Scientists Put a Camera on an Antarctic Penguin — the Footage from Beneath the Ice Is Jaw-Dropping
Within the violently churning swells of Southern Ocean’s ice-cold waters, a high-spirited gentoo penguin with a voracious appetite ventured on a hunting trip to catch and eat fish. In an excited swim, that almost resembled a dance performance, the flightless bird swayed and bobbed its streamlined, tuxedoed body, gliding, tobogganing, and thrusting its paddle-like wings to propel itself forward. A set of tiny sensors attached to its body captured the entire scene. As part of ecosystem conservation programs, scientists are spying on the movements of these penguins, using GPS trackers and miniature surveillance cameras. And the video recordings that this particular penguin filmed during its trip has left internet amazed.
The footage was filmed by a penguin that was tagged by scientists from the National Antarctic Scientific Centre of Ukraine and the Norwegian Polar Institute. Stationed on Ukraine’s Vernadsky Research Base, the scientists strapped a PenguCAM with the objective of decoding its hunting and foraging behaviors and strategies it used as it dove and plunged into the Southern Ocean, eager to snag a generous school of fatty fish. The camera and GPS tracker were installed on its body during the breeding period. When the footage came out, it revealed noteworthy and previously unknown insights about the fascinating marine hydrodynamics of subantarctic penguins.
Gentoos are the underwater cheetahs, one of the fastest birds that can travel at over 22 miles per hour in the water. With the size of a medium-sized suitcase and a weight equivalent to a 2-gallon jug of milk, these penguins shoot through the water like speedboats and torpedoes, their pillowy black-and-white plumages soaking in the treacherous icy waters.
This video, in particular, uncovered a marvelous list of behaviors that penguins display as they drag their long tails through the waters. A meteoric speed, to begin with. “What you see is the penguins’ actual underwater swimming speed,” researchers involved in the project, shared with BBC. About five seconds into the video, the bird plunges into the crystalline blue waters. As it zips through the water, the recording captures a cluster of other penguins swimming alongside it, everyone’s movements signaling eagerness. And hunger, probably.
Bobbing its neck, side to side, the enthusiastic penguin races, occasionally ducking its head out of the water Looking quite like the main character in a video game, the penguin careens forward. Flurries of sediment crash over its back and bounce off in powdery volleys. The animated procession of penguins then performs a dramatic display of preening. Penguins, including this one, turns their feathers from side to side, a gesture scientists attribute to thermal insulation.
Within about two minutes into the recording, the penguin succeeds in grabbing a snack. “In the video, you can clearly see penguins hunting krill, forming dense aggregations. In some moments, the krill literally 'rolls up' into bands, and the penguins dive straight into these swarms,” researchers described. Another interesting observation scientists registered from this video was: bubbles. As it flapped its feathers, the penguin released trails of bubbles, which, scientists assume, helps them maintain the speed.
On Facebook, they revealed that the sensors and camera was attached to their bodies with special tape and glue for a temporary stance of 24 hours. The devices, they assured, are safe for the animals and don’t damage their feathers in any way. This is way beyond than just a video recording. Researchers believe that the short, entertaining film will help them gain insights into the understanding of why penguins choose certain hunting locations and what strategies they use to obtain their meals. By understanding these behaviors in detail, they can develop systems that will protect and support the Antarctic ecosystem and its beloved penguin residents.
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