April 25 - World Penguin Day

Posted on April 25, 2022

Key Points

This is an update of my post published on April 25, 2011:

On (or around) April 25 each year, the Adelie penguins of Ross Island begin a great northward migration.

Or maybe a not-so-great migration. First, since they cannot fly, they waddle to the water and then swim. Second, they only swim a few hundred miles before they stop at the Balleny Islands. There they start feeding on krill and other seafood—and they stay there all winter long.

(Remember, other than zoo penguins, penguins only live in the Southern Hemisphere. They are enduring the shorter and colder days of autumn right now, heading toward winter, while most of us are enjoying spring and heading toward summer.)

Someone decided to mark the starting day of the Adelie’s annual migration as World Penguin Day. Even though most penguins migrate—some mostly waddling to and from breeding grounds, and others mostly swimming—and most penguins have different schedules and routes—celebrating all penguins today is a great idea!

Most zoos and aquaria don’t have penguins –
but they are very popular at those locations that do!

So…Celebrate!

Wear black and white today.

Here is an entire blog about penguins.

Do a jigsaw puzzle of a penguin.

Print out some pictures of penguins to color or do dot-to-dot.

Kid Zone has other penguin activities and info pages—plus a nice slide show (click “Penguin Photos”).

Penguins are one of the most popular
bird species for plushies!