Climate crisis and penguins: tails in Antarctica

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It melts under the rump.

The penguins are sitting in the sand.

According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the Antarctic ice sheet lost almost three trillion tons of ice between 1992 and 2020 – an almost unimaginable amount.

Researchers want to find out what consequences this decline has for life in the Antarctic by closely observing penguins over a longer period of time.

Alex Borowicz, polar ecologist:

The biologists count by hand - and have found that the lack of ice is particularly difficult for the Adelie penguins.

Michael Wethington, PhD student:

Adelies can be recognized by their short beak and the white circles around their eyes.

The species is particularly well adapted to extreme cold.

A breeding group in the Ross Sea is even considered the southernmost bird colony in the world.

But due to the rising temperatures, they no longer have their habitat just for themselves.

This Antarctic summer, in some areas where the researchers have only encountered Adelies so far, they also discovered these birds with red beaks and a white stripe across their foreheads: gentoo penguins.

Michael Wethington, PhD student:

So this is what climate crisis winners look like.

And so the losers.