World Penguin Day

About the event

April 25 is World Penguin Day. Not just a cute holiday filled with photos of fluffy birds (though that too), but a date with scientific roots: this is when Adélie penguins begin their annual northward migration from Antarctica. Scientists at McMurdo Station noticed the pattern and started marking the date — and that is how a holiday born in 1972 later became a worldwide one.

18 species, 18 personalities

There are 18 species of penguins on the planet, and all of them live in the Southern Hemisphere. The emperor penguin is the largest (up to 130 cm tall — a true aristocrat in a tuxedo). The little blue penguin is the smallest (around 40 cm — small enough for a backpack, though best not to test that). The Galápagos penguin is the only one found north of the equator. And the gentoo is the fastest swimmer, reaching up to 36 km/h underwater. Penguins do not fly in the air, but they do “fly” in water — their wings evolved into flippers, and their bones became dense instead of hollow, unlike those of flying birds.

What’s new in 2026

The news is worrying. In March 2026, scientists from the British Antarctic Survey accidentally discovered new emperor penguin moulting sites in satellite images — and at the same time realized that the sea ice beneath some of these sites had melted during moulting itself. This is critically dangerous: penguins shed all their feathers at once (scientists call this a “catastrophic moult”), lose up to half their body mass, and cannot hunt for 4–5 weeks. Without waterproof plumage in icy water, it is close to a death sentence. Until 2022, satellite images counted more than 100 penguin groups; by 2025, only 25 remained. The affected colonies account for about 40% of the global emperor penguin population.

At the same time, researchers have recorded that three Antarctic species — gentoo, Adélie, and chinstrap penguins — are shifting their breeding seasons earlier and earlier: gentoo penguins by 13 days per decade. This is a response to climate change, and the consequences remain unpredictable.

Five facts that will surprise you

• Ancient giants. 36 million years ago, a penguin called Inkayacu lived in Peru — about one and a half meters long. And it was not black and white, but reddish gray: paleontologists reconstructed its color from melanosomes preserved in fossilized feathers.
• Sneezing as a filter. Penguins swallow a lot of seawater along with fish. A special gland above their eyes filters salt from the blood, and the excess leaves through... sneezing.
• A pebble = a proposal. Some penguin species present their partner with a perfectly smooth pebble as a sign of affection. If the pebble is accepted, the pair is formed.
• Secret notes. The first penguin researcher, George Murray Levick, spent almost a year among an Adélie colony in 1911. He recorded part of his observations in Greek to keep them hidden from the public — the birds’ behavior seemed that unusual. Those notes were only declassified 100 years later.
• 75% of life is spent in water. Penguins spend three quarters of their lives in the ocean. Land is more like a break for lunch and raising children.

What to gift a penguin fan?

• A symbolic penguin adoption through WWF or Penguins International — with a certificate and updates about the adopted penguin.
• A plush penguin — yes, it is a classic, but a good soft penguin has never hurt any home.
• The documentary “March of the Penguins” — a timeless classic. The second film is good too.
• Penguin socks or a penguin mug — a micro-dose of joy for every day.
• A donation to an Antarctic protection fund — a gift that truly makes a difference. Antarctic and Southern Ocean Coalition or Penguins International.
• A penguin drawing kit — coloring pages from Penguins International featuring all 18 species. Versions exist for both children and adults.