Childrens Illustrated Encyclopedia

415

EmpEror pEnguin

The emperor penguin has a bright orange bib

around its neck. it is a fast swimmer and can leap

straight out of the water at high speeds to land

safely on the ice. it breeds in the coldest place

on Earth—on Antarctic ice, where the average

temperature is -4°F (-20°C). After the female has

laid an egg, the male penguin keeps it warm in

his brood pouch—a warm layer of feathered skin

between his feet and belly—for about

60 days. The newborns stay warm

by standing on their parents’ feet,

or in the brood pouch.

Snow gooSE

About 100 kinds of birds migrate to

the tundra to breed in the spring.

Snow geese arrive two weeks before

there are any plants to eat, but they

have a store of body fat that allows

them to make a nest and lay eggs

before they eat. Later they feed the

chicks on the newly growing grasses.

LEopArd SEAL

The four main kinds of seals around Antarctica are

the leopard, crabeater, ross, and weddell seals. The

leopard seal measures up to 10 ft (3 m) in length. it

patrols the pack ice and island coasts hunting for

penguins and other seals, especially crabeater seals.

ConSErvATion

Today, polar bears and

whales are protected

from hunting by law. But

many polar animals are

still threatened by oil

spills, overfishing, and

global warming melting

the ice. Fishing boats

catch huge quantities of

fish, which affects the

numbers of animals that

depend on fish for food.

pEnguinS

There are 17 different kinds of

penguins; all live in the Southern

Hemisphere. penguins cannot fly, but they

are expert swimmers and divers. They can

speed along in the water after fish and

squid using their flipper-shaped wings.

There is little life on the continent of

Antarctica itself, apart from a few mosses,

lichens, and tiny creatures such as mites.

iCE FiSH

The blood of most fish freezes solid at about

-32°F (-35°C), and the waters in the polar regions

sometimes drop even lower. The ice fish, also

called the crocodile fish, has special chemicals in

its blood to stop it from freezing.

muSk ox

The musk ox is a type of goat.

it is the only large mammal

that can survive winter on the

tundra. The musk ox’s thickset

body has dense underfur and a

thick, shaggy outer coat of tough hairs.

musk oxen stand together as protection

from predators, such as wolves. They stand

facing outward with the youngsters in the center.

Dwarf willows

are among the

world’s smallest

shrubs. They

grow low and

spread sideways

to stay out of

the icy winds.

kriLL

The shrimplike creatures shown

left are called krill. They are

the main food for baleen

(whalebone) whales, such as

the blue whale, which scoop

up thousands of krill from

the ocean every day.

ArCTiC SAxiFrAgE

The cushion shapes of

tundra flowers such as

saxifrage and crowberry

help prevent the plants from

freezing. These plants also

provide shelter for the tiny

creatures living in between

the plant’s different parts.

TundrA

The lands on the edge of the Arctic ocean are

bleak and treeless. This region is called the tundra.

The brief summer in the Arctic allows small plants,

such as sedges, cushion-shaped saxifrages, heathers,

mosses, and lichens, to grow. These plants provide

food for many insects and the

grazing caribou. Birds such

as snow geese breed along

the shores and migrate south

in the fall.

Find out more

Antarctica

Arctic

Bears and pandas

Fish

oceans and seas

Seashore wildlife

whales and dolphins

polar wildlife

US_415_Polar_Wildlife_2.indd 415 22/01/16 4:46 pm