Pygoscelis adeliae
Range
They are found in Antarctica.
Habitat
They live on the Antarctic ice shelf and in the water around it.
Body Traits
They are 27″ tall. They are black all over except for their white belly and the underside of their flippers. Their eyes are each circled by a white ring.
Habits
Adelies travel 30-100 km over the ice to reach their breeding colony every year. Some colonies may be 300 km from open water. They are hunted by leopard seals and other birds, like the skua, sheathbill, and giant petrel.
Diet
They eat small fish.
Reproduction
Thousands of Adelies gather together in large “rookeries” to mate and build rock nests for their 2 eggs from December to February. They don’t balance their eggs on their feet to keep them warm. They have a featherless, bare spot on their belly called a “brood patch” that keeps the eggs warm until they hatch after about 33 days.
Classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vetebrata
Class: Aves
Order: Sphenisciformes
Family: Spheniscidae
Genus: Pygoscelis
Species: P. adeliae