Gentoo+penguin

Animal: Animal Group: Description of animal group Penguin The Gentoo (jen-TOO) penguin has the widest range of distribution of any penguin. However, the most significant populations are concentrated on the Antarctic Peninsula and sub-antarctic islands. Large breeding colonies of Gentoos are found on South Georgia, the Falkland Islands and the Kerguelen Isles. Members of the brush-tailed genus (Pygoscelis) which includes the Adelies and the Chinstraps, Gentoo populations have suffered over the last century from human depredation and loss of habitat but appear to be stabilizing recently due to increased conservation efforts.
 * __**Classification**__
 * //__DONE__//** || Gentoo Penguin

Gentoo penguins are related to adelie and chinstrap penguins, but are larger than both of these and have a destintive white patch behind their eyes. They also have destinctively long tail feathers which are often cocked up when they are swiming on the surface, making them easy to spot || Observation Describe your animal (Colour, size, body parts)
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 * __**Description**__
 * //__DONE__//** || ====Gentoo penguins stand about 30 to 35 inches (75 to 95 centimeters) tall. They can weight about 13 pounds (6 kilometers). They eat mostly krill and some small fish.====

Gentoos are distinguished from the smaller Adelie and Chinstrap species by their bright red-orange bills and conspicuous white patches behind their eyes. Long stiff tail feathers stick out behind them as they walk. When swimming, these prominent tails are often cocked up in the water, making them fairly easy to spot.

Gentoo Penguins are black and white diving birds that live in large colonies in Antarctica and sub-Antarctic islands. They have orange and black beaks and webbed feet with long toenails. They call with a braying sound, a bit like a donkey. ||
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[] || Describe how your animal behaves (moves, flies, runs) While they can sometimes look a little clumsy on land as they waddle through the snow, Gentoo Penguins can out-run humans over short distances. As well as their famous waddle, they also employ another way to get around on land – by using their stomachs to slide along the ice, which is known as tobogganing. || Where it lives They prefer the low costal plains, fairly close to a sandy beach which is used to gain access to the open ocean. With an average lifespan of about 20 years, the current population of Gentoo Penguins is estimated at approximately 640,000.
 * **__Movement:__**
 * //__DONE__//** || Gentoo Penguins are certainly speedy little characters. They are the fastest underwater swimming bird in the world and can reach up to 36 kilometres per hour as their bodies slip through the water.
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 * **__Habitat:__**
 * //__DONE__//** || Gentoo penguins live on Antarctic Peninsula and a number of sub-Antarctic islands. The main colonies are on the Falkland, South Georgia and Kerguelen Islands, while smaller populations are found on the Antarctic Peninsula, Heard and South Shetland Islands and the Australian-managed territory of Macquarie Island.

Colonies can be inland or coastal on Antarctic and subantarctic island and peninsulas. Tend to breed on ice-free ground on beaches, in valleys, on inland hills, and on cliff tops. || What it eats How it eats __//**DONE**//__ || Gentoos feed on Rock cod, Lantern fish, crustaceans (krill), amphipods and cephalopods (mainly squid). They typically forage at sea close to the colony, and thus their chicks are fed frequently. Females tend to eat more krill than the males, while the males tend to eat more fish. Gentoo penguins are gregarious at sea, meaning they will form 'rafts' of hundreds of individuals to aid in catching prey. Most prey is caught on shallow pursuit dives lasting only half a minute, although they can dive to at least 330 feet.
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 * **__Feeding Habits:__**

Gentoo Penguins search under water looking for crustaceans, fish and squid. They look for crustaceans and small fish on shallow dives and bigger fish and squid on deeper dives. They catch their prey in their beak and swallow it whole underwater or they go to the surface to swallow it. || How does it have babies? How does it care for its babies? How long do they live? //__**DONE**__// || Roughly circular in shape, Gentoo nests are found on rocky, uninhabited shores; built out of whatever supplies are at hand, though they seem to prefer grass and vegetation. Competition for nesting materials can be fierce as they will aggressively fight over stones or take stones and other material away from other birds' nests. In September or October, Gentoos generally lay two eggs three days apart from each other. The second egg is often smaller than the first. Both eggs are then guarded zealously by the parents until they hatch about 5 weeks later. Chick survival is often dependent on the availability of food and the lack of predators. If food is in short supply the parents will preferentially feed the stronger of the two chicks sacrificing the weaker one. The chicks stay in the nest for about a month at which time they form nursery groups or 'creches', while their parents hunt for food. After about 3 months (usually in January) the chicks grow their adult feathers and are able to head out on their own.
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 * **__Breeding Habits:__**

Gentoo Penguins make a nest from a shallow hollow in the ground that they line with grass, feathers, stones, shells and moss. Females lay two white eggs in the hollow. Both parents sit on the eggs to keep them warm for 34 to 36 days. When the eggs hatch the chicks are helpless and without feathers. Both parents feed and care for the chicks until they are four weeks old. They then join a group of other young penguins from the colony. || What does it do during the day and night? Unlike other penguins, such as adelies, gentoos can lay a replacement clutch of eggs if they lose the original clutch.
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 * **__Activity:__**
 * //__DONE__//** || Adult gentoos only venture about 24km (15 miles) from the colony in search of food for their chicks. On average they dive deeper than chinstrap and adelies to avoid competition.

Gentoo Penguins are active little characters with an endless supply of energy. They are curious and outgoing and will investigate and interact with anything new. Often vocal, they will call to each other with a honking sound and sing together in a loud chorus. || How has it changed over time in Antarctica?
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 * **Adaptations:**
 * //__DONE__//** || The Gentoo Penguin is one of three species in the genus //Pygoscelis//. Mitochondrial and nuclear DNA evidence suggests the genus split from other penguins around 38 million years ago, about 2 million years after the ancestors of the genus //Aptenodytes//. In turn, the Adelie Penguins split off from the other members of the genus around 19 million years ago, and the Chinstrap and Gentoo finally diverging around 14 million years ago.[3] ||
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 * **Threats:**
 * //__DONE__//** || In the water, sea lions, leopard seals, and orca are all predators of the Gentoo. On land there are no predators of full grown Gentoos. Skuas can steal their eggs; however, some birds have snatched chicks.

Gentoo penguin eggs are taken by skuas. Young birds are preyed upon by sheathbills, caracaras (falcons), Kelp gulls, Giant petrels and feral cats, while older birds are taken by Leopard seals. Nests are often flattened by indifferent Elephant seals as they move about the colonies.

At sea the main predatoris of gentoo penguins are leopard seals and orca. The nests have numerous threats for eggs and young birds such as skuas, shealthbills, gulls, and giant petrels. Wandering elephant seals can also flatten nests if they wander into a colony. ||
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[] || They also have an amazing ability to regulate their own heart rate. During deep dives, Gentoo Penguins can reduce their heart rate from 80 - 100 beats per minute down to as low as 20 beats per minute to save energy and allow them to stay underwater for longer periods. This energy conservation is certainly needed, as Gentoos have been known to make up to 450 dives during a single day to forage for food. ||  ||   ||
 * **Other Facts:**
 * //__DONE__//** || * **Gentoo penguins are the least abundant species of penguin found on the subantarctic islands.**
 * **No other penguin has such a prominent tail.**
 * **Unlike most penguins in which the sexes are similarly sized, female Gentoos are smaller than the males.**
 * **Unlike other penguin species, Gentoo penguins may breed as early as two years of age.**
 * **Gentoo penguins rear two chicks each year more often than other penguin species.**
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