Bullied, mateless — life's tough being beige
Door: Paul Eaton
Blijf op de hoogte en volg André & Manita
31 December 2007 | Nieuw Zeeland, Wellington
5 januari 2008
A FREAK penguin that is bullied because of its unusual appearance has been found in Antarctica. The Adelie penguin lacks pigmentation and is missing its trademark black "dinner jacket", which is instead a dirty beige. The bird was spotted by a team of Australian researchers restoring the historic Mawson's Huts at Cape Denison. It is not a full albino because it has some colouring, and is instead called a "leucistic" penguin. It is rare to find an adult leucistic penguin as they stand out in the crowd and are usually gobbled up or attacked by predators — and there are no exceptions in this case.
On the Mawson's Huts expedition blog, photographer Brett Jarrett described the hapless bird getting picked on and harassed by other penguins. "At least this individual reached adulthood, even though while being observed was quite regularly picked on and harassed by other 'normal' Adelies," Mr Jarrett said.
The penguin was first spotted by tourists on December 20 and by researchers on December 30.
Biologist Rhonda Wise said just one penguin with the genetic defect had been detected over many seasons in the 4000-strong Adelies population.
New Zealand penguin expert Chris Challies said little was known about leucistic penguins because they were so rare and therefore difficult to observe. It was thought they had difficulty finding a mate because of their unusual colouring, and may be picked on for the same reason. "But we really don't know," Dr Challies said. He was the one who found the first recorded example of a leucistic little blue penguin last year.
A FREAK penguin that is bullied because of its unusual appearance has been found in Antarctica. The Adelie penguin lacks pigmentation and is missing its trademark black "dinner jacket", which is instead a dirty beige. The bird was spotted by a team of Australian researchers restoring the historic Mawson's Huts at Cape Denison. It is not a full albino because it has some colouring, and is instead called a "leucistic" penguin. It is rare to find an adult leucistic penguin as they stand out in the crowd and are usually gobbled up or attacked by predators — and there are no exceptions in this case.
On the Mawson's Huts expedition blog, photographer Brett Jarrett described the hapless bird getting picked on and harassed by other penguins. "At least this individual reached adulthood, even though while being observed was quite regularly picked on and harassed by other 'normal' Adelies," Mr Jarrett said.
The penguin was first spotted by tourists on December 20 and by researchers on December 30.
Biologist Rhonda Wise said just one penguin with the genetic defect had been detected over many seasons in the 4000-strong Adelies population.
New Zealand penguin expert Chris Challies said little was known about leucistic penguins because they were so rare and therefore difficult to observe. It was thought they had difficulty finding a mate because of their unusual colouring, and may be picked on for the same reason. "But we really don't know," Dr Challies said. He was the one who found the first recorded example of a leucistic little blue penguin last year.
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Je kunt nu ook Smileys gebruiken. Via de toolbar, toetsenbord of door eerst : te typen en dan een woord bijvoorbeeld :smiley
