WA scientist's penguin puzzle

NATURAL WONDER: Gary Miller preparing to capture an adult Emperor Penguin. Picture: Robyn Mundy

WA scientist's penguin puzzle
Article from: PerthNow

Narelle Towie, science reporter

April 11, 2009 06:00pm

A WA scientist has returned from an Antarctic expedition of a lifetime, working with emperor penguins, but it wasn't all Happy Feet.

University of WA microbiologist Gary Miller has the task of solving an important biological puzzle and also collecting sound for the sequel to the hit film.

Dr Miller hopes to uncover who or what is to blame for infecting the penguins with a deadly bird disease that is widespread in domestic chickens.

For 14 months, he and his wife have worked in a red fibreglass caravan on skis on floating ice at the Auster rookery, surrounded by more than 20,000 waist-high, 35kg penguins.

In -30C conditions, the team collected hundreds of blood, faecal and saliva samples, as well as thousands of sound recordings from the penguins.

Now back on dry, warm land, Dr Miller is working with fellow UWA microbiologist Geoff Shallom to determine if people transmitted the bug - infectious bursal virus (IBV) - to Antarctica by taking poultry to some of the 65 research stations.

Blood tests from previous expeditions revealed that emperor penguins had antibodies to the disease, but scientists have not isolated the virus's DNA to determine what strain the birds had.

IBV depletes white blood cells important for the immune system, and some strains are more lethal than others. Different countries house different strains.

Dr Miller hopes to pinpoint where in the world the disease has come from. At present, people from 30 countries work in Antarctica.

``There is a possibility they have contracted this virus from polar skuas (scavenging birds), they may get it from their parents, they may get it from the environment, but at any rate they have been exposed to it if they have an antibody,'' Dr Miller said.

The penguins appeared healthy, but changes to the environment, including those caused by climate change or a simple mutation in the virus's DNA, could have a devastating impact on the penguin rookery, he said.

Dr Miller witnessed some spectacular events. ``During the middle of winter when the males were on their own with the eggs, the colony decided to go for a walk,'' he said. ``There was a single-file line that stretched for about 1.5km. They have the egg on their feet, so they have to shuffle along with their toes up.''

The Happy Feet sequel is due out next year.

Source:
http://www.news.com.au/perthnow/story/0,21598,25320675-2761,00.html

BCM’s gay lovebirds set up nest together

BETTER EGG NEXT TIME: Molly and Guido, both male, have been a couple for over a year at the East London Aquarium. Picture: NIGEL LOUW.

2009/04/10

BCM’s gay lovebirds set up nest together

A SPECIAL love story between two male penguins is playing out at the East London Aquarium. African penguins are known for pairing for life. When Guido and Molly became a couple back in February last year and set up nest together, aquarium staff were puzzled when no egg followed.

Chief marine services officer Siani Tinley said they were able to determine the gender of their birds by submitting blood samples to a veterinary laboratory.

“Staff were convinced that the couple were opposite sexes, hence their names, but tests confirmed both to be males,” said Tinley. Guido, 5, was bred at the aquarium while Molly was washed up at Cove Rock in 2006. After their first attempt at nesting failed, the two lovebirds started their nest up again in February this year. This time around, aquarium staff decided to put a false egg in the nest.

“Things went well and two weeks later one of the other penguin pairs rejected a real egg, so staff made a swap with the artificial egg,” said Tinley.

Guido and Molly carried on nesting quite proudly – but unfortunately two weeks later their nest was disturbed for some reason and the egg was kicked out.

“Their dedication in trying to successfully nest has amused and interested aquarium staff and we will continue to monitor their activities,” said Tinley.

When the Daily Dispatch paid a visit yesterday, the two were enjoying the afternoon sunshine together and it was clear that they cared very much about each other.

The Aquarium has opened its doors to the public and is fully functional again after vandals caused R500000 worth of damage in January this year.

Source:
http://www.dispatch.co.za/article.aspx?id=307449

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"Because I’m worth it"
Originally uploaded by man_with_noname

A Nice Story re: The Woodland Park Zoo

New penguin exhibit opens at Woodland Park Zoo


May 2, 2009 at 1:56 PM PDT
By Travis Mayfield KOMO News

SEATTLE -- Think of it as a belated birthday gift.

Friday, 12-year-old Harrison Grad was able to cut the ribbon and help open the Woodland Park Zoo's new penguin exhibit.

Instead of gifts, Harrison said, "during my birthday parties I had my friends give checks to the zoo for the new penguin exhibit."

The kids raised more than $500.

The total cost for the new Humbolt penguin home was $6.5 million, so many more public and private donors stepped forward, adding to Harrison's contribution.

Designers modeled the 17,000-square-foot exhibit after the natural coast of Punta San Juan in Peru where the birds are a native species. The exhibit features more than half a dozen viewing windows, including two 'bubbles' where visitors can see the birds swimming above, below, and around them.

"This one is 10 times better than the old one," Harrison said. The old exhibit was one of the oldest features of the current zoo before it was torn down two years ago.

Grad said penguins are one of his favorite animals.

"They sort of remind me of people and they sort of look like they have tuxedos on and they act like people almost," he said.

The new exhibit opened to members on Friday and to the general public on Saturday.

For more information on the new penguin exhibit visit the Woodland Park Zoo's website.

Source:
http://www.katu.com/outdoors/news/44184782.html

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mother and chick
Originally uploaded by Travel Daniel

This Week's Pencognito!

