Study: Lack of Ice Threatens Young Penguins
2023-08-30
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1WASHINGTON -Researchers, using information gathered by satellites, say the loss of ice in Antarctica hurts the survival chances of rare seabirds.
2The large flightless birds are called emperor penguins.
3They raise their young in groups, or colonies, on ice that forms around the continent.
4The ice partly melts during the summer months.
5The British and French researchers studied satellite images to look at five breeding colonies of the birds in the area of the Bellingshausen Sea in 2022.
6They said the images showed no sea ice was left in December during the Southern Hemisphere's summer.
7This also happened in 2021, the researchers noted.
8The scientists said four of the five colonies they studied had been affected by early sea ice loss.
9Emperor penguin chicks are born on the ice in Antarctica that forms during the winter there.
10The ice is important because penguin chicks do not develop waterproof feathers for one to two months after they are born.
11Peter Fretwell is a researcher with the British Antarctic Survey who helped write the study.
12He said, "If the sea ice breaks up under them, the young chicks will drown."
13The scientists published their research in the journal Communications Earth & Environment.
14Fretwell's team also started a study of places where the penguins make their nests across Antarctica.
15They were able to identify the nesting places in satellite images because the birds' waste is darker than the surrounding snow.
16The scientists estimate that there are 300,000 breeding pairs of emperor penguins in Antarctica.
17The birds are the world's largest penguin.
18Fretwell told the Associated Press that 30 percent of the 62 known penguin colonies were hurt by low levels of sea ice.
19He said 13 colonies likely failed.
20Daniel Zitterbart studies Antarctica at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in the state of Massachusetts.
21He was not involved in the study. But Zitterbart said he was not surprised by the results of the penguin study.
22He said that, if penguins are not successful breeding in one place, they might look for another place next year.
23The population could recover.
24But Zitterbart noted, "If you look further out down the line, how many suitable places will be left?"
25I'm Dr. Gena Bennett.
1WASHINGTON -Researchers, using information gathered by satellites, say the loss of ice in Antarctica hurts the survival chances of rare seabirds. 2The large flightless birds are called emperor penguins. They raise their young in groups, or colonies, on ice that forms around the continent. The ice partly melts during the summer months. 3The British and French researchers studied satellite images to look at five breeding colonies of the birds in the area of the Bellingshausen Sea in 2022. 4They said the images showed no sea ice was left in December during the Southern Hemisphere's summer. This also happened in 2021, the researchers noted. 5The scientists said four of the five colonies they studied had been affected by early sea ice loss. 6Emperor penguin chicks are born on the ice in Antarctica that forms during the winter there. The ice is important because penguin chicks do not develop waterproof feathers for one to two months after they are born. 7Peter Fretwell is a researcher with the British Antarctic Survey who helped write the study. He said, "If the sea ice breaks up under them, the young chicks will drown." 8The scientists published their research in the journal Communications Earth & Environment. 9Fretwell's team also started a study of places where the penguins make their nests across Antarctica. They were able to identify the nesting places in satellite images because the birds' waste is darker than the surrounding snow. The scientists estimate that there are 300,000 breeding pairs of emperor penguins in Antarctica. The birds are the world's largest penguin. 10Fretwell told the Associated Press that 30 percent of the 62 known penguin colonies were hurt by low levels of sea ice. He said 13 colonies likely failed. 11Daniel Zitterbart studies Antarctica at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in the state of Massachusetts. He was not involved in the study. But Zitterbart said he was not surprised by the results of the penguin study. 12He said that, if penguins are not successful breeding in one place, they might look for another place next year. The population could recover. 13But Zitterbart noted, "If you look further out down the line, how many suitable places will be left?" 14I'm Dr. Gena Bennett. 15Gena Bennett adapted this Associated Press report for VOA Learning English. 16____________________________________________________ 17Words in This Story 18chick -n. a baby bird 19journal -v. a publication that reports on special interest subjects, especially ones linked to university learning 20breeding pair -n. two animals that are ready to reproduce and raise young 21down the line -idiom at a later time 22suitable -adj. having the qualities that are needed or required