Considered marine birds, penguins live up to 80 percent of their lives in the ocean, according to the New England Aquarium. All penguins live in the Southern Hemisphere, though it is a common myth that they all live in Antarctica. In fact, penguins can be found on every continent in the Southern Hemisphere.
This begs the inquiry “Where does penguins come from?”
The genetic evidence reveals that today’s penguin species originated in the coastal regions of Australia and New Zealand and nearby islands in the South Pacific about 22 million years ago—not in Antarctica, as many people once thought.
When we were writing we ran into the inquiry “Where do penguins come from originally?”.
New Research Suggests Penguins Originated In Australia, New Zealand New research suggests that penguins’ ancestors originated not in frozen Antarctica but, instead, off the coasts of Australia and New Zealand, adapting to new climes over 22 million years. What animal is native to Antarctica?
What is the origin of the Penguin?
There are three suggested origins of penguin: Welsh pen gywn ‘white head ‘; a derivative of Latin pinguis ‘fat’; and English pin wing. There is no evidence for the last one but there are explanations for Welsh and Latin origins. It seems like the Welsh origin is the most favored one.
One question we ran across in our research was “What is the origin of the word’penguin’?”.
In French, manchot is used for the bird called penguin in English. From the 18th century, German language used the word Fettgans ‘fatty goose’ for penguin which might be related to the Latin origin pinguis ‘fat ‘. Show activity on this post. Auk (aka penguin?).
Where do penguins live?
In fact, only a few species of penguin live so far south. Several species are found in the temperate zone, and one species, the Galápagos penguin, lives near the equator. The largest living species is the emperor penguin ( Aptenodytes forsteri ): on average, adults are about 1.1 m (3 ft 7 in) tall and weigh 35 kg (77 lb).
Some believe that the “basal Penguin” lived somewhere in what was Gondwana, a large mass of land that was in the process of fragmentation and which would later become Australia, New Zealand, Antarctica and parts of South America.
The largest population of gentoo penguins live on Falkland Island, with more than 121,000 pairs, but they also live on the South Sandwich Islands. Gentoos are known for their bright red bills.
One answer is that Although almost all penguin species are native to the southern hemisphere, they are not found only in areas with cold climates, such as Antarctica. In fact, only a few species of penguin live that far south. Several species are found in the temperate zone, and one species, the Galápagos penguin, lives near the Equator .
There are also a few species of penguins that live in either extreme cold or surprisingly warm places. Many people think all penguins live in Antarctica, but only six penguin species are actually found on the coldest continent: emperor penguin, rockhopper penguin, chinstrap penguin, macaroni penguin, gentoo penguin, and Adélie penguin.
What is a Penguins?
Penguins are flightless birds with torpedo shape, and they live in the Earth’s southern hemisphere (with the exception of the penguins of the Galapagos Islands, which is located very close to the Equator itself).
What is a penguin classified as?
Penguins ( order Sphenisciformes, family Spheniscidae) are a group of aquatic flightless birds. They live almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere, with only one species, the Galapagos penguin, found north of the equator.
Did Penguins evolve in Australia?
Scientists Say It’s Not Antarctica Penguins are abundant in Antarctica today. But new genetic work suggests they evolved in Australia and New Zealand, and then used ocean currents to relocate.