Inside Of A Penguin Huddle Gets HOT!

You’ll probably be shocked to learn that in one of the coldest environments on the planet Emperor penguins sometimes resort to desperate measures to COOL down.

Yep.

It may by 90 degrees below zero outside the penguins’ huddle, but researchers estimate the air inside the huddles gets to a hot 99 degrees.

Scientists from the University of Strasbourg in France studied Antarctica’s Pointe Géologie Archipelago emperor penguin colony, which comprises approximately 3,000 breeding pairs during the 2005, 2006 and 2008 breeding seasons.

They observed penguins breaking from the huddle and eating snow to cool down.

According to The Daily Mail’s report:

‘The regular growth and decay of huddles operates as pulses through which birds gain, conserve or lose heat,’ they wrote.

‘Originally proposed to account for reducing energy expenditure, the concept of social thermoregulation appears to cover a highly dynamic phenomenon that fulfills a genuine regulatory function in emperor penguins.’

Study author André Ancel said: ‘The breakup of huddles is sometimes accompanied by a haze of warm air rising over the colony, which indicates a significant dissipation of heat.’

Emperor penguins are the only species that have been studied for this type of behavior. Research say they need to study other penguin species.

h/t: The Daily Mail