April 25 is World Penguin Day

THE GLOBAL PENGUIN SOCIETY INVITES TO YOU CELEBRATE THE WORLD PENGUIN DAY, April 25th.  LOCAL, NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL EVENTS. WE HOPE YOU CAN JOIN US!

My Unflappable Mom: An Appreciation of Mothers - Images by Jonathan Chester

INTERNATIONAL April 25th. Join GPS and PEW on April 25 at 11 a.m. EDT for our special Twitter live chat with penguin experts Pablo Garcia Borboroglu, founder and president of the Global Penguin Society, and P. Dee Boersma, an expert on biological characteristics of penguins. They will answer your questions and explain why penguins matter.

Where: ww.twitter.com/pewenvironment. 

When: April 25, 2013 at 11 a.m. EDT

How: Use the hash tag #PenguinChat and #PenguinDay to make sure your questions are heard.

INTERNATIONAL. Check the Penguin Blog of the Smithsonian Ocean Portal (www.ocean.si.edu).

SEATTLE. U.S.A. April 24, 2013: “Penguins as Ocean Sentinels ”Dee Boersma, Environmental Issues Slam REI Flagship Store, Seattle: 6:30-7:00 pm: Socializing and Snacks; 7:00-8:00 pm: Environmental Issues Slam. Six people will give short presentations about an environmental issue. The audience will vote on the presentations, and the winning presentation will earn a grant for their environmental cause. This event is hosted by the Washington Foundation for the Environment. More information is available at http://www.wffe.org/index_files/Page318.htm

WASHINGTON DC, U.S.A. May 7th. Presentation at Pew Environmental Group building about penguin science and conservation.

UNITED STATES  May 14th (Seattle), 16th (Bellingham) , and 23rd (Brussels). Different events to promote the recently published book called: PENGUINS: NATURAL HISTORY AND CONSERVATION. Edited by Drs. Borboroglu and Boersma with 49 contributors from 12 countries. Read more at:http://www.washington.edu/uwpress/search/books/BORPEN.html and watch the trailer http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0s0BbIU6cqE. 

May 14, 2012: Details: “Penguins in Perils” Dee Boersma and Pablo Garcia Borboroglu

             Town Hall, Seattle, 7:30-9:00 pm, Tickets: $5

Dee and Pablo (Popi) will present the latest knowledge on penguin natural history and conservation. This event is presented by Town Hall and the University Book Store. More information is available at http://townhallseattle.org/p-dee-boersma-pablo-garcia-borboroglu-penguins-in-peril/

May 16, 2012: “Penguins: Natural History and Conservation” Dee Boersma and Pablo Garcia Borboroglu

             Village Books, Bellingham, WA7:00-8:30 pm

Dee and Popi will present their recently published book, Penguins: Natural History and Conservation and share some of their penguin stories. More information is available at http://villagebooks.com/event/2013/05/16/month/all/all/1

By my latest penguin book. My Unflappable Mom and help celebrate Mothers Day 

Kansas City Zoo's Penguin Plaza

Patagonia’s Penguins at Risk from Proposed Coal Mine

Last month Chile’s governmentapproved a controversial coal mine project in southern Patagonia’s Riesco Island, despite opposition from local residents and environmental groups, including Oceana.

Oceana presented a report to Chile’s environmental ministry outlining the threats facing mammals and birds in the region, including the area’s most emblematic seabird, the Magellanic penguin. The threats from the mine include heavy metal pollution (such as mercury), oil spills, and boat collisions with marine mammals.Patagonia’s Penguins at Risk from Proposed Coal Mine

Penguin People -Dee Borsema - Feather loss epidemic,

Penguin chicks are facing a new threat – stunted growth or even death brought on by a mysterious feather-loss epidemic. A recently released report, co-authored by WCS scientist Dee Boersma, details the severity of this new disorder.

Donations are being sought by the WCS to fund research into this problem.

PLEASE SUPPORT THIS WORTHY CAUSE.



