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Ed_Yong.jpgEd Yong is an award-winning British science writer. Not Exactly Rocket Science is his attempt to make the latest scientific discoveries interesting to everyone. He finds writing about himself in the third person strange and unsettling.

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South African wildlife - African penguin

Category: BirdsSouth African wildlife
Posted on: November 28, 2009 12:06 PM, by Ed Yong

Penguin_looking_back.jpg

Ah, penguins. You just can't help but smile. These animals are found on Boulders Beach near Cape Town, where they come so close to the erected walkways that you could potentially reach out and grab one (if the mood took you and you were an idiot).

The African penguin (Spheniscus demersus) is part of a genus with four species. The last time I saw one of them, it was off the Galapagos Islands (the Galapagos penguin), and the other two members of the group (the Humboldt and Magellanic penguins) are natives of Patagonia. They're commonly known as jackass penguins because of their distinct, braying calls.

Penguin_closeup.jpg

Penguin_footprints.jpg

Penguin_beach.jpg

If you're wondering why they look so huddled, it's because the beach was being sandblasted by ridiculously strong winds, as if often the case near Cape Town. We only really managed to get a few photos as a time before having to retreat and gently wipe sand off the lens.

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Comments

1

Thanks for sharing these photos. I haven't heard the term jackass penguin before and now want to hear what they sound like. Lucky you on the world traveling!

Posted by: Labgrab | November 28, 2009 12:44 PM

2

I love these photos. I have a particular soft spot for penguins.

Posted by: Lilian Nattel | November 28, 2009 9:28 PM

3

I love these penguins, and spent a while watching them (and the thousands of seals) on the Skeleton Coast of Namibia.

Because of the incredibly rich Benguela Current off the coast, a lot of countries come there to fish, including Russia. While waiting for the big shoals to appear, they park their rusting hulks off the coast, where the penguins use them for nesting and resting purposes. It's an odd juxtaposition:

http://www.cedgray.com/item.php?id=388

Posted by: Chris | November 30, 2009 9:25 AM

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