Please visit Jen and all the pengiesHERE

Sneak peek of the new penguin exhibit

Sneak peek of the new penguin exhibit
Posted by Geeky Swedes on May 1st, 2009

Today was preview day of the Woodland Park Zoo’s Humboldt Penguin exhibit


Members of the zoo were invited to come take a look at the new habitat that opens to the public tomorrow.


The area was full of kids who watched and waited for the penguins swim by.



If today is any indication, the penguins are going to be quite popular. PhinneyWood was there for this morning’s ribbon cutting.

Source:
http://www.myballard.com/2009/05/01/sneak-peek-of-the-new-penguin-exhibit/

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May 1, 2009 - 3:33 pm
Humboldt penguin exhibit opens Saturday

By ANGELINE CANDIDO
MyNorthwest.com

Three weeks ago the Humboldt penguins were first introduced to their new home at the Woodland Park Zoo. On Saturday, May 2, the new penguin exhibit finally opens to the public.

With shoreline cliffs and simulated waves, the 17,000-square-foot exhibit is modeled after Punta San Juan in Peru, a natural refuge for Humboldt penguins.

Thanks to special windows and acrylic walls, visitors can get up close and personal with these penguins as they splash, dive and swim through the water. Saturday will be your first chance to catch sight of the birds with this brand new view.

Opening day festivities include South American music by Quichua Mashis, zookeeper talks, Peruvian bilingual storytelling with Rose Cano, penguin-themed giveaways, and plenty of crafts and activities.

Admission is $16.50 for adults and $11 for children. Tickets can be purchased at the zoo.



Penguins at Woodland Park Zoo - video powered by Metacafe

Source:
http://www.mynorthwest.com/?nid=11&sid=163128

Friday Videos!

Thanks to Nothing But Penguins for the heads up!

Penguin rescue

Penguin rescue

Volunteer Nicole Gueller from Germany catches an oiled African penguin after being washed to hand feed it as part of a rehabilitation process at the Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coast birds (SANCCOB) in Cape Town. A total of 129 oiled African penguis were rescued from the islands along the southern Namibian coastline following an unidentified oil spill and transported to SANCCOB in the first-ever cross-border penguin rescue. The penguins will undergo a rehabilitation program before being released back into the ocean. African penguins are listed as vulnerable to extinction and there are only 27,000 breeding pairs of these charismatic birds left.

Source:
http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=287963&version=1&template_id=39&parent_id=21

A Very Funny Commentary on Penguins

Perplexed by penguins...

By B Comber, Posted on » Friday, May 01, 2009


Penguins are, without doubt, sometimes as bad as people, and despite the PR job done by the films March Of The Penguins and Happy Feet a few years ago, I have always viewed them with suspicion. The Penguin, after all, was a menace to Batman, while another Penguin almost brought about the downfall of Wallace and Gromit in The Wrong Trousers. A coincidence? I think not.

In view of this, I was not surprised when findings about penguin behaviour were brought to my attention, for they confirmed the insidious nature of these creatures. Published in the September 2007 issue of the journal Polar Biology, the paper, Responses Of Emperor Penguins To Encounters With Ecotourists While Commuting To And From Their Breeding Colony, by Burger and Gochfeld, reports research conducted to determine the effects on tourists of penguins waddling or tobogganing across the ice, when commuting between their colony and the sea.

The findings show that on average, a penguin notices people when they are 35.6 metres away, and changes direction when the distance has gone down to 22.8 metres. These distances increase when there are more people around. Furthermore, when penguin tobogganers notice people, they stop, stand up and often call. Later in the day they stop for less time and respond less quickly to people.

These figures agree with my own research on human commuters: they notice me coming when I am about 35 metres away, but pretend otherwise and wait until the gap has decreased to 22 metres before they start to lurch directly into my path. Having got in my way, they stop, stand still and often call a friend or hold a conversation with a companion. Later in the day, it gets worse, just as with the penguins. For they are tired and irritable after a day's work, move more lethargically, react more slowly and generally get in the way even more.

This all becomes even more worrying when viewed in the light of a later report on penguins from researchers on Marion Island in the south Indian Ocean last year. Their report - stop reading here if you are easily shocked - concerned a sighting of an Antarctic fur seal attempting to have sex with a king penguin. Apparently, the seal subdued the penguin by lying on top of it, then spent 45 minutes trying to make love to it, before finally giving up and flobbling its way back to the sea, completely ignoring, according to the researchers, the bird it had just assaulted. (Yes, I know 'flobbling' isn't a word, but it seems perfect to describe a seal's mode of locomotion).

The researchers put it all down to the seal's lack of sexual experience, but I suspect the penguin had led him on. After all, it must have seen him approaching 35 metres away and could have waddled out of the way. Worse still, the researchers say they do not know the penguin's sex.

Source:
http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/NewsDetails.aspx?storyid=249347

Penguin exhibit opens Saturday at Woodland Park Zoo

Penguin exhibit opens Saturday at Woodland Park Zoo

By Madeline McKenzie

Seattle Times staff

Woodland Park Zoo's penguins have a new home and everyone's invited to come and celebrate at the Humboldt penguin exhibit opening Saturday.

The all-new 17,000-square-foot exhibit re-creates the penguins' native habitat in Peru with shoreline cliffs, waves and rocky pools. For visitors, there are vantage points to see the penguins splash, dive and "fly" underwater.


Source:
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/outdoors/2009146947_nwwhighlight30.html?cmpid=2628

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Originally uploaded by pijus

Adelie feet