Penguin Surveillence
Holy Satellite, Batman! It’s the Penguin!
No, not really, citizens. I wish this story was as entertaining as the Batman TV series from the 1960s. The story here handed the British press a fantastic story. Note the great lead in the piece from The Times:
It may be the king of the species but the personal hygiene of emperor penguins is far from regal. Vast expanses of penguin droppings that are visible from space are helping scientists pinpoint the whereabouts of penguin colonies in Antarctica.
Using satellite images, British scientists were able to locate penguin communities by the reddish brown patches, known as guano, left by the birds on the sea ice. They say the results of the study will help them to monitor the emperor penguin population in the face of climate change.
Emperors, which have white bellies, black backs and distinctive golden ear patches, are the largest members of the penguin family. They can grow to 122cm (4ft) tall and weigh around 30kg (5st) as adults.
“The ice gets pretty dirty and it’s the guano stains that we can see,” said Peter Fretwell of the British Antarctic Survey (BAS), who led the study.
The video clip from the Associated Press was just as tasteful, and informative…
Other editors had a field day with this one.
Polar penguin’s poo pinpointed in space pics (Tech Herald)
Scientists hit pay dirt with penguin droppings (Sydney Morning Herald)
Satellite snoops on penguin poop to track colonies (AFP)
Penguin poo patches seen from space (The Press Association)
