Emperor Penguins Face Crisis During Annual Moult
Saturday, 2026/03/07196 words3 minutes211 reads
Scientists have discovered that Emperor penguins face a serious threat during their annual moult, when they completely shed and regrow their feathers. Each year, these birds must remain on stable floating ice platforms for 30-40 days while replacing their old, damaged feathers with new waterproof coats. This process uses up to 50% of their body mass and is extremely dangerous.
Between 2022 and 2024, Antarctic sea ice shrank dramatically due to climate change, falling from an average of 2.8 million square kilometers to a record low of 1.79 million square kilometers in 2023. This deprived the penguins of safe moulting locations. Dr. Peter Fretwell from the British Antarctic Survey has been tracking the birds using satellite images. He spotted large brown patches on the ice—these were mounds of shed feathers.
However, when he examined recent satellite pictures, he found very few penguin groups. "There should have been lots of penguins there, but actually we could only see 25 groups," he said. Scientists fear that thousands of penguins may have frozen to death in Antarctica's icy waters. The findings suggest that Emperor penguins could face extinction sooner than previously predicted, possibly by the end of this century.
