Penguins

This book looks at the natural history of the penguins - an enduringly popular and fascinating group of birds.

Penguins are associated in the public consciousness with the icecap of the South Pole, and we are all familiar with images of male Emperor Penguins clustered together through the long night of the Antarctic winter as they incubate the single egg on their feet.

However, several species occur in warmer regions further north, in southern Africa, South America, Australia, New Zealand and even the Galapagos. All are flightless but are beautifully adapted swimmers and divers, and many are able to travel at high speed on dry land by means of spectacular leaps and belly-slides. Most species breed in close-knit colonies, and exhibit a complex system of social behaviour.

This book looks at all aspects of penguin evolution, biology, ecology and sociobiology, as well as conservation issues affecting the group. It is illustrated with beautiful line drawings and black and white photographs, and has a full-colour photographic section.