Penguin of the Day - Magellanic - Images by Jonathan Chester

PENGUIN PEOPLE - Gerald Kooyman - Emperor Penguin Researcher

Friend and pioneering penguin researcher at the Scripps Institute, Gerald Kooyman, was interviewed by Discovery News about his work with the most amazing of all penguins.. the emperor.

For more than 30 years, he has studied the behavioral, physiological, and anatomical adaptations of antarctic marine animals. His work, both at Scripps and in remote field locations, has broadened scientific understanding of the specialized adaptations of these aquatic mammals and birds and how they live and survive on the coldest, driest, and windiest continent.
In recent years, Kooyman has focused on emperor penguins, and how they may be affected by global climate change. The causes and effects of global change continue to be hotly debated by scientists. Kooyman, however, approaches it from a different perspective."

"What really matters," he says, "is whether animal populations are increasing or declining. If they are declining, the question is why? What is the cause and are humans the responsible agents? If so, what can we do about it?

Penguin of the Day - Emperor - Images by Jonathan Chester

The Penguins of Punta Tombo featuring Dee Borsema

Great new video featuring Dee Borsema who has worked on Magellanic Penguins for 28 years at Punta Tombo in Argentina with the Wildlife Conservation Society.

Magellanics, one of the four so called "ringed penguin species", live in colonies in temperate conditions found in southern South America and the Falkland Islands.

Penguin of the Day - Magellanic - Images by Jonathan Chester

WHY ARE PENGUINS LOSING THEIR FEATHERS?

A new condition is causing many penguin chicks to lose their feathers, with some victims dying as a result of the mysterious problem, according to the Wildlife Conservation Society.

The condition, called "feather-loss disorder," appears to have emerged recently and is now affecting penguin colonies on both sides of the South Atlantic.

..... (Feather-loss disorder has been observed in African penguins, which inhabit the coast and offshore islands of South Africa. Credit: Nola Parsons)

A "naked" Magellanic penguin chick at Punta Tombo, site of the most important colony for the species. Credit: Jeffrey Smith)

BLOG: Punk Rock Penguins Protected

“Feather-loss disorders are uncommon in most bird species, and we need to conduct further study to determine the cause of the disorder and if this is in fact spreading to other penguin species,” Dee Boersma was quoted as saying in a WCL press release. Boersma has conducted studies on Magellanic penguins for more than three decades.

"We need to learn how to stop the spread of feather-loss disorder," she added, "as penguins already have problems with oil pollution and climate variation. It’s important to keep disease from being added to the list of threats they face."

Ship wreck and oil spill threatens Northern Rock Hopper Penguin

The small community of the remote islands of Tristan da Cunha in the South Atlantic are struggling to cope with a massive oil spill from a Greek managed cargo ship that was wrecked on the coast of Nightingale Island. The 1500 tons of fuel and oil released is threatening the endangered Northern Rockhopper penguin population. Three hundred birds have already died.

Fellow penguinologist Dyan daNapoli has been following the tragedy closely. Dyan suggests:

"To make a donation to help save the oiled seabirds at Tristan da Cunha, visit The Ocean Foundation‘s website. Your donation to the Nightingale Island Disaster Penguin and Seabird Rescue Fund is tax-deductible, and will go directly to help the teams working to save the oiled seabirds at Nightingale Island, Tristan da Cunha and Inaccessible Island. There is also a link to this donation form on the Ocean Doctor’s website (Dr. David Guggenheim)."

Endangered Northern Rockhopper Penguins on Nightingale Island Affected by Extensive Oil Spill

Nightingale Island, part of the remote Tristan da Cunha group in the South Atlantic, was hit on March 16th, 2011 by the MV Oliva, a freighter carrying soybeans from Brazil to Singapore. Over 800 tons of fuel oil was spilled onto the island's shores, poisoning the local population of endangered northern rockhopper penguins. I arrived on the site on March 23, 2011. This is what National Geographic photographer Andrew Evans reported..