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Adelie Penguins
http://www.adelie.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/species_notes/adelie.htm

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                              Adelie Penguins

   [adelie.gif]

Adelie Penguin - Pygoscelis Adeliae

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   [1]Distinguishing features
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   [2]Sub-species
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   [3]Height & Weight
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   [4]Breeding locations
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   [5]Nesting Behaviour
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   [6]Principal Diet
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   [7]Alternative names


                          Distinguishing features

   Adelies are the archetypal penguins that are supposed to look like men
   in their dinner suits. They have a white front and a black back. They
   also have a white ring around the eye that is most pronounced in the
   breeding season. Juveniles can be recognised by their white chins.

   Chicks have uniform grey black plumage.

                                             [8]Photos of Adelie penguins

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                                Sub-species

   There are no generally recognised sub-species of the Adelie penguin.

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                              Height & Weight

   Adult Adelies are about 70 cm tall. Weights vary through the year.
   Males weigh from 4.4 to 5.4 kg while females are lighter at 3.9 to 4.8
   kg.

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                             Breeding locations

map of breeding locations

   Adelie penguins breed on exposed rock all round the Antarctic
   continent. There are reported to be 177 separate site comprising some
   1,030 colonies.

   The population has been declining over the last few decades and is
   falling at an increasing rate as the climate in Antarctica warms.

   The total breeding population is estimated to be about 2,000,000
   pairs.

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                             Nesting behaviour

   Adelies build rough nests of stones. Two eggs are laid, these are
   incubated for 32 to 34 days by the parents taking turns (shifts
   typically last for 12 days). The chicks remain in the nest for 22 days
   before joining creches. The chicks moult into their juvenile plumage
   and go out to sea after 50 to 60 days.

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                               Principal diet

   Adelies live almost exclusively on krill - which makes up over 99% of
   their diet.

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                             Alternative names

   As far as we know there are no alternative names for Adelie penguins.
   If you know of any please [15]send us an email.

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    Bibliography

   Penguins John Sparks and Tony Soper, Facts on File Publications,
   Oxford, 1987.

   Penguins of the World Pauline Reilly, OUP, Oxford, 1994.

   The Penguins Tony D Williams, OUP, Oxford, 1995.

   Penguin CAMP reports, IUCN, 1998 and 2004.



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References

  15. mailto:penguins@pobox.com