The Emperor Penguin is the tallest and heaviest of all living penguin species and is endemic to Antarctica. The male and female are similar in plumage and size, reaching 122 cm (48 in) in height and weighing anywhere from 22 to 37 kg (48 to 82 lb). Like all penguins, it is flightless, with a streamlined body and wings stiffened and flattened into flippers for a marine lifestyle. Fish form the bulk of its diet, which can include crustaceans, such as krill, and cephalopods, such as squid. In hunting, the species can remain submerged up to 18 minutes, diving to a depth of 535 m (1,755 ft). It has several adaptations to facilitate this, including an unusually structured haemoglobin to allow it to function at low oxygen levels, solid bones to reduce barotrauma, and the ability to reduce its metabolism and shut down non-essential organ functions. The Emperor Penguin is perhaps best known for the sequence of journeys adults make each year in order to mate and to feed their offspring. The only penguin species that breeds during the Antarctic winter, it treks 50–120 km (31–75 mi) over the ice to breeding colonies which may include thousands of individuals. The lifespan is typically 20 years in the wild, although observations suggest that some individuals may live to 50 years of age.
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_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:
1572:
French Wars of Religion: Marguerite de Valois was married to Huguenot King Henry of Navarre, in a supposed attempt to reconcile Protestants and Catholics. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marguerite_de_Valois
1868:
Astronomer Pierre Janssen discovered helium while analyzing the chromosphere of the sun during a total solar eclipse in Guntur, India. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/helium
1891:
A hurricane struck the island of Martinique, killing about 700 people. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1891_Martinique_hurricane
1920:
The Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified, guaranteeing women's suffrage. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nineteenth_Amendment_to_the_United_States_Constitution
1976:
North Korean soldiers killed two American soldiers in the Joint Security Area of the Korean Demilitarized Zone, heightening tensions over a 100-foot (30 m) poplar tree that blocked the line of sight between a United Nations Command checkpoint and an observation post. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Axe_Murder_Incident
1989:
Leading Colombian presidential hopeful Luis Carlos Galán was assassinated during a public demonstration in the town of Soacha, Cundinamarca. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luis_Carlos_Gal%C3%A1n
_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:
dramaturgic (adj): Of or relating to the art of dramatic composition for the stage http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/dramaturgic
___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:
Oh, my Lolita, I have only words to play with! --Vladimir Nabokov http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Vladimir_Nabokov