penguins at Terre Adélie, Antarctica. The study forecasted an 87% decline in the colony's population, from three thousand breeding pairs in 2009 to four hundred breeding pairs in 2100. In June 2014 a study by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution concluded that emperor penguins are at risk from global warming, which is melting the sea ice. This study predicted that by 2100 all 45 colonies of emperor penguins will be declining in numbers, mostly due to loss of habitat. Loss of ice reduces the supply of krill, which is a primary food for emperor penguins. In December 2022, a new colony at Verleger Point in West Antarctica was discovered by satellite imaging, bringing the total known colonies to 66. A 2023 study found that more than 90% of emperor penguin colonies could face "quasi extinction" from "catastrophic breeding failure" due to the loss of sea ice caused by climate change.

The emperor penguin's predators include birds and aquatic mammals. Southern giant petrels (Macronectes giganteus) are the predominant land predator of chicks, responsible for over one third of chick deaths in some colonies; they also scavenge dead penguins. The south polar skua (Stercorarius maccormicki) mainly scavenges for dead chicks, as the live chicks are usually too large to be attacked by the time of its annual arrival in the colony. Occasionally, a parent may attempt to defend its chick from attack, although it may be more passive if the chick is weak or sickly. The only known predators thought to attack healthy adults, and which attack emperor penguins in the water, are both mammals. The first is the leopard seal (Hydrurga leptonyx), which takes adult birds and fledglings soon after they enter the water. Orcas (Orcinus orca), mostly take adult birds, although they will attack penguins of any age in or near water. The yearly reproductive cycle begins at the start of the Antarctic winter, in March and April, when all mature emperor penguins travel to colonial nesting areas, often walking inland from the edge of the pack ice. The start of travel appears to be triggered by decreasing day lengths; emperor penguins in captivity have been induced successfully into breeding by using artificial lighting systems mimicking seasonal Antarctic day lengths. The British Antarctic Survey (BAS) used satellite imagery to find new Emperor penguin breeding sites in Antarctica, a discovery that increased the estimated population of the Emperor penguins by 5 to 10 percent to around 278,000 breeding pairs. Given their remote locations and harsh weather conditions, penguin populations are found by scanning aerial imagery and locating enormous pages of ice that have been stained with their guano. The new discoveries increased the number of known breeding sites from 50 to 61. The penguins start courtship in March or April, when the temperature can be as low as A lone male gives an ecstatic display, where it stands still and places its head on its chest before inhaling and giving a courtship call for 1–2 seconds; it then moves around the colony and repeats the call. A male and female then stand face to face, with one extending its head and neck up and the other mirroring it; they both hold this posture for several minutes. Once in pairs, couples waddle around the colony together, with the female usually following the male. Before copulation, one bird bows deeply to its mate, its bill pointed close to the ground, and its mate then does the same. Contrary to popular belief, Emperor penguins do not mate for life; they are serially monogamous, having only one mate each year, and remaining faithful to that mate. However, fidelity between years is only around 15%. The female penguin lays one egg in May or early June; 15.7% of the weight of an emperor penguin egg is shell; like those of other penguin species, the shell is relatively thick, which helps minimize risk of breakage. After laying, the mother's food reserves are exhausted and she very carefully transfers the egg to the male, and then immediately returns to the sea for two months to feed. By the time the egg hatches, the male will have fasted for around 120 days since arriving at the colony. Hatching may take as long as two or three days to complete, as the shell of the egg is thick. Newly hatched chicks are semi altricial, covered with only a thin layer of down and entirely dependent on their parents for food and warmth. This ability to produce "crop milk" in birds is only found in pigeons, flamingos and male Emperor penguins. The father is able to produce this crop milk to temporarily sustain the chick for generally 4 to 7 days, until the mother returns from fishing at sea with food to properly feed the chick. If the mother penguin is delayed, the chick will die. The young chick is brooded in what is called the guard phase, spending time balanced on its parent's feet and kept warm by the brood patch. Abandoned eggs do not hatch and orphaned chicks never survive. Female emperors who failed to find a mate to breed with, or have lost their own chick may attempt to adopt a stray chick or steal the chick of another female. The mother of the chick and neighboring females will fight to protect the chick or reclaim it, if it has been successfully stolen. These scuffles involving several birds often result in the chick being smothered or trampled to death. Chicks which have been adopted or stolen are quickly abandoned once again, as it is impossible for the female to feed and care for the chick alone. The orphaned chicks wander around the colony attempting to seek food and protection from other adults. They will even try to shelter themselves in an adult bird's brood patch already occupied by their own chick. These stray chicks are brusquely driven away by the adults and their chicks. All orphaned chicks will rapidly become weaker and die of starvation, or freeze to death. About 45–50 days after hatching, the chicks form a crèche, huddling together for warmth and protection. During this time, both parents forage at sea and return periodically to feed their chicks. A crèche may consist of around a dozen, up to several thousand chicks densely packed together and is essential for surviving the low Antarctic temperatures. From early November, chicks begin moulting into juvenile plumage, which takes up to two months and is usually not completed by the time they leave the colony. Adults cease feeding them during this time. All birds make the considerably shorter trek to the sea in December and January. The birds spend the rest of the summer feeding there.

