King penguin: why did these birds extend their childhood for 16 months? (13 photos)

An adult king penguin is impressive in size. 100 centimeters tall, up to 18 kilos in weight - the second largest penguin on the planet. But look at their chicks, they are as tall as their parents and heavier than them! Why are children so huge?





Dad, eat.



To be fair, baby plumage also adds volume to them. It's great for protecting against cold weather, but gets wet almost instantly.

At first glance, the answer is simple. Chicks take an incredibly long time to mature - 16 months. This is 3-4 times longer than the chicks of other penguins. Their relatives manage to raise children during the harvest-rich season. This does not work for royal birds, so their children are forced to be large and well-fed. During the hungry months, parents do not return for weeks, and the babies live on subcutaneous fat reserves.





Just for comparison: this is what emperor penguins look like with their chicks.

The result is a vicious circle: it is easier for a large chick to survive a forced hunger strike, but it also matures later. This means that the bird child depends on its parents longer and goes hungry more often. And the chick needs even more fat reserves!

As a result: females lay eggs in November-December, at the beginning of the Antarctic summer. And the kids finally grow up only towards the end of next summer, in March-April.



One fed, 10,000 more on the way!

All this time, the princes and princesses sit on the “Rastishka” like birds. If you complained as a child about semolina with lumps, listen to the delicious delights that king penguins dish out to their babies. Semi-digested porridge of fish, krill and other seafood is flavored with the secretion of the esophageal gland, hidden in the esophagus. The prepared substance is regurgitated by mom and dad directly into the chick’s mouth. Gross? Still would! Nutritionally? Incredible!



How can you say that it’s “not tasty” if you haven’t even tried it yet?!

To prepare such a delicious dish, parents spend most of the year away from their children. They chase schools of Antarctic anchovies, shrimp and cephalopods. They race remarkably well: an adult penguin dives to depths of up to 300 meters. But sometimes even this is not enough, and then the chicks are forced to live on supplies for up to a month. And all this time the kids have nothing to do!



A month's shift on a business trip to feed the chicks. This is very familiar to some!

To prevent the baby from dying due to its own stupidity, from wandering into leopard seal rookeries, from being spotted by albatrosses and petrels, king penguins organize a nursery.



So, where is mine?

Several adult females gather dozens of chicks around themselves and keep an eye on them so that none die or escape. In sub-Antarctic frost conditions there is no other way. Predators have an eternal calorie deficit; they will not click their beaks.



Hey, since when are the kids taller than the teacher in kindergarten?

One funny thing is that the childhood of king penguins ends suddenly. One fine moment, the little penguin’s baby fur comes off, and here we have a full-fledged member of the penguin society. It is indistinguishable from its parents in size. But there’s still a long way to go until you really grow up.



I understand you, baby. When hair starts growing in the most unexpected places, you feel very awkward!



When my mother made me wear a scarf and hat, even though it was +20 outside. After all, the cold comes from the ground!

King penguins become sexually mature at about 3 years of age. But only 5% of them reproduce in the same year. Most first become parents of an only child at 6-7 years old. Why so late? Because birds plan to become pregnant!



King penguins have large eggs, weighing up to 300 grams. Parents make every effort to ensure that the egg does not touch the ground, because on cold soil the embryo may die.

In the sub-Antarctic wastelands you can’t hope for a bunny with a lawn. Yes, your significant other will be your support and support: king penguins will keep a couple for life. But even so, you need to have enormous survival experience in order to feed yourself and your child in the harsh conditions of the south pole.



Will you love me even if I go to sea for several months?

The most prolific penguins breed once every year and a half at most. Therefore, the population of kingbirds is recovering slowly. During the heyday of whaling, penguin oil was also valued. It was used as fuel for lamps, for heating and for rendering the more expensive whale oil. Millions of birds have died at the hands of humans. Fortunately, they are not in any danger now. The number of the species has exceeded 4.5 million individuals and continues to grow!



Find the extra animal.