king penguin

tags: King Penguin, Aptenodytes patagonicus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz [Mystery bird] Immature King Penguin, Aptenodytes patagonicus, photographed in unknown sub-Antarctic island location. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours] Image: creative commons. NOTE: PLEASE name at least one field mark that supports your identification. NOTE: Opus the Penguin, a fictional character in the comic strips Bloom County, Outland, and Opus, is a king penguin and the most famous character of the comic strips. Review all mystery birds to date.

As reported in the May 2008 Journal of Ethology, researchers in the sub-antarctic Indian Ocean on Marion Island, recently observed some fascinating and disturbing behavior. A young adult Antarctic fur seal was witnessed forcing itself upon an adult king penguin for upwards of 45 minutes. While young adult fur seals are known for aggressive sexuality that sometimes spans species between pinnepeds, this is the first documented case of a seal "[bridging] the level of vertebrate class in their copulatory attempts." i.e. getting it on with a freakin penguin. The seal was first spotted subduing the…