Breeding

   Penguins mate for life. During breeding season, penguins will travel to breed in places like Africa, South America, and Australia. Nests are constucted of pebbles, mud, and vegetation. The females will bury one or two chalk colored eggs. The eggs are incubated by both parents in turns. One penguin is at the nest, the other getting food.

   The Emperor Penguin does it a little differently from other species. The female Emperor lays one egg and then leaves to find food. While the female is finding food, the male incubates the egg. For two months the male protects the egg at temperatures as low as -40° Fahrenheit. The females then come back and the egg hatches. Since chicks don't have many feathers, they depend on their parents for warmth, hiding in the safety of a brood pouch between the adult's legs. Through the long incubation process, the new father has lost one third of his body weight. After mom arrives for the second shift, dad goes to the water for a well-deserved meal (or two) and some rest, and then all the penguin families go back home.

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