EMPIRE
STATE
BUILDINGOCTOBER 2019 • NAT GEO KIDS (^17)
RAINFOREST PENGUINS^
Tawaki penguins, or Fiordland crested penguins, prefer
the warm waters and misty rainforest of southwest
New Zealand to the icy Antarctic. With smaller bodies
than many cold-weather penguins like emperors, these
flightless birds can live in balmy 70°F temperatures.
And their eggs stay toasty too, tucked away in caves,
bushes, and tree stumps where Dad sits on the nest.
CITY WHALES^ No, they’re not visiting
the Empire State Building—they’re here for the
food! For the first time in about a hundred years,
humpback whales are swimming back into the
waters off the coast of New York City. Why? Years of
cleanup efforts in the Hudson River—a tidal estuary
where fresh and salt water meet—have brought
back algae, zooplankton, and fish. And then those
hungry humpbacks, which are the ultimate foodie
tourists, weren’t far behind.
OCEAN
SLOTHS^
Pygmy three-toed
sloths might be slow
climbers, but when
they get into the
water, watch out!
These special sloths,
which live only on an
island off the coast
of Panama in Central
America, plop into the
sea when they want
to move to a new tree.
The sloths’ tummies
are often filled with
gas due to their leafy
diet, so it’s easy for
them to stay afloat.
They can move three
times faster in the
water than they can
on the ground. But
since we’re talking
about sloths, that’s
not really saying
much.