Emperor penguin (Aptenodytes forsteri) breeding pair. These penguins are serially monogamous, remaining faithful while raising a chick. They are the o
Emperor penguin (Aptenodytes forsteri) breeding pair. These penguins are serially monogamous, remaining faithful while raising a chick. They are the only penguins to breed during the Antarctic winter. Congregating at colonial nesting areas inland, each pair produces a single egg, which the males incubate on their feet, surviving the extreme cold by huddling in large groups. Males fast during the two-month incubation period and lose almost half their body mass by the end. After the egg hatches in around mid-July, the male and female take it in turns to shelter the chick and feed it with regurgitated fish following foraging at sea. Around 15 percent of emperor penguins breed with the same partner the following year. Photographed in October, in Antarctica.
Size: 4827px × 7240px
Photo credit: © DR P. MARAZZI/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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