Tag: chicks

Apr252019 by adminNo Comments

Antarctica: Thousands of emperor penguin chicks wiped out

Science

Thousands of emperor penguin chicks drowned when the sea-ice on which they were being raised was destroyed in severe weather.The catastrophe occurred in 2016 in Antarctica's Weddell Sea.Scientists say the colony at the edge of the Brunt Ice Shelf has collapsed with adult birds showing no sign of trying to re-establish the population. And it would probably be pointless for them to try as a giant iceberg is about to disrupt the site. The dramatic loss of the young emperor birds is reported by a team from the British Antarctic Survey (BAS). Drs Peter Fretwell and Phil Trathan noticed the disappearance of ...

Jul222018 by adminNo Comments

Arctic wild goose chase threatens chicks as temperatures rise

Science

Rising temperatures in the Arctic are encouraging Barnacle geese to speed up their migration journeys north every spring, says a new study.But their efforts to go faster are leaving them too drained to lay their eggs early when they arrive. This is bad news for the species as their chicks are hatched too late to take advantage of the best food, so fewer are surviving. The scientists involved say the birds will have to adapt and migrate earlier. Every spring these geese set out from their temperate wintering grounds in the North Sea, often stopping off in the Baltic to rest on their way to their breeding areas in the Russian Arctic.Goose bumpsHowever climate change is seeing spring arrive earlier in the Arctic, something the geese are blissfully unaware of...