The emperor penguin's diet consists mainly of fish, crustaceans and cephalopods, although its composition varies from population to population. Fish are usually the most important food source, and the Antarctic silverfish (Pleuragramma antarcticum) makes up the bulk of the bird's diet. Other prey commonly recorded include other fish of the family Nototheniidae, the glacial squid (Psychroteuthis glacialis), and the hooked squid species Kondakovia longimana, as well as Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba).

Since the 1930s, there have been several attempts at keeping emperor penguins in captivity. Malcolm Davis of the National Zoological Park made early attempts at keeping penguins, capturing several from Antarctica. He successfully transferred penguins to the National Zoological Park on March 5, 1940, where they lived for up to 6 years. Today, the species is kept at just a few zoos and public aquariums in North America and Asia. Emperor penguins were first successfully bred at SeaWorld San Diego; more than 20 birds have hatched there since 1980. Considered a flagship species, 55 individuals were counted in captivity in North American zoos and aquaria in 1999. In China, the emperor penguin was first bred at Nanjing Underwater World in 2009, followed by Laohutan Ocean Park in Dalian in 2010. Since then it has been kept and bred at a few other facilities in China, and the only confirmed twin emperor penguins (the species normally lays just one egg) hatched at Sun Asia Ocean World in Dalian in 2017. In Japan, the species is housed at Port of Nagoya Public Aquarium and Wakayama Adventure World, with successful hatching at Adventure World.

In June 2011, a juvenile emperor penguin was found on the beach at Peka Peka, north of Wellington in New Zealand. He had consumed of sand, which he had apparently mistaken for snow, as well as sticks and stones, and had to undergo a number of operations to remove these to save his life. Following recovery, on 4 September, the juvenile, named "Happy Feet" (after the 2006 film), was fitted with a tracking device and released into the Southern Ocean north of Campbell Island. However, 8 days later scientists lost contact with the bird, suggesting that the transmitter had fallen off (considered likely) or that he had been eaten by a predator (considered less likely).

The species' unique life cycle in such a harsh environment has been described in print and visual media. Apsley Cherry Garrard, the Antarctic explorer, wrote in 1922: "Take it all in all, I do not believe anybody on Earth has a worse time than an emperor penguin". Widely distributed in cinemas in 2005, the French documentary La Marche de l'empereur, which was also released with the English title March of the Penguins, told the story of the penguins' reproductive cycle. The subject has been covered for the small screen five times by the BBC and presenter David Attenborough: first in episode five of the 1993 series on the Antarctic Life in the Freezer, again in the 2001 series The Blue Planet, once again in the 2006 series Planet Earth, in Frozen Planet in 2011 and a one hour programme dedicated to the species in the 2018 series Dynasties. The computer animated movie Happy Feet (2006, followed by a sequel Happy Feet Two, 2011) features emperor penguins as its primary characters, with one in particular that loves to dance; although a comedy, it too depicts their life cycle and promotes an underlying serious environmental message of threats from global warming and depletion of food sources by overfishing. The computer animated movie Surf's Up (2007) features a surfing emperor penguin named Zeke "Big Z" Topanga. More than 30 countries have depicted the bird on their stamps – Australia, Great Britain, Chile and France have each issued several. It has also been depicted on a 1962 10 franc stamp as part of an Antarctic expedition series. Canadian band The Tragically Hip composed the song "Emperor Penguin" for their 1998 album Phantom Power. The Emperor Lays an Egg is a 2004 non fiction children's picture book by Brenda Z. Guiberson. DC Comics' crime boss character Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot, aka "The Penguin", styles himself after an emperor penguin, a fact which is often referenced in stories, e. g., in his occasional alias "Forster Aptenodytes." Tim Burton's film Batman Returns (1992) reimagines Cobblepot (Danny DeVito) as a feral child raised at the Gotham Zoo by emperor penguins, played by little people actors including Felix Silla. Most other iterations of the character's backstory do not have this element.